Starting off.....and doing a bit more

I'm using two  plates for the print - one copper plate using etching and drypoint, and another cardboard collagraph plate.  Each will bring their own qualities and textures, and hopefully the combination of the two will add a good variation of depth and tone.  I am a bit worried that I'll do my usual trick of trying to put too much in, and cause the image to be too busy, so I'm trying to keep my enthusiasm for lots of different techniques under control.

The collagraph plate will be printed before (and therefore appear in the image underneath) the etched plate, but, contrary as I am, I've made the copper etched plate first. 

Before starting on the plate, I used tracing paper to transfer the design from the drawing, reversing it at the same time (by putting chalk on the underside of the tracing paper, turning it over and drawing over it on the plate, so that the chalk lines transfer onto the copper).

I then added the resist to the plate.  This is basically a barrier of any sort which stops the acid from getting to the metal.  Wherever the acid 'bites' the metal, it will leave a rough surface which will allow ink to get into it, and eventually be transferred to paper during the printing process.  So any areas which you want to be dark in the final print should be left free of resist.  Combine this with having to reverse the image and it's all a bit mind-boggling, and certainly not for the airy-fairy!

A lot of printmakers use stop-out varnish (incredibly pungent and hard to remove) and soft ground for resists - it all takes ages and I can never be bothered.  As I don't use nitric acid but Ferric Chloride (far less corrosive and much slower acting) I can get away with quite a lot.  I tend to just use nail varnish as it's cheap and easy to remove.

To add extra texture and interest I also used emery paper to scratch into the resist and a drypoint needle to scrape some away in a more precise line and let the acid get to the metal.

 

Then it's time to put it in the chemical bath.  A bit of a random recipe I'm afraid, just till it looks about the right colour and in hot water to help activate the reaction.  Nothing spectacular happens as with nitric acid (much more fun in my opinion but fumes and liquid far too dangerous for me to use at home).  I leave it in there for a while, agitating it occasionally to get rid of any deposits lying on top of the plate. 

And when it comes out, it looks like this:

I want to add a bit more interest and detailed lines, so I add some lines direct using a drypoint needle.  I love the slightly 'off' lines of fifties style prints and also the lovely soft, deep marks you get with drypoint in copper.

I'm also not very pleased with the look of the sky, which looks to have too much contrast in it. I've used emery paper to try and soften the marks, and also hope that the scratches of the emery paper will hold the ink, and give some more texture and interest, but this is all part of the experiment. 

Until I actually print from it, I can't really tell whether it's bitten deeply enough yet.  This can be the Very Disappointing Part of the printmaking process, but time will tell.......

Tomorrow, the collagraph plate, which can be briefly summed up as Fun With Glue.