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Alphabetical listing of the New Printmaking Terminology - Courtesy of Keith Howard
Acrylic Aquatint - First documented in by Keith Howard in his 1991 publication "Safe Photo Etching for Photographers and Artists" where Speedball Screen Filler is airbrushed onto a copper plate and etched.
Acrylic Resist Etching - A term to describe the use of liquid acrylics and polymers in making etch-resist grounds for metal plates.
Acrylic Soft-Ground - An acrylic soft-ground first developed by Keith Howard in 1991. A small amount of water soluble Graphic Chemical 1659 black relief ink is roll-coated onto a copper plate. While the ink is wet soft-ground textures are pressed into this ink-ground after which the ground is dried and plate etched in ferric chloride. After etching the plate is printed.
Aeration - A method, using a fish tank aerator, for circulating ferric chloride, or any etchant in a vertical etching tank, developed by Keith Howard in 1997.
Akua ink - Water-based inks made with gum-based binders, developed by printmakers Susan Rostow & William Jung. Rostow & Jung offer 2 types of inks. The original, Akua Kolor was developed for monotype in 1996. Akua Intaglio, developed in 2001, is thicker and tackier than Akua Kolor. Akua Oil converter medium will convert Akua Intaglio into a stiffer oil ink, that still cleans up with soap and water.
Aquatint Screen - A transparent screen with opaque random dots, generally made through an imagesetter onto lithfilm, which is used to simulate the effect of a traditional intaglio aquatint when the screen is exposed to an ImagOn plate. Used in conjunction with Intaglio-Type Non-Etch techniques.
Aquatint Intaglio-Type - Techniques, developed by Keith Howard in 2003, to utilize airbrush stencils to create tonal variations with the Intaglio-Type non-etch technique.
Ink-Emboss with Intaglio-Type - Refers to the thickness of the ink on the final print.
Badger Acrylic Aquatint Solution for Printmakers - An acrylic aquatint solution developed by Keith Howard and Elizabeth Dove in 1997 in collaboration with the Badger Airbrush Company, as a high quality airbrushed acrylic aquatint.
Bordeaux Etch - First introduced into printmaking by Cedric Green, is a copper sulphate solution designed for etching zinc plates quickly and safely.
Citric Acid - A non-toxic additive which enhances a ferric chloride based etching bath by preventing sedimentation. A major component of the Edinburgh Etch when added to Ferric Chloride.
Combination Techniques - Refers to combining different printmaking techniques to achieve unique results.
Construction Intaglio-Type - Pieces of photopolymer film are added or constructed onto a plate where the final print shows the delineation of each constructed piece. A common Intaglio-Type plate re-working technique.
Contemporary Printmaking - A new philosophical approach of knowledge sharing and enthusiasm for safer printmaking practices and innovation. It is not just about non-toxic printmaking practices but also the integration of computer imagery and technology with traditional painting and drawing skills. It is a user friendly approach to printmaking that offers the intaglio printmaker a totally new realm of creative image making. It is fundamentally a new printmaking discipline that integrates technology, unbridled enthusiasm, dynamic creative potential, and health and environmental awareness.
Copper Sulphate - A common metal salt used to make up the Saline Sulphate Etch or The Bordeaux Etch.
Collagraph Marks - Dried acrylic marks are so hard wearing on a plate that they can be used as a raised printing surface. This is often combined with intaglio marks or Intaglio-Type techniques which have incised marks into the plate through etching or mechanical action.
Crackle Intaglio-Type - A non-exposure technique, developed by Keith Howard in 2001, where a raw unexposed ImagOn plate is heated on a hot-plate and then painted with Gum Arabic. As the Gum dries it cracks. The plate is developed in the soda ash developer and then printed.
Crisco Lift - A very detailed lift process in which positive marks are established with melted vegetable fat, coated with floor varnish, aquatinted, and then etched.
Destruction-Ground - An etch resist technique, first developed by Keith Howard in 1991, where Speedball Screen Filler is diluted and painted onto a copper plate. It is then etched in ferric chloride and printed revealing a corresponding tonal value to the thickness that the screen filler was applied to the plate. Many other types of acrylics can be substitute with the screen filler to create a variety of marks.
Digital Halftone - A halftone is an image created with a series of large and small dots to facilitate photo reproduction plate making techniques. A digital halftone is made through computer technology and printed from laser or inkjet printers onto clear film.
Direct Intaglio-Type - A technique, developed by Keith Howard in 2000, where the top Mylar of an Intaglio-Type plate is used to carry the image prior to exposing the plate in the exposure unit.
Direct Mark Making (Acrylic Resist Etching) - In this method marks, textures and washes are established directly with acrylics on a metal plate, and then etched.
Related Topics: Open Bite and Destruction Ground.
Drafting Mylar - A type of Mylar film which has in ingrained tooth designed to receive pencil and other drawing media. Used as a tracing film where wet media will not cause the Drafting Mylar to buckle.
Duo-Tone Intaglio-Type - Intaglio-Type made from two plates with two different tonal values of one color.
Edinburgh Etch - A mixture of ferric chloride and citric acid, invented by Friedhard Kiekeben in 1997, which offers a superior etchant for printmakers.
Etched Intaglio-Type - Developed by Keith Howard in 1996, where an ImagOn plate emulsion is thinned by placing it in a 10% soda ash developing/thinning solution for 8 minutes. The plate is then dried and exposed to a halftone image, redeveloped, etched and then printed.
Etching Plates - Sheet Metal plates suitable for metal salt and acrylic resist etching include copper, zinc, brass, aluminium, and mild steel plates. Each of these metals has its unique etching and printing characteristics. Plates can also be used as laminating substrate for photopolymer films.
Etching Press - A printing press resembling a mangle. Two moving rollers are mounted on top of each other with the printing bed sandwiched in between. The very high pressures typically leave an embossed plate mark in the printing paper. The etching press is now also used for Intaglio Type Printmaking.
Exposure System - Refers to an exposure unit or plate maker for exposing ImagOn ULTRA plates to an image.
Ferric Chloride - A metal salt etching agent which can be bought as a saturated solution from chemical suppliers. It is often used in vertical etching tanks and as a base ingredient for the Edinburgh Etch.
Flash Exposure - This refers to a burst of light to a naked ImagOn plate. The duration of the light is such that the tonal range of the image on the plate is increased.
Flow Coating - A hard-ground plate coating technique where Future or Klear acrylic floor finish is poured onto a clean etching plate.
Future Hard-Ground - A hard-ground made by flow-coating Future Acrylic Finish onto a metal etching plate. The European substitute for Future is called Klear.
4-color Intaglio-Type - A technique developed by Elizabeth Dove in 2002, where a full color Intaglio-Type print are made in conjunction with, process colors, full density digital halftones and Aquatinted ImagOn plates.
ImagOn Developer - Is made from 10% soda ash or anhydrous sodium carbonate solution. It is a soft-water solution comprising of 10 gms of soda ash and 1 litre of pH 7 water.
ImagOn Plate - A metal or plastic plate laminated with ImagOn photopolymer film.
ImagOn ULTRA - Du Pont made, high resolution, dry, photopolymer film, used for intaglio printmaking.
Intaglio Printmaking - Is a method of inking a plate whereby the ink is forced into lines and textures in a plate, after which the top surface of the plate is wiped clean leaving the ink in the recessed areas. This ink is then pressed onto printing or intaglio paper though the use of an etching press.
Intaglio-Type - A name coined by Keith Howard to describe the range of intaglio printmaking techniques utilize photopolymer film for intaglio plate making.
Intaglio-Type Non-Etch Techniques - Intaglio-Type prints made without etching the metal plate. The ImagOn or the photopolymer film is eroded during the soda ash developing phase of plate-making. The soda ash developer acts on the photopolymer film in much the same manner as nitric acid does on traditional zinc etching plates. As with conventional etching the ImagOn or Intaglio-Type plate is inked, wiped and printed in the normal intaglio way.
Intaglio-Type Plates - Intaglio plates with photopolymer film laminated on one side.
Layered Intaglio-Type - Technique, developed by Keith Howard in 1996, where a plate is comprised of two or more layers of ImagOn . Where each layer has the potential to be imaged which is uncovered in the developing technique.
Light Integrator - This is a device generally attached to the vacuum frame that measures UV light out put from the lamp of the exposure unit.
Line Intaglio-Type - A technique for working with line and the Intaglio-Type plate making.
Liquid AQUATINT - A technique first developed by Henri Goetz in France about 30 years ago where carborundum is added to a binder and painted onto a plate. When dry the plate is inked and the resulting liquid aquatint has the potential to hold a large quantity of ink.
Liquid Stencil with Aquatint - Temporary liquid stencils developed by Keith Howard in 1997 for preventing the spray from the spray acrylic aquatint from landing on the plate.
Metal Salt Etching - A safer etching methodology which replaces the traditional, and toxic, acid etching. It works through electro-chemical action, and refers to ferric chloride and copper sulphate based processes. This system includes The Edinburgh Etch and The Saline Sulphate Etch and is recommended by RIT chemistry professors Dr Paul Craig and Dr Paul Rosenberg.
Mezzo Intaglio-Type - An Intaglio-Type technique, developed by Keith Howard in 1996, commences with a developed aquatinted ImagOn plate which is then painted on with Speedball Screen Filler to create the image. The thicker the Screen Filler the whiter the resultant print.
Multi-Plate Wash-Drawing Intaglio-Type - Technique, developed by Keith Howard in 1997, whereby several toner-wash drawing are exposed to several ImagOn plates to create a multi-plate non-etch Intaglio-Type print.
Mylar® - A type of plastic that can be completely transparent or frosted.
Open-Bite (Intaglio-Type) - Open-Bite occurs when the ImagOn emulsion is developed or abraded from the surface of an ImagOn plate to the degree that ink will not hold in the open-bite area.
Open Bite (Etching) - Any lowered area of an etched metal plate that does not hold ink. This can create very expressive effects, resembling pits and ridges, but can be avoided through the use of Acrylic Aquatint which gives tone to that area.
Orono-Ground - A fortified Graphic Chemical water-based relief ink-ground jointly developed by Friedhard Kiekeben and Susan Gross in 1999. Graphic Chemical 1659 Black Relief ink is used as the base-ground too which Golden's GAC 200 is added along with a small amount of Golden's Screen Printing Medium to create the Orono Ground. Can be used as a soft or hard-ground.
Pastel Intaglio-Type - An Intaglio-Type technique, developed by Erin Holsher and Amy Williams in 2003, where drafting Mylar is worked with wet or dry pastel.
Toner-Wash - Refers to photocopy toner mixed with an acrylic binder such as Future or Klear along with rubbing alcohol and a wetting solution to create a kind of ink-wash. This is then painted onto drafting Mylar to create a wash-drawing-painting.
P.E.T.G. - PETG / Spectar® and (Vivak®) PETG / Spectar® (Polyethylene Terephthalate) Co-polyester sheet is a thermoplastic sheet used in engineering applications. P.E.T.G. looks like Plexiglas but is a softer plastic. Distributed by www.Lairdplastics.com.
Photocell - The photocell is the actual component of the light integrator of an exposure unit that reacts to the UV light exposure which then is converted into a digital numeric read-out referred to as Light Units (L.U.).
Peel-Back Layer - The top plastic protection layer on ImagOn film.
Photopolymer Gravure - A term coined by Eli Posaing in his 1995 publication "Photopolymer Gravure: A new Method" which describes a technique for Photogravure like results made from commercial flexographic printing plates.
Photopolymer Films - Dry laminate films originally designed for imaging computer chips.
Process Color Intaglio-Type - A technique, developed by David Jay Reed in 2002, where the process colors of cyan, magenta, yellow and black are used with corresponding non-etch Intaglio-Type plates to create full color Intaglio-Type prints.
Reverse Mezzotint - A term coined by Keith Howard in his 1998 publication "Non-Toxic Intaglio Printmaking". In this technique lighter areas are created by painting acrylics onto a plate that has a dot structure already etched into it. It works both for aquatints made by etching a metal plate and in non-etch Intaglio Type Printmaking. When used for Intaglio-Type printmaking the technique is called Mezzo Intaglio-Type.
Saponification - The process in which acrylics are safely broken down into a soap solution in dissolved sodium carbonate or alkalines.
Screen Filler and Liquid Aquatint - Liquid Aquatint is a mixture of Speedball Screen Filler and carborundum which is painted onto an intaglio plate, dried and inked up. The Liquid Aquatint creates a an instant tooth on the plate that will print a rich black.
Sodium Carbonate - A mild alkaline which is used as a developer for ImagOn film as well as a stripping agent for acrylics. Also known as washing soda or soda ash.
Solarplate - A term coined by Dan Weldon to describe an artistic use of flexographic printing plates for intaglio and relief printmaking, described in the 2001 text "Printmaking in the Sun" by Dan Weldon and Pauline Muir.
Spit-Bite Intaglio-Type - An Intaglio-Type technique developed by Keith Howard in 1999 where an Intaglio-Type plate is exposed to an Aquatint Screen after which the top Mylar from the plate is removed. The plate then can be painted on with various strength solutions of sodium carbonate. The plate is then washed dried and printed. Marks created in this manner resemble watercolor washes.
Polymerisation - The process where an acrylic emulsion solidifies into long polymer chains which are hard wearing and acid resistant. In the case of ImagOn and other photopolymer films this is caused by exposure to light. Thus areas of an ImagOn plate that were protected from UV light exposure wash off the plate with the sodium carbonate developer and what remains is the Intaglio-Type plate.
Progressive etch - Where an image being etched into a plate receives different lengths of etching time to fully realize the image. Shorter etching times will be represented in light lines or tones in an image and darker tones will have received longer etching times.
Roll-Coating - A hard and soft-ground plate coating technique where a charged brayer deposits an acrylic ground to a etching plate.
Standard Development - Refers to the 9 minute standard development time needed for an ImagOn plate.
Saline Sulphate Etch for Zinc - A unique etchant, developed by Friedhard Kiekeben in 2002, where salt is added to the Bordeaux Etch to improve the etching properties.
Stencil Intaglio-Type - An Intaglio-Type technique, developed by Keith Howard in 2000, where the top Mylar coating on the ImagOn plate is used as part of the plate making process. The top Mylar is used in a similar manner as a hand-cut stencil to divide Intaglio-Type techniques between the Mezzo and Spit-Bite Intaglio-Type.
Wash-Drawing Intaglio-Type - Technique, developed by Keith Howard in 1994, whereby a toner-wash drawing is exposed to the ImagOn plate to create a non-etch Intaglio-Type print.
Submersion Lamination - Refers to a method of ImagOn plate lamination, developed by Keith Howard, where ImagOn film and the receiving plate first come together in a bath of water. It is the first stage of the wet lamination process.
Toner - Refers to the polymer particles used in photocopiers to create photocopies.
Toner-Wash - An ink like solution made from exhausted photocopy toner mixed with water, rubbing alcohol, Future and a little dish washing detergent.
Toner-Tusche - The type of wash created on drafting Mylar that simulates a traditional stone litho tusche wash.
Vacuum Frame - Most exposure units have a glass-toped vacuum bed where art work is placed on top of the ImagOn plate and when the vacuum is engaged perfect contact between the art work and plate is achieved. Thus when being exposed to the UV light source of the exposure unit a high resolution plate can be achieved.
Vertical Etching Tank - A etching tank, first employed for printmaking by Keith Howard in 1997, for etching plates vertically.
Water/Alcohol Resist - Developed by McLain (Meg) Zylwitis in 2003, a mixture of water and alcohol as a spray aquatint stencil. The acrylic aquatint spray is sprayed onto the resist solution and allowed to merge with the spray screen filler aquatint and dry onto the plate. The plate is then etched and printed revealing unique clam-shell like marks because of this resist.
Washing Soda - A common term for sodium carbonate. When in crystal form it is reffered to as washing crystals. Washing crystals represent a type of diluted soda ash as each crystal is partially hydrated with water. Washing crystals make an inferior substitute for soda ash developer used in Intaglio-Type techniques.
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