~4" x 12". intaglio print from pyrographically carved wood. 2005.

This was made in my Introduction to Printmaking class, freshman year. We had just learned
about intaglio printmaking using etched zinc plates, etc.

This is basically done by filling the grooves in the metal with ink, wiping down the surface
clean, and then pressing the inked plate onto damp paper. The damp paper is swollen enough
to pull the ink out of the grooved marks and that makes the image.

Because I was familiar with woodburning (the technical term is "pyrography") and how that
tends to carve grooves into the wood surface, I wanted to try making a similar intaglio print
from wood similarly. My teacher didn't know if it would work or not, since the woodburned
grooves are much cruder and wider than the fine metal plate etched marks. He didn't know
if they would hold ink or not.

But they did and I made a couple this way. It was fun. in this case. I put both colors, red
and sepia onto the same plank. First I inked down into the grooves and then wiped the surface
clean, then I rolled red ink onto the plank. The red ink only applied to the surface and the
sepia ink was already down into the grooves, so both colors transferred at the same time to the
paper.

What was cool was that the woodgrain held some of the sepia ink, so that was imprinted as well.

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