Fine Art Printing Brisbane
To ensure image quality and longevity, fine art printing uses quality inks and fine materials. Your image will appear crystal clear if you use quality ink and quality surface. Fine art is the type you would see in a museum and art exhibitions showcasing the artworks of different individuals either for sale or for preservation.
Fine art techniques
Most artworks are known to be single pieces that cannot be replicated to give exact detail as the original work. Printmaking can replicate a piece of art for multiple copies. The emphasis in printmaking is on design and not the surfaces to be used to print on. Furthermore, printmaking utilises ink or paint that leaves the design on the surface, and it doesn’t matter whether it is a paper, cloth or any other printable medium. Printmaking is subdivided into four categories namely; intaglio, relief, planographic and stencilling. Relief printmaking is one of the simplest types where the material is carved away to give the desired design so that the design is protruding. Intaglio is the direct inverse of relief printmaking where the design is carved in to hold the ink. Planographic is different from the two, where the design is printed on a flat surface. Stencilling involves cutting around the design and applying ink or spray to the cut out areas.
Other fine art printmaking basics
- Woodcut: it is one of the old models of relief printmaking. The design desired is carved from the wood and printed from a raised surface. It can be referred to as woodcut designs.
- Engraving: it is an old model of intaglio where it involves carving the metal to give the desired design. It could take years for artists to master the art and produce high-quality designs. It was a difficult method to master but which paved the way soon for etching technique.
- Etching: it is an old model of intaglio where strong acid or mordant was used to dissolve unprotected parts of the metal surface, creating the designs desired. This was a simpler method for an artist to utilise in creating designs for printmaking.
- Lithography: was one of the first methods of planography. A flat stone/metal plate was used to make an ink resistant material to create non-image portion design which is then inked and pressed onto a surface to create the image.
- Screen-printing: or serigraphy is a type of stencil making where the designs are made first then ink is applied using silkscreen. The stencilled image blocks ink from the other side to form an image.
- Monotype: is a unique type of printing where it is possible to reprint where only the first print is acceptable. The rests are press prints or ghost prints where ink continues to fade away as printmaking proceeds.
- Monoprint: similar to monotype in many ways and can be used interchangeably, but the only difference is; monotype requires a smooth surface while monoprint can work even on woodcut, lithography plates or etched plates.
- Digital printing: a modern type of printmaking where a digital image is printed on a surface – a paper or cloth. This printing is common in laserjets and inkjet printers. The digital file acts as the printing plate, therefore, saving a lot of time and money. Although quality is a matter of concern either on the image or printer ability, there is a constant adjustment to improve quality.