Living Prints Mezzotint On-line
Polishing and burnishing
Wherever there is no plate texture, there is nothing to trap
the printing ink in intaglio printing. A high pressure printing
press prints the plate, leaving an impression of the ink on the
paper. Non-printing portions of the plate are polished; these
will not print, of course, and the color of the paper--usually
white paper--remains.
Thus, making an intaglio-printing mezzotint plate consists
of polishing the plate for the non-printing areas. This is drawing
"white on black" to most people, a little like drawing
with white pencil or chalk on a dark paper.
On this page, you may be at the middle of the plate-making
process. Back-track or take sideways views of the processes by
selecting highlighted key words and images. If you want to go
back to the first steps, select here.
- Above: Polishing the plate with steel wool.
- The burnishing is similar to steel-wool polishing. Artists
and crafts people work among the scraping, burnishing and polishing
to create the image.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
- Select the highlighted words for information
- ©1996 Bill H. Ritchie, Jr. -- June 8