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Thursday, January 17, 2013

How to Make a Print By Drawing In The Ink

Homeschooling Lesson for
Printmaking and Monoprint



This is the first lesson in our print making unit. We will briefly cover the concept of print making and the tools used.

Basic printmaking is to create a picture by transferring an image from a source to the paper. Most prints are done in editions where many images are produced. They are numbered and signed such as 1/10 meaing in this example one of ten.

Today we will be creating a monoprint. A monoprint is a edition of one.

To make our monoprint it is important to have a design already prepared since the ink dries in a few minutes and you do not have time to conceive and work out the details of your design. So we will take a few minutes and create some line drawings studies on scratch paper to be prepared for our project.

1. We apply a small amount (about the size of a quarter) of ink to the surface. We have Plexiglas, but any flat surface will work, like a mirror, a pie-pan lid, or plastic as long as it is absolutely flat.
2 We roll the ink with the brayer to cover an area,  about the 4 inches by 4 inches.
3. Choose one of the studies and using a very dull pencil, rounded chop-sick, Popsicle stick, crayon or any combination draw the image directly into the ink.
4. Carefully lay the paper directly on the plate with the ink and its drawing.
5. With one hand holding the project steady use the palm of the other hand to press the paper down, be careful not to smudge or move the paper from its original position.
6. Carefully lift the paper up.
7. Admire your creation!

Changes can be made in the original and a second print may be created, this second print will be lighter.

Experimenting is encouraged to make prints with lines shapes and texture.

We sign our works and label them Monoprint 1/1 and date.

Allow yourself 10 minutes for clean-up. Soap and water is fine.

Flowers: A Monoprint made by Drawing in The Ink.

Tree: a Monoprint made by Drawing in The Ink

Fish: a Monoprint Made by Drawing in Ink

(c)Adron Dozat

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