Hi everyone! So excited to be back on campus, hope everyone had a good break! I know I did, spending lots of time with family and going skiing! But this semester my next printmaking class is Etching, so I wanted to do a little research and share some history about it before I make some of my own projects!
Etching is a traditional process where a strong acid is used to eat into the exposed parts of a metal surface, leaving a carved (intaglio) design behind. Although today etching is considered a fine art technique, it actually started out as a practical craft way before artists started using it for studio work. When artists first started using etching for printmaking in the early 1500s, it was basically an experiment that worked really well. Instead of carving lines into metal, they could draw straight onto a plate and let acid do the hard work. It felt much more like drawing than engraving, so artists picked it up quickly. Before long, etching became a popular way to make detailed images that could be printed again and again.
Some popular artists from the 16th century that have used etching include Daniel Hopfer, who is often credited as the first artist to use etching for printmaking, helping it become more than just a way to decorate metal. Around the same time, Albrecht Dürer, better known for his engravings and woodcuts, made some of the earliest dated etchings, which helped give the medium more credibility. Below on the left is one of Hopfer’s works, and Dürer’s on the right.
As for the process of printing, in traditional etching, once the metal plate has been etched with your design, you cover the whole plate with ink and make sure it fills all the grooves. Then, you wipe the surface clean, leaving ink only in the etched lines. Finally, you press paper onto the plate using a printing press, and the paper pulls the ink out of the grooves to create the print. So basically, the ink goes into the etched lines, not on top of the plate. I’m really excited to learn this new technique this semester and to create some intricate designs!
Thanks for reading!
Ella