Solarplate -- Dan Welden printmaking workshop

Dan Welden gave a free Solarplate workshop at Remarque Print Workshop in Albuquerque on Saturay, June 29th.

Eric Fischl did the below solarplate etching (1992?) with Dan Welden, entirely by wiping ink off the solarplate using his t-shirt.  There was no aquatint screen used at all in the below print:

Eric Fischl solarplate etching

It begins:

Dan Welden taking the protective acetate off the solarplate

Dan Welden made a loose image for his demo using Akua ink as a resist.  After rolling Akua ink on the solarplate with a brayer, he rubbed the ink off, revealing the plate.  The revealed areas of the plate will harden when exposed to the sun, and not take ink (in the intaglio process).  Thus a painterly kind of image can be made.

Rolling Akua black ink onto the solarplate 

(which will act as a resist)

Putting the solarplate, which is on steel,

on top of a magnet plate (which will be taped down)

to keep it in place

Wiping the Akua ink off the solarplate

to create the image

Corn starch can be added to the Akua ink to thicken it up

(instead of mag),

and can also be applied to the handles of the putty knives 

to keep them intact

Dan recommends the Russell Ink Knives

available at Takach Press

Drawing into the Akua ink

with a plastic fork

The final image

The solarplate placed in the sun for a few mintues

Taking the Akua ink off the exposed solarplate

with a putty knife

(which he can re-use)

Washing the solarplate with a brush and water,

to "develop" the image on the solarplate

Drying the solarplate with a sheet of newsprint

Putting the solarplate back out into the sun

to "cure"

(we left it out for about a half hour)

Akua ink, rollers, drawing rags, cornstarch, putty knives

The plate cleaned and ready to ink

Filing down the sharp corners of the solarplate

Inking the solarplate with Akua ink,

using a brush

Wiping the plate with newsprint pages

(instead of a tarlatan)

Rolling a different color ink onto the plate,

to add a relief inked addition to the final print

Last minute touches of color

"a la pinkie"

The inked plate ready to print

Many different colors and effects 

can be printed from the same solarplate

Usually an image, such as a photo negative, is pressed onto the emulsion side of the solarplate, and exposed to the sun.  The dark parts of the negative will keep the sun from hardening the emulsion, and thus those parts will wash out, and then take ink later on in the intaglio process.

Don Messec's solarplate image  --

instead of using a photo negative,

he ran a solarplate directly though an inkjet printer

An artist can draw directly onto a piece of see-thru Mylar, and use that as a negative when exposing the solarplate to the sun.

Solarplate print

made from pressing a drawing on ground glass onto the solarplate,

and exposing it to the sun

Beautiful multi-plate colored print

Don Messec's solarplate image

started after running a solarplate directly though an inkjet printer

Karen Hymer's print

Brushes for sale

at the Solarplate website

Also Dan Welden recommends the Stabilo 8046 pencil