What is a Print?
A print is a piece of paper on which a design and possibly descriptive
text has been imprinted from a matrix made of a selected medium including wood,
copper, steel or stone. In an original print the matrix is made by hand. SANDTIQUE sells only orginal prints.
What is an Original Art Print?
For the purposes of “antique prints”, an original is the vintage art image on paper made by
one of the manual processes described below. No two prints are exactly alike,
but because more than one impression of each image is possible, original does not mean unique. In an
original vintage print, or vintage art, the matrix is made by hand as opposed to a reproduction, which
is made through a photomechanical methodology.
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The total number of impressions printed of each image is an edition. The number may appear on
the print with the individual vintage art print number as a fraction such as 5/25, meaning
the edition was 25 impressions with this
impression being number 5. This is called a "Limited Edition Prints". If intended for use with a written text, original
prints will not likely be numbered (or hand-signed) and may be produced in
larger editions. During the 1800's it was common to find victorian prints from the same printing in several publications.
Woodcut
Made by cutting into the broad face of a plank
of wood, usually with a knife. In working the block, the artist cuts away areas
not meant to print. These cut away areas appear in the finished parts of the
design while the ink adheres to the raised parts. Most of the "Old Master" prints were Woodcuts.
Wood Engraving
Made by engraving the end-grain of a block
of hardwood such as boxwood or cherry. The block, being naturally much harder,
enables the artist to engrave (rather than cut) a much finer line than is
possible on the softer plank surface used for woodcuts.
Engraving (Copper &
Steel)
The design is cut into the plate by driving
furrows with a burin and creating an incised line. Then the plate is printed
without the use of acid. Depth of tone is controlled through the use of
cross-hatching and parallel lines of various thicknesses and spaces between the
lines. Copper engraving was used
extensively during the 1500’s through till the early 1800’s. At that time steel engraving took over as the
metal was much harder and finer detail could be achieved. Steel engraving allowed for many more prints
to be executed before the metal became worn. Many times steel engravings were transformed to hand-colored prints which could demand significantly higher prices.
Etching
A metal plate is coated by a material which
resists acid, called the ground. The artist then draws his design on the ground
with a sharp needle which removes the ground where it touches it and, when the
place is put in an acid bath, these exposed parts will be etched (or eaten
away). This produces the sunken line which will receive the ink. In printing,
the ink settles in the sunken areas and the plate is wiped clean. The plate in
contact with damp paper is passed through a roller press and the paper is
forced into the sunken area to receive the ink. The artist etches on the plate
those parts which will appear in the finished vintage art print as black or colored areas.
White areas are left untouched. Depth of tone is controlled by depth of etch.
Aquatint
A copper plate is protected by a porous
ground which is semi-acid-resistant. The white (non-printing) areas, however,
are painted with a whole acid-resistant varnish. The vintage art plate is then repeatedly
put in acid baths where it is edged to differing depths. The final effect is an
image on a fine pebbled background (imparted by the porous ground). Aquatint is
usually employed in combination with line etching.
Photogravure
This
process uses a light-sensitized, acid-resisting ground etching a copper plate.
The photogravure process was developed in France in the early 1800’s. In the
late 1880’s this monochrome printing system was used to reproduce paintings and
photographs with high accuracy of detail and depth of tone.
Lithograph & Chromolithograph
The artist draws directly on a flat stone or
specially prepared metal plate (usually with a greasy crayon). The stone is
dampened with water, then inked. The ink clings to the greasy crayon marks but
not to the dampened areas. When a piece of paper is pressed against the stone,
the ink on the greasy parts is transferred to it. Colored vintage art lithographs were also called chromolithographs. A separate stone is used for each color in chromolithographs.
