Transience and persistence
This series has only one finalised print. Its story is one of persistence. The first prints I made from this plate were unsatisfactory, so I put it to one side. Having worked on different approaches to other images, which I thought would help here, I pulled it our again. However, I couldn’t replicate the crispness and definition achieved in earlier impressions. It took me a whole day of step-wise process alterations to work out the problem. It was the plate being clogged with old, dried out ink. I left the studio thinking the day’s work a failure. Nevertheless, I wrapped up the prints and took them home. The following week I pressed on to correct my error, first cleaning the plate thoroughly.
I didn’t open the first tissue-wrapped prints until I was later pressed to make a quick decision. I was due to visit a former colleague, recently admitted to the nearby St Cuthbert’s hospice. As he was always interested in my artwork, I wanted to show him a few recent representative prints.
On opening the package I had wrapped in the studio, it was clear that my error had become a strength. The indistinct image from the sparsely inked plate was exactly the right treatment for this transient subject. It was one of the half-dozen prints I took to show my colleague, and deserves to stand alone in this collection.
Ash Leaf, Low Laithe Dam 28 May 2018 15:22. Photo-etching and monoprint. 2020
Just to complete the story the later impression of the ‘rectified’ printing is shown below, a far more distinct image, but much less of what had originally impressed me.
Ash Leaf, Low Laithe Dam 28 May 2018 15:22. Photo-etching and monoprint. Proof. 2020
And the the original photo-etching alone:
Ash Leaf, Low Laithe Dam 28 May 2018 15:22. Photo-etching and monoprint. Proof 2020
Stranded
The source photograph for this series was taken is very close to the last- on the outskirts of Howarth.
The subject is intentionally mysterious, with only traces of it evident in the final prints.
Enfield Side 27 May 2018 11:24 Photo-etching and monoprint 2019
This mystery is hard-won, the result of much experimentation in both plate treatment and in forms of under-printing. I will return to the theme of experimentation in a later post.
There are two layers of under-printing in this series- both using burnt sienna as the base colour. Here you can see the subject dipping into the darker of the two.
Most of the ink used in this collection are ready-made tube inks. In this case, the main ink used is hand-prepared.
Enfield Side 27 May 2018 11:24 Photo-etching and monoprint 2019
The plain etching below now makes the source clearer. What was left behind is a woollen glove, now ground into a shallow puddle by the side of the road. The puddle that the glove fell in is long-since dried out.
Though this is now evident, the plate was ground considerably to the bottom right (as viewing), making the wrist of the glove far less obvious. This is as it was on the day- hard to pick out from the stones stranded in this now dried up puddle.
Enfield Side 27 May 2018 11:24 Photo-etching 2019
Broken
This post breaks the recent chronological sequence. In the interests of posting promptly, I have opted for a further short sequence- but taken from a different walk at a different time of day, but still not far from those I have posted to date. This series is from an image taken on a summer’s day walk near Howarth, on road atop the Lower Laithe Dam.
It is of plastic fragments- the biggest part being of a broken sign that in normal times demonstrates the local water utility company’s interest. The company that manages the many reservoirs punctuating this landscape; reservoirs that I have taken great interest in photographing and painting over the years. Hence, the significance of this fragment, which is itself is part of a reservoir cartoon.
Lower Laithe Dam 28 May 2018 15:15 Photo-etching 2020
From the earliest printings of this plate, I was convinced that some further colour would add to the depth of the image. None of the earlier combinations seemed to add much- but latterly a little underprinting with pale ink gave a greater idea of the depth here. Here I used a circular mask to strengthen the pattern where the milk bottle top covers part of the sign.
Lower Laithe Dam 28 May 2018 15:15 Photo-etching and monoprint 2020
Exhibition Day Rochdale Canal, Todmorden
This is now the proposed weekend for the exhibition. As I’m continuing to select and post, it is clear that the exhibition (even in virtual form) is not yet complete.
Today’s image is from a photograph taken towards the end of an early morning walk, in car park near the Rochdale Canal in Todmorden.
Rochdale Canal, Todmorden. 28 April 2017 08:25. Photo-etching 2019
What drew me to this point was both the pattern and a piece of coloured glass embedded in a corner of the puddle.
The underprinting in this series is differs slightly from most of others, as a mask is used, leaving parts of paper visible, as no ink is applied.
Rochdale Canal, Todmorden. 28 April 2017 08:25. Photo-etching and monoprint 2019
I developed this further with two complementary masks and two underprinted monoprint layers. This is brings me closer to the idea that first drew me to this patch of ground- an expanse of broken tarmac with a bright fragment of glass shining through.
Rochdale Canal, Todmorden. 28 April 2017 08:25. Photo-etching and monoprint 2019
Wicken Lowe
This is another relatively short series of prints. The original photograph was taken on the same evening walk as that for the Calderbrook series. It followed a spell of tricky wayfinding as the uphill path reached the edge of the Intake. Just after a gate onto the open moor, I found this collection of rock and grasses.
The first is a straighforward photo-etching
Wicken Lowe 24 July 2018 19:07 Photoetching
The colour I applied to this reflects the warm light of the summer evening. First, the print underlaid with a two-stage monoprint.
Wicken Lowe 24 July 2018 19:07 Photoetching and monoprint
And a simpler version, with a single colour base.
Wicken Lowe 24 July 2018 19:07 Photoetching and monoprint
Methods
The photo-etchings in this collection all start from landscape photographs taken with a compact mirrorless digital camera. The selected photos are simplified and contrast-adjusted using Adobe Photoshop software. The resulting pixelated image is printed on acetate film- creating a positive hard copy.
Section of acetate prepared for Calderbrook series
Meanwhile, a copper plate is prepared to receive the pixelated image, it is polished and a photo-sensitive emulsion applied. This plate is then exposed in a light box, covered by the printed acetate film so that the printed image obscures parts of the plate from the strong light.
Lightbox at Northern Print Studios
Once developed, the exposed emulsion is washed away, leaving some of the smooth copper surface exposed. When the plate is etched in ferric chloride, the exposed copper is eaten away, cutting pits into the surface.
Plate prepared for Calderbrook series
To print from this plate, it is first smeared with a thick oil-based ink, and the surface then wiped clean, leaving only traces of ink below the pitted surface.
Plate inked and wiped ready for printing
The plate is then run through a press, sandwiched against a piece of soft, dampened paper. The press- a giant electric-powered mangle with steel rollers- applies enough force to embed the plate in the paper, allowing the spongy paper to pick up the remaining hidden ink, revealing the final print.
Press at Northern Print Studio used to create these prints
Revealing a print
All these prints are printed on Somerset Antique Velvet printing paper. Many of the prints are made onto clean sheets of dampened printing paper. This appearance is enhanced by printing on top of thin ‘washes’ of coloured oil-based ink- themselves a form of monoprint. Preparing the underwashed monoprint involves applying a thin film of ink to a smooth plate, when run through the press the colour is transferred to the printing paper- a partially predictable and controllable technique.
Monoprint revealed, with acetate monoprint plate and registration marks on press bed.
Multiple monoprints can be applied, with the photo-etching plate applied last, ensuring that each layer is aligned or ‘registered’ carefully, and whilst the paper is still damp, as a wet-into-wet technique.
This gives a more fluid appearance to the final print, something closer to the quality of painting.
Calderbrook series
Today, I’m sharing three images printed from the Calderbrook plate. This is the first series from the South Pennine Paths plates.
I took the original photograph on an evening walk along a familiar road. Here, where a track met the road, the surface was worn away, and someone had taken the trouble to mark up the deficit, presumably to assist identification for repairs.
Once extracted from that context, the arrow points to somewhere important that is now nowhere in particular.
Calderbrook 24 July 2018 18:10 (i) 2020. (Photo-etching)
I’ve already used images from this Calderbrook series for the original exhibition promotion artwork and in earlier posts, this seems the right place to start.
Three of the seven available prints have made the final cut. The photo-etching itself (above) and two with underlaid monoprint.
Calderbrook 24 July 2018 18:10 (ii) 2020 (photo-etching and monoprint)
Calderbrook 24 July 2018 18:10 (iii) 2020 (photo-etching and monoprint)
Let me know what you think of the approach.
Transparent
Section from positive used for Calderbrook series
I have promised an extended piece on method, which isn’t ready. But a question came up that gives me the opportunity to explain parts of the process. The question is about what I print on and whether I can print on transparent media.
Here the answer is both yes and no. Yes, one of the preliminary stages requires transparent media: to transfer the computer manipulated image back into a physical photographic process. The image comes back into the real world on on acetate film using an inject printer. A section from the acetate used to produce the Calderbrook series is today’s picture. Here, it is laid obliquely over my metal ruler against a white background. In case you are struggling to decipher it- the spray-painted arrow here top right.
But the answer to the original question is also no, the final print from a photo-etching is achieved from the ink held in a pitted copper plate. This needs soft damp paper, usually specialist printing paper. The pressure applied is also intense, sufficient to embed the plate in the paper.
Hope that answers the question and illuminates a little.
Counting and sequencing
Calderbrook . 24 July 2018 18:10. Photo-etching 2020
I’m a bit stumped now. I’ve a few blog posts part-drafted, but am unsure about how to order the images to post. So, thought I would start with the start of the Calderbrook series, that I used the original image for my last post.
In response to a question, there are 157 original prints in this series (plus a few that went straight in the bin), made from ten plates. My plan was to show about 20-30. I might show a few more on the blog to illustrate how the work has developed.
Thanks and clarifications
Thanks for all the encouraging comments and interesting questions. I realise that by starting at the end and in the middle of this process I’ve done as much to confuse as to inform. True, I did rush to pull this together, as part of a response to the many fears and isolation we all now face. So, thanks for bearing with me while I make some order from this.
The South Pennine Paths series is of hand-made landscape prints. They are landscapes in small section, each section is no more than a pace across. They are the roads, paths and tracks of the South Pennine towns and hills that form the backbone of northern England, and that have been so hard hit by flooding in recent years. I have walked here regularly for many years, gradually expanding my route map of these places. The photographs from which these prints develop were taken on walks during 2017 and 2018, either on family walks or on journeys taken alone.
These small sections identify some of the most obvious human interactions with the natural environment. Unsurprisingly, these are all unstable or impermanent: perhaps a passing feature (a lost glove or blowing leaf), that will inevitably disperse or a surface strained through repeated use. These are everyday elements of a lived landscape.
I made these prints at Northern Print studios https://northernprint.org.uk/ during 2019 and early 2020. All are photo-etchings, with some developed using mono-print, or further worked later with gouache or acrylic paint. The colour layers allowing for some illusion of depth and opportunity for mystery, sometimes concealing sometimes revealing or emphasising parts of the subject. The paint can then further emphasise the detail.
In producing this work, there are many I need to thank, particularly my family for giving me the time and space to make and show this work. Also to all at Northern Print for their encouragement, support, and technical advice especially when things aren’t going to plan.
In response to your questions and comments, two longer posts are to follow over the coming days: one on methods- a brief account of how these prints are made and another on the subject matter of the South Pennine Paths series. For now, one of the original photos, that provided the source material for these photo-etchings.
Publishing
Prints waiting for final sifting
Today’s image- prints waiting on final sifting and seems the opposite of publishing. But today is to be the day I publish this blog, and hopefully overcome some of the final technical behind-the-scenes hurdles and start to share more widely.
first print
Calderbrook 24 July 2018 18:10
Where to start? Which to post first?
All sorts of questions- and lots of ways to answer. The most obvious was one of the series I used to design the exhibition flyer. The title refers to where it was taken, with the date and time it was taken, and indicates the walk it was part of.
It is the first of the South Pennine Paths series that I will post here.
This very clearly suggests a very particular place, so is a good place to start as any.
the plates
Some of the etched plates used in printmaking and helpful extra weight in my drying press
The makeshift drying press was helped considerably by the copper plates, as I reviewed the first post, it seemed worth a mention as the plates are some of those I used in making the prints for this series.
The plates are tricky to photograph, well enough to get an idea of their form. These are taken at a sharp angle looking towards a bright north facing studio window.
The light is readily reflected off most of the surface, with darker areas indicating the etched, pitted parts. The copper glow adds something to the appeal.
Opening last batch of prints for South Pennine Paths
Today I removed the last few images from the makeshift drying press in my home studio.
Plates and books flattening the prints as they dry
I had planned to start hanging these around the house in anticipation of showing them. That now seems a way off, so instead I’m looking to see what I can make of this by putting them online.
The first two prints flat and dry