Table of Contents
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Name: Sahar Bostock
Date and Time:
Location: Lab
Subject: Linocut 1
I brought to class a few images that I found on google so that I could transfer one of them to the lino block.
I chose the dog and cat picture, it seemed to me the simplest pattern, not too many thin lines that demand extreme accuracy. I imagined that carving out the most and leaving only thin lines would be very difficult.
I transferred the image by rubbing the back of the paper with charcoal so it became black.
Then I placed it on the lino block, taped it, and followed the lines of the image with a pencil.
After I finished tracing the lines with a pencil, I lifted the paper and saw that it worked - the lines transferred to the lino block!
I drew a line with a sharpie and a ruler to mark the edges of the block that I don’t want to carve out. I left a frame of about 1 cm around the edges of the block. This is important for the printing process later.
Now I could start carving.
First, I used the cutter with the thin head - number 1, to carve along the lines that I drew.
I had to keep in mind that the lines are marking the area which would be printed, and that I want to curve out everything around the lines, everything that would stay white.
In order not to confuse the black and the white areas of my image, I filled the black parts with black pen scribbles. I also kept the original paper with the image so I can always check it.
I started carving out the linoleum. At the beginning it was not easy to understand how to hold the cutter, how much power to use, where to place the hand that holds the block.
Through the process I understood that I managed to carve more easily when I didn’t use so much power. Instead, wiggling the cutter while directing it along the line that I wanted to cut was much more efficient. It also helped to turn the block while I’m carving, for some reason circular movements eased the removal of the material from the surface of the block.(made the lino get out easily.) Trying to carve a straight line was more difficult, as my hand kept on slipping and I scratched the surface of the block a little.
I took home the block, the handle and two cutting heads in the sizes of 1 and 3.
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Name: Sahar Bostock
Date and Time:
Location: Home
Subject: Linocut 2
I decided to add my initials to the image, and the number 18 (for the semester fall 2018).
I wrote the letters and digits SB18 on a piece of paper, and then copied it in reverse to the block, so that it would print in the right direction.
I drew a thin line for the letters and digits, but when I started carving with the thin cutter (no. 1) I realized that I need much wider lines to make the letters and digits to appear when printing.
Consequently I changed the width of the letters and digits without drawing them again, but only carving around them and leaving wider areas around them not carved.
It was the most difficult part in making the linocut. Especially carving out the holes inside the B and the 8. I felt that I could use a thinner head, but this is the thinnest I had.
Name: Sahar Bostock
Date and Time:
Location: Lab
Subject: Polishing the copper plate for engraving
I received a copper plate.
I polished the plate using a special polishing solution, and paper towels.
I rubbed the plate in circular movements for a few minutes. I applied the polishing solution twice.
Each time, after rubbing the solution, the plate became black, and I tried to take off the black residue by polishing more. Gradually, the plate became more shiny.
The mark to stop was - when we see our eyelashes reflecting from the plate. I am not sure that I really managed to see my eyelashes so clearly, but I could see the general contours of my face: eyes, nose, eyebrows, mouth.
I wrapped the plate, wrote my initials and left it at the lab.
Name: Sahar Bostock
Date and Time:
Location: Lab
Subject: Engraving + Applying a ground to the zinc plate
Engraving - Ad sat with me and showed me personally how to hold the burin and how to engrave. I thought that I understood the instructions, but it wasn’t until the day after when I felt that my body managed to act according to them. (more details in the next day)
Polishing the zinc plate:
I used the same technique as with the copper plate - applied some polishing solution on the plate and rubbed it with paper towel. The paper towel became black. I continued to rub even after I cleared all the solution residue. When I used some force, the paper towel picked up more black layers of zinc. I continued until I felt that the plate was shiny.
Applying a ground to the zinc plate:
After watching Ad’s demonstration, I chose to apply the dark etching ground to my zinc plate.
The process is:
Cleaning the plate with acetone and a paper towel.
Heating the plate by holding it with a clamp a few centimeters above the hot plate.
The plate itself should not touch the heating source, otherwise the zinc would melt.
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When the plate was hot I took the ground and tried to rub it onto the plate. The most difficult thing was to know when is the plate hot enough. I tried to apply the ground a few times. When it was sticky and didn’t spread well, it meant that the plate is still too cold. When the ground was more flexible and moved smoothly on the plate it meant that it was hot enough.
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I used a feather to spread the ground evenly all over the plate. It wasn’t so easy, and I had to do it quickly so that the ground won’t burn. I used the feather to spread the ground around the area of the clamp.
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When it started to smoke I took it off the stove and placed it on a piece of paper in the fume hood. I applied some more ground to the area that was held by the clamp. Then I moved the plate with the paper underneath it to the benchtop and let it cool down.
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I took home the copper plate and the burin, and left the zinc plate to dry at the lab.
Name: Sahar Bostock
Date and Time:
Location: Lab
Subject: Engraving + transferring an image to the etching plate
Engraving:
Ad replaced my burin because he thought it wasn’t sharp enough. It was a relief to blame my unsuccessful engraving trials on the burin.
However, I realized that I was too nervous about holding the burin, and used too much force when I tried to engrave, which caused my hand to slip and I kept scratching the plate. It was only experience that made my body understand the (very small) amount of pressure that should be used when engraving. When I started to relax, I managed to control my hand better, and to stop engraving when I wanted to finish a line without scratching the plate. That was a great improvement.
My instinct was to wiggle my hand with the burin just as I did with the linocut, but Ad said that it’s not the right way here.
Transferring an image to the etching plate:
Because my plate was covered with dark ground I wasn’t sure whether I would be able to use charcoal copy paper. I tried placing the copy paper on my zinc plate and the paper with my design on top of it. Then I made a small circle on the top paper, just to check it - it worked! I could see the circle on my zinc plate.
We also considered using white chalk, as we did with the charcoal and the lino block - to rub white chalk powder on the back of the paper with the design and then place it on the zinc plate and trace it. However, because the copy paper worked well, and I had to go to another class and take the materials home, using the copy paper was the easiest way.
Name: Sahar Bostock
Date and Time:
Location: Home
Subject: Transferring an image and using the etching needle
I placed the copy paper on my zinc plate, and on it the paper with the design.
I chose a more complicated design (in comparison with the one I used for the linocut), because I thought that the technique of using a needle like drawing would be the easiest of all printing techniques.
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I traced the design with a pencil. It was harder than I imagined it would be, and I wondered whether my mistakes would be visible on the zinc plate.
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After I transferred the design, I started following it with my needle.
It took me time to feel comfortable with holding the needle. I tried to hold it the way Ad presented in class, but I felt that I had more control when I held it more closely like holding a pencil. I kept changing the way I held the needle throughout my work.
I wasn’t sure how hard to press on the needle, and how wide do the lines have to be?
At the beginning I felt that wider lines would be the best, so the first when I marked the first image - the dog - I went back and forth over the same lines to make them deeper.
When I moved to the other image of the bicycle I decided to mark the lines only one time, and see the difference when I print it.
The process of marking/drawing on the covered plate removed the black ground from the lines I created. I had to clean my needle every few moments and also used a tissue to remove the residue from my plate every few minutes. My instinct was to clean the needle with my hand, but I knew it was sharp so I tried to use tissue to clean it as well.
To be able to see the coal lines of my image and to follow them I had to place the plate in a position that would have enough light on it. I had to play with it and turn the plate to be able to see well in different stages of my work.
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I wanted to try to write some words in reverse. First I thought I could write them on a piece of paper and then flip it, transfer it with the copy paper and then draw it with the needle.
But it seemed to me like a lot of work, so I thought I could try to mark the letters in reverse using a pencil, and if it goes well I could draw it with the needle.
I started using a pencil and writing the words in reverse. Apparently I had some places on the plate in which the ground was to thin, so the pencil went through the ground and removed it.
It left me no choice but to write all words with the needle.
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Name: Sahar Bostock
Date and Time:
Location: Lab
Subject: Etching the zinc plate
Before etching the plate we had to tape its edges to prevent foul etching.
We had to leave a tail of tape that would allow us to take the plate out of the acid. See the tail in the picture below on the left side, it was a little bit longer than what is visible in the picture.
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I put the plate into the bath of acid, in the fume hood.
I used a feather to remove unwanted particles of copper from the grooves that were created by the biting of the acid.
After 8 minutes approximately I took the plate out of the acid bath and placed it in the water bath next to it.
Then I rinsed it with water in the sink.
Since I wasn’t sure whether the grooves were deep enough to print, I repeated the process two more times.
Eventually I thought that my grooves were full of copper particles, but Ad said that it would print, so I moved to the next step - removing the ground.
I held the plate with a clamp and put it above the heater for a few minutes. I tried to wipe the ground with paper towel. Only when the ground seemed to be soft and flexible I removed it from the heater and rubbed it off the plate with more paper towels.
I wiped it with oil to remove the rest of the residue.
I washed the plate under the sink with water and soap, dried it, and took it home.
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Name: Sahar Bostock
Date and Time:
Location: Teachers College
Subject: Printing my etched plate
Before I could print my plate, I had to bevel its edges to make sure they don’t cut the paper or hurt the printer.
I used a beveling tool to scrape the sides of the plate, and then sanded the corners with sand paper (and with another big tool which its name I don’t know).
I started with beveling my copper plate, because it was easier to learn the technique on the more flexible material.
Only later I beveled my zinc plate. It was much harder and left cracks on the sides of the plate.
After I sanded the corners, I sanded the sides of the plate as well, to remove the cracks, or soften them.
Applying ink:
I first washed my zinc plate with a solution of vinegar and salt to remove any remains of copper from the grooves. Then I washed it with water and dried it with paper towel.
I applied some ink on the plate by dabbing in a few spots. Then I rubbed it with a little piece of carton paper until it was quite even all over the plate.
I used a cloth to rub the ink well into the grooves. I used circular motions to make sure the whole plate was full with ink evenly.
I placed a newsprint on the plate and pressed on it, trying to apply pressure evenly on the whole plate. Then I folded my newsprint and did the same technique with a clean side. I did the same thing with another two newsprints.
Then I took a clean newsprint, folded it 4 times, and used it to gently rub off the ink from the plate.
Cleaning the ink from the plate without removing it from the grooves was the most difficult part of the process. I had to rub the plate very carefully and make sure I don’t rub it too hard.
Eventually, I arrived to a stage that my plate was clean but had some really thin patches of black colour. I decided it’s enough. I cleaned the edges and the corners of the plate with a cloth.
I placed the plate on a clean newsprint next to the printing roller. I took off my gloves, and with clean hands I pick a hand made paper and placed it on my plate. I then covered it with another newsprint and put it under the rolling press. I placed the felt on it, made sure there are no holes or air bubbles under the felt by passing my hand on it.
I started rolling the press slowly until my plate came out of the other side. I removed the felt, the newsprint, and gently peeled the paper from the plate.
The result was interesting - the dog printed well! That was the part I made extra deep lines.
The bicycle and the writing had both good visible parts and weaker parts.
Ad’s guess is that the art of inking and then cleaning the plate is the most difficult part and therefore if I could do it again a few more times and experience with it, I should get a better result.
Unfortunately I had no more time to print the plate again, since I had another class to run to.
I didn’t print my copper plate since I hadn’t managed to engrave enough lines.
I didn’t have a chance to print my lino block, I hope to do it in the lab in another time.
I also left my phone in my bag during the whole session and did not take any photos of the process.
I washed the plate with SoySolv solution: I applied the solution, used gloves to rub it well into the grooves, let it stand for 2 minutes, and then washed it with water and soap.
I dried the plate with paper towel.
My plate after printing and cleaning:
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My copper plate - waiting to be engraved more.
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My linocut ready to print:
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