By Alexandria Baker
Currently in the VU Gallery, the work of artist Carrie Lingscheit is on display, in an exhibit called “Momentos.” The gallery is free to the public, and can be visited Mon – Fri, 11 a.m. – 5 p.m..
In a previous issue of the paper, the AS Review covered a bit of Lingscheit’s technique, intaglio printing, stating: “The artist etches the design into the paper and then the sunken areas of the paper hold the pigmentation. That means that Lingscheit’s work was all done blind and then filled in after.” Unfortunately, we were alerted that our explanation of the process was incorrect, so we’d like to take a moment to better describe the process of intaglio printmaking.
Essentially, intaglio printmaking is the direct opposite of the process of making a relief print. The artist cuts the lines that will be printed into a metal plate of some sort, using either a handheld tool called a burin, or by use of acid. When acid is used, the plate is protected with a resin or acid-resistant wax. Then, the lines are cut into the protective layer to reveal the metal plate. Finally, the plate is dipped into acid, where the acid corrodes the exposed lines of the plate, creating the basic lines for the print.
Next, ink is rubbed into the recessed lines of the plate. Excess ink is often removed at the end of this step with the use of an old newspaper or phonebook. Once the excess ink is removed, a damp paper is placed over the plate, and covered with a thick blanket. Damp paper is preferred because it is more malleable, and can be better pushed into the grooves when the print goes through the rolling press.
The rolling press exerts high pressure on the paper, transferring the ink from the plate onto the paper. When the press is removed, the final image is revealed on the paper. This information was found via the wiki page at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intaglio_(printmaking).
We hope you will take some time on your own to visit “Momentos” and see for yourself the intricacies of this complex artistic medium.