Printheads Part 01
An exhibition on the Day of the Printing Arts
08/03/—23/03/25
On March 15, 2018, traditional printing techniques were included in the German UNESCO Commission’s nationwide list of intangible cultural heritage. Initiated by the artist Anett Münnich, the exhibition „Printheads Part 01“ aims to create a series of exhibitions conceived at various locations in order to make the diversity of the art of printing tangible. The presentation at the BLMK marks the start of this series and presents printmaking works by the following four artists:
In his artistic work, Stefan Baer uses both traditional and newer etching techniques. He uses processes such as line etching and aquatint as well as the drypoint technique. His artistic approach is characterized by the examination of everyday topics as well as media-mediated content based on personal visual experiences and immediate associations. These are processed in objective motifs, often resulting in narrative image compositions.
Matthias Körner presents large-format test prints of drypoint etchings as well as works using the intagliotype technique, a printing process that enables the combination of various artistic forms of expression such as photography, painting and drawing on a printing plate. His works revolve around everyday themes as well as reflections on the past, childhood, death, loss, loneliness and security. His thoughts often escape from consciousness with the first stroke and shift into his hand, whereby the creative process is guided by feeling.
Anett Münnich uses the relief printing techniques of monotype and screen printing in her work. She also creates a paper cut for each printed sheet. The cut lines react to the printed surfaces and lines, flow into one another and often create an interesting irritation in the overall motif. Her artistic interest lies in the relationship between man and nature as well as the effects of civilisation’s interventions on our natural environment. The artist is inspired by lines and shapes caused by change and their aesthetics. Her compositions are a collection of things seen, experienced and thought with a glimpse into what might be behind or after.
Tina Wohlfarth devotes herself to an extremely sophisticated and historical printing technique – the mezzotint process, a mechanical intaglio printing technique that enables an extraordinary nuance of intermediate tones as well as photorealistic representations. For her, the human being in all his facets is the central artistic counterpart. His wishes, needs and desires are universal, timeless and omnipresent, which makes dealing with him both fascinating and challenging. This intensive occupation proves to be multi-layered, as it remains equally inspiring, uncomfortable and always demanding.
Printmaking in art
For centuries, artists have been experimenting with printmaking techniques to bring a variety of forms into the picture. In general, a distinction is made between relief, intaglio, planographic and through printing: In relief printing, the parts that are not to be printed are cut out of the printed piece. The remaining areas, lines and bars are raised and are inked for printing. The printing plate is called a printing block or cliché.
In intaglio printing, the printing plate is cut, scratched or etched. The resulting depressions are filled with ink and printed.
In planographic printing, the parts that are to be printed and not printed are on the same level on the printing plate. The printing process is based on the principle of the repulsion and attraction of fat and water. A fat-absorbing coating – ink, grease pencils or photographic exposure – enables the ink to be absorbed onto the printing plate. A fat-repellent water film prevents inking in the areas that are not to be printed.
During the printing process, the ink is drawn through a printing form made of screen material. A rubber squeegee – a spatula-like auxiliary tool with a flexible rubber lip – is usually used for this. The printing form often consists of a frame covered with a fine-mesh fabric made of metal or plastic, or of stencils without a supporting screen material. The special feature of artistic printmaking, also known as graphics, is the production of so-called editions, which include several prints from a set of prints. In art, editions are sometimes limited to a few prints or issued as individual prints, so-called unique pieces. The term original graphic underlines the artistic value of a print and thus the creative process of the artists. For printmaking, test prints are also made on individual sheets: Artists Proof (AP) are test prints that remain with the artists. Printers Proof (PP) are work samples that the printing workshop receives as a proof copy.
Etching
Etching is an intaglio printing process with various special forms. The printing plate is made of metal, sometimes plastic or glass. A basic distinction is made between warm and cold techniques: In cold techniques, the image motif is mechanically scratched with tools. Warm techniques use acids to create depressions. The printing plate is then colored and wiped off again. The color remains in the depressions and is pressed onto the paper to transfer the image motif. Etchings can be combined with artistic techniques of graphics and painting to combine a variety of design elements in the image.
♦ The etching printing process has predecessors in the Arab world in the 16th century and a peak in the Baroque period in Europe in the 17th century. Albrecht Dürer and later Rembrandt are among the artists who shaped the technique in its early days.
Drypoint etching
Drypoint etching is a cold intaglio printing technique without acid. The image motif is worked into a printing plate with a sharp etching needle. This creates ridges along the scratched stitches. The color not only sticks to the depressions, but also to the ridges. When printing, the lines of the engravings and shadows of the ridges appear, which make the contours of the lines appear soft. Stronger pressure with the etching needle produces deeper lines and thus more intense colors in the print.
Mezzotint
Mezzotint is also a cold intaglio printing technique. The copper printing plate is evenly roughened with a cradle iron – a toothed tool – and colored black. A print of the pure black plate would produce a velvety image structure full of small halftone dots. The image motif is worked out with scrapers or polishing rods. The polished areas appear lighter in the print. In order to work back areas that have been removed, the printing plate can be roughened again with a roulette and the typical halftone structure can be imitated. Soft halftones and light-dark contrasts are created in the print. This allows the image motifs to be worked out particularly three-dimensionally. Mezzotint is also called mezzotint art or black art.
Etching
Etching is a warm intaglio printing technique using acid. A metal plate is covered with an acid-resistant protective layer, either over the entire surface or in parts. The image motif is usually worked into it with an etching needle. The printing plate is then placed in an acid bath in which the exposed areas are etched. The etching technique can be used to work out very fine details and nuanced tonal values. Hatching and dots can be made using steel brushes, steel wool or sandpaper. A printing plate can also be etched in several steps to create additional color gradations and add new image elements.
Aquatint
Aquatint is a special technique of etching. Fine dust made of resin or asphalt is sprinkled onto a metal plate and heated so that the dust particles adhere. The printing plate is then etched in an acid bath in several passes and covered again to achieve fine color gradations. The acid can also be applied with a brush. This creates soft shapes, smoky contours and flowing transitions – comparable to watercolor painting. The aquatint technique creates nuanced and atmospheric light-dark gradations. Fine lines and details and strong, expressive surfaces are equally possible.
♦ The aquatint printmaking technique was particularly popular in Europe in the 18th century, for example with Francisco de Goya. The aesthetics of aquatint are also similar to baroque light-dark painting (chiaroscuro) to create spatiality.
Monotype
Monotype is one of the planographic printing processes in which only a single print – a unique piece – is created. A printing plate made of metal, glass or acrylic is coated with paint. While the paint is still wet, it is transferred directly to the paper. This is done by applying pressure by hand or with a printing press. The colored plate can also be covered with paper. The image motif is then drawn on the back of the paper and is printed on the underside of the paper. The monotype combines printmaking, hand drawing and painting. In artistic practice, the monotype is valued for the color structures that arise during printing.
Screen printing
Screen printing is a printing process. The color is pressed through a fine-meshed fabric with a rubber squeegee to transfer the image motif. Individual fabric surfaces are sealed by photochemical exposure or masking stencils. The color therefore only reaches the image carrier through the open fabric pores. In several passes, color-intensive image layers and clear shapes can be applied precisely. The artistic technique of screen printing is also called serigraphy.
♦ Stencils have long been used in China and Japan for printing on fabrics and later in Europe in the textile industry. As an artistic technique, screen printing was discovered in the United States of America in the 1930s and 1940s and became known primarily through Pop Art and artists such as Andy Warhol in the 1960s.
Intagliotype
The intagliotype is a modern intaglio printing technique that does not require the use of highly corrosive acids. The image motif is transferred to a printing plate using light. The printing plate is coated with a photopolymer film that hardens with UV light. Unexposed areas remain soft and can be washed out with a lye. A wide variety of digital and photographic templates can be used. The intagliotype technique is also called polymer or photointaglio printing and enables photorealistic representations.
♦ The intagliotype printing process was developed by Keith Howard around 1995. The art college professor suffered health problems due to toxic chemicals when producing prints and was therefore looking for an alternative.
Cyanotype
Cyanotype is a fine printing process based on photochemical processes. Paper or fabric is coated with a light-sensitive liquid made of iron salts and dried. Objects or masking stencils are then placed on top and then irradiated with UV light. The covered areas remain light, the exposed areas turn blue. In this printing technique, shadowy silhouettes and the typical shades of blue are created. Cyanotype is also called iron blue printing.
♦ Iron blue printing differs from blue printing as a textile dyeing technique that uses the plant dye indigo. The principle of cyanotype is widespread with the so-called blueprint as a copying process from the end of the 19th century into the 20th century. The bluish carbon paper is used to reproduce construction plans, technical drawings, texts with a typewriter or similar. Today, the blueprint is no longer used. The term blueprint has remained as a symbol for plans, mirror images or ideas.
Linocut
Linocut is a relief printing process. A linoleum plate is used as a printing block, into which the image motif is carved. In contrast to wood, the cutting tools can be moved more precisely in all directions on the soft linoleum. The image motif is often drawn directly onto the linoleum or primed with chalk in order to record a preliminary drawing on carbon paper. The artistic potential of linocut lies in clear surfaces and smooth outlines. Small-scale representations are not possible due to the fragility of the material.
♦ Linoleum was originally developed in the 1860s as a floor covering. In modern architecture, previously in Art Nouveau and Art Deco and later in many socialist states, the material is particularly valued in the design of interior spaces. Linoleum was discovered as a printing plate for artistic work at the beginning of the 20th century.