BEHIND THE ART
Printmaking Techniques
Relief Printing
This is a process where protruding surface faces of the printing plate or block are inked; recessed areas are ink free. Printing the image is therefore a relatively simple matter of inking the face of the matrix and bringing it in firm contact with the paper. A printing-press may not be needed as the back of the paper can be rubbed or pressed by hand with a simple tool such as a brayer or roller.
The matrix in relief printing is classically created by starting with a flat original surface, and then removing (e.g., by carving) away areas intended to print white. The remaining areas of the original surface receive the ink.
The relief family of techniques includes woodcut, metalcut, wood engraving, relief etching, linocut, rubber stamp, foam printing, potato printing, and some types of collagraph.
Intaglio Printing
In contrast, in the intaglio process the recessed areas are the printed areas. The whole matrix is inked, and the ink then wiped away from the surface, so that it remains only in the recesses. Much greater pressure is then needed to force the paper into the channels containing the ink, and a high-pressure press will normally be required. Intaglio techniques include engraving, etching, and drypoint. With planographic techniques, such as lithography, the entire surface of the matrix is flat, and some areas are treated to create the print image.
Monotype and Monoprint
A monotype is one of a kind, unique piece of artwork. It is the simplest form of printmaking, requiring only pigments, a surface on which to apply them, paper, and some form of press.
Monotypes are pulled impressions that were drawn or painted on a metal or plexiglass plate. The images are created through applications of ink that are rolled, brushed, daubed, or otherwise applied and manipulated and then, with the material (usually paper) that is to accept an impression, are "pulled" with the use of a press.
Monotypes are inherently unique because only one or two impressions may be pulled before the ink is used up. Although there may be a second impression, it is quite different from the first in that most of the ink was lifted from the plate in its first pass through the press. The second impression, called a ghost or cognate, is much lighter or thinner, and is more of a suggestion of the first. Each pulled impression may be considered a finished work or it may be further enhanced by the application of additional drawing or color.
A monoprint is a unique print using the monotype process, but both are related because they have a common matrix that is used in each of the prints.