Drypoint trials

I’d like to create a concertina book with a whole array of handbags on display. Drypoint isn’t something I’ve done a lot of but using an etching needle to scratch into thin perspex seems like a good way to draw some small vignettes as a start point.

The above images were printed on 250gsm BFK Rives printmaking paper, soaked and blotted. Plate tone has been deliberately left as I like that effect.

Over time I have recycled my printing paper offcuts, pulped them and pulled new sheets. Whilst the original BFK paper has sizing in it, and can be soaked before printing, I knew that with the amount of water used to pulp and pull new sheets from the offcuts most of the sizing would be washed away. I was curious to see how the recycled paper would accept the same images.

Firstly, the indentations (embossing) around the plate are very deep, almost cutting through the paper. Secondly, although I printed on the smoother side of the sheets there is very evident texture in the background. That texture holds some of the ink as faint smudges.

And, thirdly, the images aren’t as sharp. There is an amount of bleeding around the line work. It’s more obvious on the originals than these small photos but when comparing the two above with the top images it’s clear there’s a difference. Take, for example, the two umbrellas: the folds on the hanging one are slightly fuzzy and the pole on the open one displays quite a bit of bleeding.

I also haven’t managed to get a nice smooth plate tone as per the BFK Rives prints.

However, I tried another two.

The smudged background effect remains, as does the deep embossing. The image on the left has bled a lot and the effect isn’t good. It appears as if I haven’t wiped the ink back sufficiently, which isn’t the case.

The handmade sheets couldn’t be soaked and blotted before printing or they would have fallen apart, having little or no size in them. But to enable them to grab the ink from the intaglio marks I lightly spritzed the sheets, then blotted, before printing. It’s obvious the paper has retained the water, become too soft and created blurring in the transferred images.

This isn’t a project I can continue with using these papers, especially if I want to hand colour selected areas. It’s back to commercial paper after I’ve drawn some more designs to add to the collection.