Copper test plate on left, print of textures and scribbles on right

Test plate and print by Jacob Samuel, July 2019

An intaglio print is an image printed on paper from a copperplate. An artist can incise, or cut, a design onto the surface of the copperplate. When ink is applied to the plate, it is held in the incisions and then the inked image is transferred onto the paper.

This is different than a relief technique, like a woodcut, in which the ink adheres to the raised portion of the wood, or a planographic technique, like lithography, in which the ink adheres to a drawing on the flat surface of the stone.

Currently on view at the Getty Center, Käthe Kollwitz: Prints, Process, Politics gives viewers an opportunity to see how this German printmaker created prints in a variety of techniques. The exhibition brings attention to the artist’s creative process, while also revealing the depth of her social and political engagement.

It includes sequences of rare preparatory drawings, working proofs, and trial prints, which reveal how Kollwitz tirelessly worked through numerous drafts of a composition, often experimenting with different printmaking processes, in order to achieve an image with which she was satisfied.

To get a better understanding of how Kollwitz made her intaglio prints, we turned to master printer Jacob Samuel, lecturer in the Department of Art at the UCLA, who demonstrated some of the processes Kollwitz used.

We also compiled a list of printmaking terms and definitions, below.

Matrix and Impression

To make a print, an artist creates a design on a flat surface called a matrix. This matrix, which can be a copperplate, stone, or woodblock, is then inked and printed, transferring the design in mirror image onto a sheet of paper. The printed sheet is called an impression. A single matrix can be printed repeatedly to generate multiple impressions.

Intaglio

An intaglio is printed from a copperplate with an incised design. The plate surface is covered with an ink layer and then wiped clean, leaving ink only in the incisions. A damp sheet of paper is laid on the plate, and the two are run through a press. The paper is forced into the grooves and pulls out the ink, printing an impression. While incising techniques differ, such as drypoint, etching, and aquatint, the process of printing an intaglio remains the same.

Drypoint

Drypoint involves scratching lines directly into the surface of the copperplate using a sharp, pointed tool, or needle. As the needle scores the copper, little metal shavings, called burr, curl up along the sides of the incised line. The burr holds ink and, when printed, enhances the line with a velvety smudge.

Etching

Etching relies on the corrosive action of acid to cut into metal. The copperplate is coated with a waxy substance, or ground, that is impervious to acid, or mordant. The artist draws a design through this ground, uncovering the metal. The plate is then immersed in the mordant, which bites the exposed metal, eating away the lines and marks that will hold ink. The ground is removed, and the plate is inked, wiped and printed. A hard ground produces finer lines, while a soft one creates broader marks. Lengthening exposure time to the mordant increases the lines’ depth (or darkness).

Aquatint

Aquatint is an etching technique that produces tone rather than line. The copperplate is coated with a powdered rosin (resin) and then heated to adhere to the rosin particles to the plate. Immersed in acid, the bare metal is bitten around the impervious particles, leaving a network of tiny incised rings that will hold ink. When printed, this granular pattern creates a tonal film of ink that approximates the look of wash. Changes to the size of the rosin grains and the plate’s exposure time to acid will vary the density of the tone.

Lithography

In lithography, a drawing is applied in a greasy medium onto the matrix, traditionally a limestone block, which is then chemically treated in two ways: diluted nitric acid fixes the drawing to the stone and makes it receptive to oil; gum arabic protects the untouched surface from absorbing new marks. To print, the stone is dampened with water and rolled over with ink. The oil-based ink sticks to the drawing and is repelled by the water. Paper is laid atop the stone and passed through the press. The artist can draw directly on the stone or on a sheet of transfer paper (from which the drawing is transferred to the stone).

Woodcut

This technique entails cutting a wooden block, leaving a design in relief by gouging away the surrounding areas. Ink is applied only to the raised surfaces of the block—which carry the design—and not to the recessed, carved-out areas. Paper is placed on the inked block, which can be printed using a press or by rubbing the back of the sheet by hand. Kollwitz used different woods, including hard pear and softer pine, cut into planks along the grain. A hard wood, while more challenging to carve, allows for finder details and better withstands the repeated pressure of the press.

Video Transcript

Käthe Kollwitz and Intaglio Printmaking

Käthe Kollwitz employed a variety of intaglio printmaking techniques in these two prints from the series Peasants’ War. In Italian, the word intagliare means to carve or incise. Intaglio printmaking involves incising a design into the surface of a metal plate.

Master printer Jacob Samuel, lecturer in the Department of Art at the University of California, Los Angeles, demonstrates some of the many intaglio processes Kollwitz used in her prints, including drypoint, etching, and aquatint.

Drypoint

With a drypoint needle, the printmaker scratches a line directly into the copperplate. Tiny metal shavings called burr curl up along the edges of the incised line. The incised line and burr hold ink and, when printed, produce dark, velvety lines. In the print Charge, you can see the rich, inky, drypoint lines in the folds of the woman’s dress.

Etching

To make an etching, the printmaker starts by covering the copperplate’s surface with an acid-resistant substance, called ground, which can be hard or soft. In hard-ground etching, lines are drawn through the ground with an etching needle, revealing the copper below. The plate is then immersed into an acid bath. The acid, or mordant, “bites” the exposed metal, eating away the lines and marks that will hold the ink. Lengthening the plate’s exposure to the acid increases the depth and thickness of the incised lines.  Here, in the woman’s hands, we can see Kollwitz’s etched lines.

This metal brush is similar to an etching tool called a needle bundle, which Kollwitz used to score fine, closely spaced lines into the ground.  In The Ploughmen, the dynamic pattern of lines made with the needle bundle animates the sky.

A soft etching ground can be impressed with a textured surface like fabric or paper. The imprinted texture is then etched into the copper.

Aquatint

Aquatint is an etching process that produces areas of tone rather than lines. The copperplate is coated with acid-resistant powdered resin and then heated. The resin particles melt and fuse to the plate.  The acid bites the tiny spaces surrounding the particles.

The length of exposure to the acid as well as the size of the resin particles can vary the tone and texture of aquatint.

Here, the masterful use of aquatint produces tones in the sky that have the appearance of watercolor wash.

[The Ploughmen | State by state]

Jacob Samuel’s test plate demonstrates several techniques employed by Kollwitz.  In The Ploughmen, Kollwitz layered multiple intaglio processes together on a single plate creating varied lines, tones, and textures.  Through her rigorous experimentation, Kollwitz created technically complex and compelling images.

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