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Martin Mitchell |
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The art of mezzotints
  A curved serrated tool, called a rocker, is used to engrave a ground in to a copper plate. A fine line of dots is engraved in too the plate, as well as a bur of copper is throne up, proud of the plate. The whole plate is covered, so a even, uniform texture is created, its the depth of the dots and the height of the burs, that will hold ink producing a beautiful deep velvet dark tone. A 30x40cm plate will take up too 12 hours to engrave the ground. Using a variety of sharp blades, scrapers & burnishers. The image is selectively scraped and burnished back in to the ground. Working from dark to light a tonal design is produced the deeper the indented areas remain, the darker it will print. Where the plate is polished smooth, no ink will adhere and so will appear as high lights. This is Months not weeks of fine work. because of the fragility of the fine copper burs very few prints can be produced an edition of 20 is doing well. Original Print and reproductions I become so frustrated when I hear the words “Its only a print!” and then see Reproductions masquerading as original. How can a print, by its nature a multiple, be an original? First, the work must be conceived as a print, using any one or combinations of the many print mediums, using the inherent character of the medium. Secondly the artist should work the block, plate, stone, screen etc, from which the print is taken. Third the final print (which is the artwork that ends up hanging on the wall) is taken from the said block, plate, stone, screen, etc. Each print taken individually by hand. Although every effort is use to make every print in the edition as uniform as possible there will be small variations. The number of prints in the edition is dictated by the limitations of the process, For example a Mezzotint, which can take up to two months plus to engrave and prepare the plate. Then over forty minutes to ink wipe and print. |