What Is An Etching?

A fascinating look at a meticulous artform. A notable Sydney etching specialist conducts a guided tour of his special process for creating pictures.

- Robert Enemark

The process of etching involves biting lines and textures into an acid-resistant soft or hard ground covering a metal plate, to create an image. Any acidresisting coating is commonly called a ground. When the image is complete, the plate is then immersed in acid, causing the image to be ‘etched’ onto the plate. The ground is then removed with mineral turpentine. The whole plate is then inked; the excess ink is wiped off; and the plate is then ready to be placed on a printing press. A presoaked (still damp) piece of paper is laid on the plate and rolled through the press, producing a print.

PREPARING THE PLATE

There are several steps to follow before starting to etch.

1. Cut plate to desired size with a guillotine.

2. Bevel the edge at a 45-degree angle with a metal file. This protects the felt blankets of the printing press.

3. Polish the plate with Brasso and a soft rag. This gets rid of surface scratches and reduces plate tone, and removes any oxidation.

4. Clean with mineral turpentine to remove Brasso.

5. Degrease with ammonia and whitening powder, or alcohol and methylated spirits, or vinegar and methylated spirits. It is important to be sure that no greasy spots remain on the plate surface – grease on an aquatint plate will cause uneven tones in the print, and on a hard ground plate it may cause the ground to lift in the acid and ruin everything!

6. Water test. Place the plate under running water; water will reject grease. Whitening powder must be removed in the rinsing as it may cause streaking tones. Handle the plate by the edges after degreasing.

ETCHING TECHNIQUES

I have used several different etching techniques for this demonstration.