Landscape: Plexiglas Drypoint
You are where you've been
For this project students will look at the places they have lived, visited, vacationed to and consider how they have been shaped by a variety of landscapes and natural elements. Explanation and demonstrations in Drypoint and Intaglio printing will introduce students to an entirely new printing process focusing on line qualities, value, and texture. Working from a photograph of their own experience, students will create a detailed yet dreamy depiction of a place that has shaped their identity. A limited edition of final prints will complete this inky exploration.
Criteria:
- Choose a place that is meaningful to you (landscape preferred). Find pictures (specifically your photos if possible) to use as reference.
- Use the photos as subject matter for the in-class exercises. Keep all your work as proof of your effort and possible material for collage. The color mixing and mark making exercises will be particularly helpful for adding variety and interest to your final prints.
- Create a final sketch of your place composing your design within the CD format. Fill the whole space and use a range of values (light to dark). THE DESIGN DOES NOT HAVE TO BE HIGHLY REALISTIC, BUT IT SHOULD REFLECT YOUR FEELINGS AND EXPERIENCE OF BEING IN THAT PLACE.
- Transfer your design and use a variety of mark making textures in your final drypoint design.
- Watch the printing demonstrations carefully and make 2 or more practice prints for points.
- Utilize careful craftsmanship, collaborate with a "clean hands" person to help achieve good alignment, clean papers and even inking (even wetness of the paper) for all your final prints.
- Make a series of 5-8 final prints. They should NOT be all alike; explore different layering techniques using stencils, texture plates, blend rolls, and other color mixing techniques.
- Have fun with it and see what new methods you discover along the way!
- Intaglio- A type of printing that involves incising (rough linework) a plate to create a design, then rubbing ink into the grooves and wiping the surface clean. The ink transfers to damp paper using the printing press.
- Dry Point- A type of intaglio where you scratch directly into the plate (plexiglas or copper) using a sharp stylus to create a burr that catches and holds ink.
- Tarleton- A stiff mesh cloth used to wipe the intaglio ink off the plate. The wiping step is repeated with tissue paper and Q-tips to remove unwanted plate tone.
- Stylus- A sharp tool used to scratch into the plate surface; creating the design, linework, textures and values.
- Plate-tone- Excess ink not rubbed off the plate. A "lazy" way to create value and lighting affects in your design.
- Printing Press- A machine used to put even pressure on the paper and printing plate to quickly and consistently reproduce the image.
- Textures and mark-making- repeating lines and marks in varying densities to add interest and lighting affects in your design.
- Series Edition VS Limited Edition- A Series Edition has similarities and incorporates variations whereas a Limited Edition the prints are all alike and only a certain number are produced.
- Monoprint- Aprint that is unique and not reproducible, meant to be one of a kind.
- Landscape- A theme in art that incorporates the natural surroundings of a space or place.
- Foreground- The objects that occupy the area closes to the artist's point of view (take up the lower 1/2 of the picture plane)
- Background- The objects that are furthest away from the artist's point of view. Typically taking up the middle 1/2 of the picture plane.
- Middle ground- The area between the foreground and the background- most successful compositions incorporate overlapping and scale reduction to show the illusion of spacial depth.