New etching plates for prints 11 & 12

I finally resolved the images for prints 11 & 12 (or to be precise, for prints 6 & 12). I didn't know for the longest time how to portray my ideas for these two prints visually. I had to go back to the print studio downtown to etch a few new plates and to re-etch some others since the aquatints were starting to wear down. I needed some plates with images of settler women and children, since they are an important part when it comes to encounters with indigenous people and also working on meaningful relationships for a shared future. I realized that in all my other prints the settler figures were represented solely by men. I finished etching all the plates I need and this week I can start printing again. I have worked on this project for over a year and it is hard to believe it is coming to a conclusion soon. (Below: Spite Bite. Ferric Chloride brushed onto copper). 

(Etched copper plates with figures. Aquatint and spit bite).

Drying and Stretching

 I fear this is a rather boring post, but it's part of the process. After I chine-collé the prints (see previous post), they need to dry and stretch. I tape each print onto a wooden board and let it dry for 48 hours. As the paper dries, it shrinks and stretches tight and flat. 

The Process of Chine-Collé

I have starting mounting the prints that I finished printing. I've spent the last few days measuring and tearing paper to size and preparing a damp pack. I've printed all my prints on a Japanese paper (Honen), which is a thin translucent paper and which allows me to arrange so many layers on the paper (in some cases on both sides). Now all the prints need to get mounted on a Western rag paper (Somerset) with an archival rice paste. The process is called Chine-Collé, (French for glueing Asian paper). Here is a video of the process, much sped up of course. In this video you see me place the dampened print on a blank copper plate as my print support. After blotting it, I brush the rice past evenly on the back. Now the paste has to dry with a blowdryer until it is just tacky and not wet. I take out a sheet of paper from the damp pack, which is just damp enough to reactivate the glue when I run paper and plate through the printing press. Voilá! While the printing process is always so messy and inky, this part of the process is hyper clean and precise. I love it all and this is one more step in the direction of finishing the prints. Now I have 30 more to go!

Print 10 finished

Just before the end of the year I finished printing print number 10, which in reality is print number 1 - the starting point for this project. It took me a long time to figure this print out, but I'm happy with the finished piece. I still need to take professional pictures of all the prints, but here is a quick snap shot of the finished print titled Remembering.  I still need to make prints 11 and 12. I've made progress in that I finally know what I want to make for those two prints. It'll still be a little while until they are finished, because I need to etch a few more plates to resolve them.