Printmaking Evaluation

By: Soobin Jo

Process of Printmaking

The first step of printmaking was to create a

design. I created the design using tracing paper
and my charcoal drawing from the previous unit.
I cut three 100mm x 100mm pieces of tracing
paper and placed them on different parts of my
charcoal artwork so I get three different designs.
It is better to work with mm as the unit because
this unit is more precise than cm. Then I traced
the design that was shown on the tracing paper
with a pencil. I also used some tape so the
tracing paper does not move and so it does not
change the tracing process. After, I got some
felt pens to color the design with different colors,
which allowed me to differentiate the different
parts of the design.

Process of Printmaking
After coloring in, I applied some graphite
only on one of the three designs, which
happened to be my favorite design. It was
important that I applied the charcoal on
the front so that when I made the prints,
the design would be stamped correctly
(as in direction wise). Then, I got a
100mm x 100mm lino block and put the
design with the side that has the graphite
on the block (so non graphite side face
up) for me to trace it. Eventually, the
tracing got transferred on the lino block.

Printmaking Process
After tracing, it was time for me to carve out the lines with a lino
cutter. I had to decide the width of the blade and carved it on a
wooden board. This part of the process was quite dangerous
because there was a possibility of getting injured through cutting.
Therefore, the forefinger was supposed to be placed in a little
hole that is on the lino cutter to have control of the tool and the
other hand should be behind the tool, holding the block in order to
prevent from getting cut. Also, placing your thumb allowed more
control of the cutter when carving out. The wooden board helped
to avoid injuries as well by making the carving process more
stable since I had to place the block by the wooden borders. In
addition, in this step, you were able to control the width of the
carving not just by changing the width of the lino cutter but also by
going deep with the tool as well.

Printmaking Process
After cutting the first layer, it was time for me to use the block ink.
First, I had to scoop out some ink by a paint scraper and it was
better to scoop out a little at first and more if it was needed. Then
with a roller, I spread the printmaking ink on a palette. It was
important to roll out the ink to adjust the thickness and the
consistency of the ink in order to make it suitable for applying it
on the lino block. If the ink was applied too much or too thick,
then the ink could have gone into the carves that were made by
the cutter. The way you knew the thickness of the ink was
appropriate for applying was by sound; if it made a sticky sound
then it was time to put the on the block with a roller. At this step,
realized the paints were old and therefore was hard to spread so
I used the medium to make the ink smoother and dry slower.

Printmaking Process

Once the ink was applied, I made one print on four

different pieces of A4 paper. They all had to be printed in
the same direction. It was important to make sure that I
put the block in the middle for alignment. At this step, I
had to apply a lot of pressure for the applied ink to turn
out clearly on the paper. One way to do that was to flip the
paper (so the block is at the bottom & paper at the top)
and apply pressure by pressing with our hands. This
method was efficient because I was able to see if the ink
got printed properly on the paper by lifting the paper
towards me a bit. And if not, I would put more pressure.
To reuse to spreaded ink on the palette, I used the
scraper to collect the spreaded ink into the center and respread it with a roller for the next print with the same
color. Moreover, to prevent smudges on my paper for
printing and to keep my area clean, I had a some wet
paper towel next to me so every time I made a print, I
could wipe off the excess ink that was on the table.

Printmaking Process
After printing individual ones, I had to print four
prints of my design on a piece of A3 paper. It was
important to draw an arrow on the back of the lino
block so I knew what direction I had to put my
block for the next print since I had to rotate it 90.
When I printed four of them rotating each time
after one print another, it created an interesting
design as a whole. There was a shape of a spark
in the middle and it created a symmetry with other
parts of the design. After I finished printing the
design on A3, I washed out the leftover ink on the
block and the palette. Then I had to wait for the
block and the prints to dry for me to start the next
layer.

Printmaking Process
Once the prints of the first layer are made on both
A4 and A3, I waited for the papers and the block to
dry. While they were drying, I had to carve out
more for another layer of a different color. It was
important to consider what I had to carve out and
what I should not. If you want some parts of the
first layer to stay, then you carve those parts out.
However, if you want some parts in a different
color, you had to leave those parts (no cutting).
Also, when I chose colors for different layers, I
chose colors that blended well with red and some
complementary colors for the first layer to stand
out (ex. green). At the step, it was important
(again) to know where to place your hands on the
wooden board.

Printmaking process

Then you repeat the process of rolling out the

ink evenly on a palette with a roller, applying
it on the lino block, stamping four individuals
on top of the same A4 papers and four in
different directions on the A3 paper. It was
important at the step to apply pressure on the
block for the second layer to come out vividly.
Another way to apply pressure was to use a
roller and roll out the block as a source of
pressure. The suggested number of colors to
use for printing was three to four ink colors in
order to make a design look interesting.

Printmaking Process

Finally, after repeating those steps with at

least three different colors, you eventually
end up with a design consisting varieties
of colors.

Final Product

4 individual prints on A4

one big print (rotated) on A4

Use of medium (What were they used for)

Palette-to spread the block printing ink and apply it on the roller
Wooden board-to make the lino block stable while carving out and prevent injuries
Lino cutter-to carve out the tracing lines for a design
Lino block-to apply paint and print the design on a piece of paper
Tracing paper-to trace a part of our charcoal artwork to create a design
Graphite-to put over the tracing paper with the design and trace it the design on the block
Roller-to apply the ink on the block & to find the right consistency of the ink & to apply pressure
on the block when it was time to print on the paper
Scraper-to scoop out some ink from the bottle & to spread the block ink evenly before rolling out
& to reuse the ink by scraping it back to the center and rolling it out

1.9 Demonstrate the ability to create 2D and 3D works that show knowledge
of unique characteristics of particular media, materials, and tools.
In order to create a 3D work in block printing is using different values of color. For
example, if I use light blue as my first layer, for my next layer (after carving out some parts
with a lino cutter) I could use dark blue or a darker value of blue. This means, I will end up
with a design that has mainly dark blue but some lines of light blue. Then it would create a
shading effect, which eventually makes it look like the design is 3D by making the dark
blue stand out. However, if I did not use a different value of blue, like a completely
different color or only used one color, then my print would have been 2D. Also, using the
roller to spread the ink very thinly for the light blue can make the shading effect better
since the layer on the lino block will be applied very little (making the layer thin).
On the other hand, I could use black as well with red for instance. The black can be an
outline for different parts of the design and eventually making the red contrast to the
outline of black. Hence, this will create a 3D print.

1.12 Describe and apply procedures to ensure safety and proper maintenance of the
workspace, materials, and tools.
To ensure safety:
It is important during the process of carving, you using the tools carefully. For example, place your
lino block on a wooden board against the borders so you get stability while carving. Also, you must
place your thumb in a little hole of the lino cutter to have more control of carving. Finally, it is
essential for your other hand to hold the lino block but behind the cutter all the time.
To ensure proper maintenance of the workspace, materials, tools:
It is important that after you finish printing your first layer, you wash your palettes and rollers really
clean so the colors or a different type of paint mix together. If it does, then the ink printing process
is affected, which makes the outcome not satisfying. Moreover, it is essential you dry your palettes,
rollers and lino block before using, so the ink prints clearly. Also, it is advised to have wet paper
towels next to you to clean your working space after each print; otherwise you can get smudges on
your paper. Finally, it is important to make sure your papers are all dried before applying another
layer with a new color of printing ink so the colors dont mix and print out clearly.

Conclusion (What I learned)

Overall, the block printmaking allowed me to use different types of medium that I have barely
used in art. Furthermore, it was interesting to see how printing the same design in different
directions (rotating each time) can create a whole different (interesting at the same time) design
as a whole.
During the process, I learned that if there is only a little part I want to print with a specific color, I
should have started with that color fist. Therefore, as I put other layers, I could have covered
the rest of the first layer with a different colored layer on top (after the first layer dried), which
eventually makes the first layer show a little bit/a little part. Also, I should have been careful
with using different values of color. I accidentally used two different values of red for my print
and after, I realized there were two types of red block printing ink: crimson red and dark red.
Therefore, the end result ended up having two different values of one color as my first layer.
However, it created some texture and made the design look more interesting. Finally, I learned
different uses of medium, techniques for a good printmaking and safety rules during this
process.

The End!