How to Make a Drypoint Etching Print from Recycled Plastic with No Press
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- Опубликовано: 23 авг 2024
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This is a beginner to intermediate demonstration of printing a drypoint etching from recycled plastic food containers without a press
Here is the blog post that goes with this video: www.belindadel...
A drypoint print is made by using scribes or etching needles to engrave line work into a piece of plastic from a lettuce container. The engraved plastic is then inked, and wiped, which clears ink from the upper surface of the plate, and leaves ink embedded in the incised line work. The plate is pressed to paper, and the ink in the lines is transferred to the paper to create a drypoint etching print.
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Plexiglass (or perspex, optix, lexan, etc.) plate
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Twisted Scribe (or Whistler's Needle)
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Cork Handled Etching Needle/Scribe
(this one was used in the video)
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Carbide Point Etching Needle/Scribe
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Akua Ink starter set
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Akua MagMix (modifier to thicken the ink)
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Akua Transparent Base
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Tarlatan Wiping Cloth
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storage jars for leftover ink
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rubber gloves
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apron
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Putty knife/scraper
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#printmaking paper
Bfk Rives paper (lightweight) for use with hand rub/transfer
(*recommended if you plan to add other media*)
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If you won't be adding other media, you can try Japanese kozo paper
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tarlatan and newsprint for wiping ink from the plate
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daubers or "dollies": rolled strips of felt for ink application
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or
you can use bristle paint brushes
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If you have any questions about the process, please leave them in the comment section, and I’ll do my best to answer them! Happy printing! #Drypoint #printmaking #engraving #withoutapress
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Let's make a drypoint etching from plastic food containers! Here are all the steps to snip printmaking plates from produce and baked goods plastic containers. Then, we'll put a drawing on the plate with an engraving tool! Then, we'll ink and wipe and print the drypoint by hand! This is so fun, you'll never toss another cookie container without considering the print you could make from the plastic! Here are the details on a blog post: www.belindadelpesco.com/how-to-make-a-drypoint-etching-from-recycled-plastic-and-print-it-without-a-press.html/
I just found your channel... this is awesome!
@@windywednesday4166 hi Windy! I’m glad the demo videos are helpful to you. Have so much fun printing!
As serious as you sound and the last picture is Godzilla! 🤣🤣
Hi Kelly - I’m glad you enjoyed the contrast. 😉
...The artwork just blows me away as well. I love the monster climbing over the building. I mean it's so... so... Zachar!
Thanks, Zachar… I’m really glad you like it. 👍🏽
This video has unlocked a deep memory of making an etching and printing it in middle or high school!
I love that you repurposed common things that are tossed or recycled.
Hi Lea, well that’s a fun thing to recall! I’m so glad. Do you remember what you printed?
@@bdelpesco I don’t, but considering my interests, it was probably a unicorn.
@@divalea that’s perfect! Magical, rare and full of whimsy, just like art-making!
@@bdelpesco OMG I JUST REMEMBERED WHAT WE USED FOR THE PLASTIC.
I’m shouting because it’s WILD. One of my fellow students had a parent who worked in a dr’s office, so the parent got the old (cleaned off) x-ray films and donated it to the art department! (The head of the art dept at Jackson Middle School was terrific.)
@@bdelpesco I don’t love unicorns the way I used to, but I still love them a LOT.
Wow! How wonderful to see that other people are doing this sort of thing with recycled plastic. This has really helped me improve what I've already tried. You-brilliant
Thanks for the enthusiasm, Zachar! I’m glad we’re both collecting printmaking supplies from the recycling bin!
The way you color in each piece is fantastic!
Thanks for the feedback, BDAN! I hope you try some of these methods yourself... it's fun and very satisfying!
@@bdelpesco Definitely!
This is exactly the beginner, at-home, minimal expense, printmaking tutorial ive been searching for. Just need to order some proper ink.
Found you on Pinterest. Many, many thanks for your posts there and on YT. Pretty excited to give this a go.
Hi RaeRae - yay for Pinterest and new printmaking adventures! I hope you have so much fun!
This looks exciting! I’ll be saving my plastic now! Thank you.
Thanks, Maggie! I’m glad it looks fun, and I hope you give it a try!
Thank you for sharing this! I love the fact that you are reusing plastic and also doing all of this with expensive tools or an etching press. I can’t wait to try this out soon. Thanks again!! :-)
Hi Sylvia, I’m glad you liked the demo. It was a lot of fun, and I do hope you give it a go. Work small and simple to start, and you can slowly graduate to larger and more complex pieces. Have fun!
*Note that I said below that I had been etching into recycled plastic... this is absolutely true... but that doesn't mean I've been getting any decent results from it; just that I was etching into it in the absolute belief that it SHOULD work. Now I can try these etchings with some authority thanks to your film
Hi Zachar, I hope your next printmaking adventures are fruitful. The supplies matter (paper and inks) and wiping the plate is almost an art in itself. Carry on, have fun, you’ve got this!
@@bdelpesco Thanks to you, today I finally made some prints from engraved perspex and it works better than I ever could've imagined. Latest invention is "Floor Lino Embossing"... where I engrave/melt the soft insulation side of cheap flooring people have thrown away to create a complex 3-D sculpture up to 4mm deep... Then I make a mould of the melted/engraved flooring (with bathroom silicone) and make an "embossing folder" out of the engraving and the mould. I can use this folder to press intricate patterns into paper which you don't even need ink for (although I use it anyway). I make these folders for die-cut embossers, devices which, at least in Belgium, you can buy practically everywhere (but surprisingly few people seem to know anything about). Infinitely reproducible recyclable 3-D art every time. Here's to recycling stuff!
That all sounds completely fun! If you’re on Facebook, there’s a Group of printmakers using craft embossers with great results and a ton of tips for optimal prints: facebook.com/groups/1544918272204523/?
@@bdelpesco Yeah; my hands are now totally black from wiping the ink off the 'recycled plastic' plates. I'm typing... carefully!
@@bdelpesco I'm absolutely thrilled you shared this information with me. I applied to join the group. Seems to me that it could be a really fruitful endeavour - craft embossers are just incredible devices and they don't get anywhere near as much appreciation as they deserve.
Missed you, glad to see you back, you're content is perfect for these times.
Hi there, Max. Thank you for the warm welcome back, and the encouragement. I'm very happy to be making tutorials again. Happy Creating to you!
This is such a brilliant tutorial! I learnt dry point at art school but had largely forgotten and no longer have access to a printing press. Thank you so so much. So informative. Can't wait to try.
Hi Holly! I'm so glad it was helpful! If you can keep your drypoint small and simple, you'll get back in the swing of it really fast. Here is a roundup of drypoint demos from my blog with all sorts of tips: www.belindadelpesco.com/make-a-drypoint-print-from-recycled-plastic.html/ - Happy printing!
Thanks Belinda. Even though I have done dry point etching before (using a professional printing press at college), I appreciate your video because it is a great refresher for me and also empowers all of us to do this at home quite cheaply.
Hi Linda, That's *precisely* what I was hoping for, so thank you for the feedback. I too spent decades missing access to a good print lab. I think printmaking can be done at home, without a press, with just a few caveats. Happy printing to you!
Wonderful, clear, complete , detailed instruction 😁💕🎨
Hi Judith! Thanks for your glowing review of the tutorial! I’m so glad the instructions made sense and I hope you give drypoint printing a try! 🥄🗒🖊💚
So glad you made another video of this process! I bought the scribe about a month ago and still haven't used it yet. I love your story about your husband and the plastic containers (from your website) you save for this purpose! Thank you for doing these fun videos!
Hi Bonbon! Thanks for your feedback and I’m so glad you bought a scribe! Did you decide what subject you’re going to create on your first drypoint yet?
THIS IS JUST INCREDIBLE! Thank you!!
Thank you, Zachar! 🎨
Great idea! I've used Mylar successfully and will try this now. I love your videos and all the info you share so generously; I've learned a lot and had fun trying several techniques.
Hi Harpaint - yes, Mylar works well too! This plastic recycled into art is a sweet distraction. Plus you have reasons to buy cookies and croissants! Have fun, and thank you for the compliments!
Belinda, these times are just crazy enough, or maybe it is Real inspiration from the realm of Nature, but i couldn't help feeling the container, whether it was for blueberries or lettuce, might be important. ( since you mentioned rhem) i mean, when you consider the plastic might have 'experienced' and imbued itself with nothing much besides what it contained for that one time (!) , it made me think there might be something in that-- the idea of listening to what the lettuce or the blueberries might have to say, if they were to speak... what they might contribute visually to the art...I am currently having so many ideas! Have been enjoying looking at your work.
art is life.
Olhamo, I do love the idea that creating a printmaking plate and art from materials that would otherwise land in the recycling bin gives the plastic some other purpose. You should see the stack of snipped rectangles of plastic Ive collected in my kitchen for art projects! Monotypes, drypoint, collagraphs - all of them can be made from sections of food-grade plastic. Such fun!
This is such an amazing video - thank you so much for sharing this technique with us, and also with recycled materials and things at home!
♻
Hello Zahra - I’m glad you found it helpful, and I hope you give it a try! It makes recycling both worthy and FUN! Happy printing!
Wow !, you are a very, very good teacher, and and excellent artist !
Thanks for the kind compliments, Ofelia! I hope you make a ton of art this week!
Beautifully explained
Thanks for that, Nimra... I hope you make one!
Welcome. I just start one.. ❤️
Love this! I've pulled some like this and save plastic; my husband probably thinks my stashes of plastic bits is crazy. I also find the softer plastic , like large yogurt or whipped cream lids, are great for scratching into, but aren't transparent, but ballpoint pens can write on them. I love the grit and dirt of drypoint line work, so I die inside a little when you watercolor over the beautiful lines! :D But an artist's gotta do what an artist's gotta do!
Hi Anna, I bet the prints from the dairy containers are fun (round!). And my husband arches an eyebrow whenever I rinse a plastic container too. But it's so fun to make art from things around the house! And the timing - for others who can't get to art supplies! Thank goodness for creativity during a pandemic! Thanks for visiting and happy printing to you!
Thank you for sharing this very easy way of creating beautiful drypoint engravings. So excited to try these out. I love traditional intaglio and printmaking processes, but I always thought I needed access to a print studio with presses to be able to do it. This is really great! Being from Millburn High School, I love the little collage options at the end. :-)
Hi Linda! I'm really glad the demo is an encouragement to make drypoints at your kitchen table! It's so fun to use up recycled plastic by turning it into art! If you make some prints,and then share them somewhere online, be sure to come back and leave a link where we can find them. I'd love to see! Thanks for the compliments on my High School Godzilla fun. :)
This is fantastic thank you! I am doing copper intaglio plates right now but this looks so much simpler and less expensive - it gives me hope for being able to afford to print in the future 🥰🥰🥰
Hi Elle, I remember doing copper plates, and then discovering plexiglass as an option. It’s so fun, and yes, affordable. Have you tried making prints from foil-lined juice cartons yet?
@@bdelpesco No not yet... I am really so new at this but I am taking a course from Jonathon Goebel so I am learning very fast with a great shop team... thank you for your inspirational videos ... I fell in love with this medium instantly os I am so excited to try everything and see what works for me ❤
@@ellesilverwolf4571 You’re going to have so much fun - for so many years! Happy printmaking adventures to you! 🙌🏽
That godzilla at the end really killed me XD, this is such a great idea.
Have you tried plate lithography? I think you would love it!
Hi MissNausicaa87! I haven’t! Do you know of a good video tutorial?
@@bdelpesco I would love to know too MissNausicaa87!
This is a great technique Belinda! You make it look effortless really, even the slip up. Was teaching art to a community group a few years ago and we did similar, drypoint on plastic but I showed them how to use a pasta machine as the press.....many ooooh's and aaaaah's and resurrected pasta machines the following week! Am pretty sure you have a video like this...??. So glad to see you uploading again. TFS!! ps: have signed up to the blog....it is a FABULOUS resource!!! Thank you!
Hi there! Thanks for your encouraging feedback! I love the idea of folks scrambling to move their pasta machines from deep kitchen cabinets to their studio tables! I’ve written a few blog posts with links to groups and resources for alternate presses, including pasta makers. I love the resourcefulness creative people can muster! Best tribe, ever! 🤓
It would appear US plastic containers are far thicker than UK containers. (And less eco friendly although the UK ‘can’t’ recycle these containers and therefore go to landfill!) ours tend to have breather holes too which poses a problem. I have seen fruit juice containers (again non recycleable) with foil lining being used for dry point successfully.
Hi John, most of our containers have breather holes too - especially for produce, but the usually have one solid panel to affix the label... more so for dry goods. And many of ours here in the states are super thin too. The little dog plate is very light, but it can be done! I’ve seen the foil lined juice container Drypoints and I have material saved for that to give it a try. Have you made one?
@@bdelpesco now the dark nights have arrived here with clocks changing i will. especially as our evening adult night classes are cancelled because of covid
I’m sorry your evening gatherings are postponed. I do hope you’ll make some prints. The darker evenings and dropping temperatures always feel like a dose of creative productivity to me. I hope it’s the same for you!
I am going to do this! I just need ink and plastic containers. It is so much easier and cheaper than metal plates.
Simone - I recommend buying cookies to collect the plastic containers. And either Akua intaglio or Cranfield Caligo Safe Wash etching inks. Both wash up with water. Have a ton of fun!
@@bdelpesco I make my own cookies due to allergies but I feel the need for a gluten free cheese cake coming upon me. I have some water based oil paint on the way. Would they be an acceptable substitute till I can get proper ink? And I believe I will have a lot of fun.
Ooooooo, cheese cake! I’ll be right over with some simmered berries to top it with! I’ve not tried oil paint, but I suspect it will work, depending on two things: how slow it dries, and how it adheres to paper. It’s worth a shot, and I’d love to know how it works out for you! Come back and let us know, okay?
@@bdelpesco Simmered berries? Yumm! As long as they aren't strawberries as I'm allergic to them. It will be several weeks at best before I can get to making anything as I have to get everything but I will post on insta and let you know how it turned out.
And I'm working 7 days a week right now so I have to pace myself. When I start creating I tend to forget to sleep.
I will omit the strawberries! But we’ll use the containers to make a whole village of dog drypoints in hats and blazers! I hope your workload simmers a bit, and creative time blooms fully for you over the next season. 🤓
excellent! this was very helpful, and it uplifts me, to be learning to do this in a low-tech, diy way. I have a theory that the simpler we can do things, and the more we creatively reuse, the more heart is in the hand of the maker, and thence, the creation. “nice to be able to authentically use the word “thence”. Not often seen! :)
Olhamo, After almost a year of staying home, it behooves us to apply creative strategies to making art with what we already have. (Like "thence", I'm tossing in a "behoove".) :) I'm so glad you found the video useful, and I do hope you go pawing through your recycling bin to pull out some plastic to make a drypoint etching. :) Thanks for the feedback.
Great video-many thanks.
You are very welcome! Happy printmaking to you!
I’m so excited to find your videos! I just got a printing press!!
Yayyyyy! Congratulations on your new press! Have *so much fun* in your printmaking adventures!
Fabulous video
Thanks 🤗 Lucretia!
Thank you so much
You're most welcome. I hope you have fun and great success in your printmaking adventures!
Thank you so much ♡
You’re welcome! Happy printing!
Oh my gosh, I have wanted something to do with plastic, thank you.
Hi PC - I’m glad this Drypoint printmaking looks like a viable option for you. It’s *so fun*! Happy printing!
I wonder if abrading the surface of the plastic would allow it to hold ink? I'm envisioning a multi-color ink print...
Alonzo - yes, that works. If you’re using recycled plastic (no cost) - it might be useful to create a mark making plate, segmented into a grid, with an assortment of abrasive tools and incised line mark-making, so you can refer to it when planning your next print.
This is very clever. I always fret about the amount of wasted ink when I do etching. It seems you have to put a lot of ink on and then take most of it off. 🥴
Is there a more frugal way of adding the ink - or is this the only way please, Belinda?
Hi V, Yes, this application was a bit heavy handed. You could always lean towards a more conservative amount and then add more as you need it while rubbing the pigment into the linework. You can also use a spent plastic gift card before you begin wiping, to gently scrape the ink off the surface to re-use, but there are risks of scratching the plate surface, and/or collecting plate materials in that scraped ink, so it's best to deposit it into another small container, rather than adding it to your fresh, untouched supply.
@@bdelpesco This is really helpful advice - thanks so much, Belinda.
I appreciate you taking the time to reply, and share your wisdom and experience with me. 🙏🏼 [Helen]
Tq
Welcome
Cool!😊
Thanks, Matt!
Doing a similar project with my high school art class. We are having troubles getting ink to transfer completely. Is there a happy medium on wet\dryness of paper? Our prints just come out pale.
Hi Cameron, Can you send me a photo of what the prints look like, and let me know the ink, paper and press or hand transfer method you are using? hello@belindadelpesco.com
Very Nice. Do you have to re-ink and wipe for every single print?
Hi Nikki, yes, ink, wipe and print on a new sheet of paper for an edition. Then number each print. So if you make ten prints, you number the first 1/10 to indicate that it’s print #1 in an edition of 10. Make sense?
Seems like you wouldn’t need to use as much ink as you did and save time and ink. Great ideas here
Hi Joy, That is true. This was the first go on this plate, and my attention was split between the lighting, camera/video production & focus, and what my hands were doing. I'm not a good multitasker, so yes, I could have done an effective print with half as much ink, for sure. Thanks for pointing it out, and for the compliment.
@@bdelpesco I'm just too frugal, haha. By the way, I made a etching sketch used a sharp tool of my clay tools. I didn't have ink, so I used acrylic paint and it didn't work. Have you ever tried the paint and had trouble? Guess I need to get some ink or make sure I've scratched the plastic deep enough. Thanks for any suggestions
Oh, watched your video again and forgot to wet my paper! That's probably where I went wrong!
@@joysmith1213 Hi Joy, Acrylic is made to dry fast, but it's also dissolvable in water while it's still wet. Those two characteristics make it hard to use in printmaking. If it dries in the crevices of the linework incised into your plate, you've just filled them forever, and if it stays wet and you press it against damp paper, it'll bloom and bleed beyond the contact point. Your best bet is to buy a small amount of intaglio ink made specifically for printmaking. 👍
Hi, is clear acetate plastic is also okay to use for this method?
Hi Guiliana - Yes, definitely... you can use acrylic plates, clam-shell container plastic, plexiglass, etc. Have a ton of fun!
What kind of ink should I use? I am working with a summer camp where we intend to use this technique, relief print, and collagraph, hand printed (no press). Assuming acrylic paint won't work well... can block printing ink work for all three techniques? Thanks.
Hi Christopher, The brand and type of block printing ink you use will have a profound effect on the results. Slow-to-dry is best so your students have time to mix colors, apply to the plate, wipe the plate, and press against paper without the ink skimming over (which would happen with quick-dry acrylic paints) I presume you want water-wash up inks (different from water-soluble) for students, so I'd recommend Cranfield Caligo Safewash Intaglio inks. amzn.to/38hsN0e Try to use printmaking paper with little to no sizing. Have a look at Cranfiled's FAQ page: www.cranfield-colours.co.uk/faqs/#inksfaqs
@@bdelpesco Wow, thanks! And I hadn’t considered the difference between water soluble and water washable.
;
:)