I have a thing for pears. I love it that their shape, while simple, is both elegant and whimsical. So they seemed a good subject for a monotype. If you want the definitive definition of a monotype (as opposed to a monoprint) it might be best to look it up. For myself, I think of a monotype as ink (and nothing else) manipulated on a plate and then printed. You get a single unique image that can never be exactly repeated. If there is sufficient ink left on the plate, you can do a second pull and get what is called a ghost or detail print. But this print, while the same image, will be paler than the first pull and more ethereal. A portion of the plate may not even print.
A monoprint, on the other hand, has a repeatable property. Again, this is my definition. You can ink a lino block of a pear, say, in a dozen ways -- working into the background, lifting ink or randomly applying several colours of ink -- and the prints will all look different, each one unique. That recognizable pear lino block, though, will appear in each print. But you don't need to know any of that print geek jargon to spend a few hours -- or a few days -- pushing ink around.
Below is my set up. A Bosc pear with a jaunty stem, and a light-box (overlaid with a clear plastic sheet to protect it from ink). You don't need a light box -- it just makes it easier to see the manipulated ink.
Here is my ink set-up. Using Akua Intaglio in yellow ochre I rolled up a 3x4-inch Plexiglas plate with a smooth layer of ink.
I'm afraid I didn't stop to take photos at every stage. What you see below is about four or five steps along, where ink had been wiped away and other colours rolled on. (I taped a piece of card board to the plastic covering the light box to raise the plate and make it easier to work on.) The head of the light-box is propped up a few inches for a more comfortable working angle.
Here's another in-process shot:
I'll try and recall my progression. The plate was inked in yellow ochre and then, using a square of fine cotton fabric wrapped around my finger, I wiped away the ink to leave a rough pear shape. I also defined the stem with a Q-tip. Then I took the plate to the inking station and made a single pass over the entire plate with red ink. (Note -- don't leave your brayers in this position. Rest them on the metal bar to prevent warping the rubber.)
This is a bit of alchemy involving something called viscosity, the consistency of the ink. I've heard it described as peanut butter and jelly. You can't easily spread peanut butter on jelly but you can spread the jelly on the peanut butter. Thick ink won't go over thin, but thin will go over thick. In other words, a loose ink (the jelly) rejects the stiff ink (the peanut butter). I haven't even begun to grasp the rudiments of this principle but I adopted an attitude of experimentation and pushed ahead.
The yellow ink (the stiffer ink) resisted the red (the looser ink) and the red clung only to the plate where I'd wiped away the yellow. So now I had a yellow pear against a red background. With a cloth-covered finger, I tapped a little red ink on the right side of the pear to create shading and also some dark ink on the stem. A little of that dark mix also created a shadow, to ground the pear. At first, my pears had looked like they were floating:
Here is the set-up at the press:
The inked plate goes on the press bed with the paper on top so I needed a guide to ensure even margins around the print. I used washi tape on a cutting mat.
Inked plate in place and then paper on top.
A trip through the press and then the big reveal!
This was a early try and I hadn't rolled on enough ink. Another try, below -- still not enough ink.
With trial and error, I improved at inking the plate and creating shadow and highlights to give the pear dimension. It's an enjoyable process inking and wiping the plate -- but slow and lengthy -- and I managed only two or three prints a day. But day by day my display wall filled with pear prints and nothing lifts my printmaker's heart like a line of multiples. Here's a short video sampler (you may need to click on the post title to view).
Thanks so much much for watching and I'll see you soon!
