When I exhibit my Silent Voices etching editions at art fairs, people are always interested to hear about the process as everyone has heard of an 'etching' but many don't know how a print is actually created, so I thought I'd take you through the stages from picking the leaf up off a country path or pavement, to the printed edition from my store or at an art fair.
So, what IS an etching? According to Wiki, "Etching is traditionally the process of using strong acid (or Copper Sulphate in my case) to cut into the unprotected parts of a metal surface to create a design in intaglio (incised) in the metal. It is, along with engraving, the most important technique for old master prints".
So that's it in a nutshell - it can be quite a laborious process (many is the time a print is spoiled by over / under-inking) but I love the process; the feeling of working a 15th Century craft at the printers and creating analogue art works (apart from the initial process). If this has whet your appetite to own on of the works, they are available from my store as limited editions of 10 per message, framed or unframed.
I would recommend anyone to enrol on a class - for example Essex Print Studios run print courses from time to time, or Google a print club in an area near you.
With thanks to Lynne Blackburn at Hippo Screenprinters who is a never ending source of help and patience with the creation of this edition.