Using fabrication tools in printmaking…
In much the same way I think photography adds detail and refinement to my prints, I also embrace the new makerspace technology. It has become yet another tool in my tool box. I love mixing digital into my hand work and most, if not all fabrication equipment runs off Illustrator files. A lot of my imagery starts in Illustrator, so this just adds to my interest in these tools.
My first application of fabrication tools was to use the vinyl cutter for screen printing stencils. The next step was to use the same tool for collagraph plates. When making a collagraph plate out of card stock and medium I’m also unsatisfied with the brush strokes of the medium. With vinyl you get a smooth surface. I’m scissor challenged; with a vinyl cutter, no problem. Glue challenged? Again no problem as the vinyl is an adhesive. The only issue I found with the vinyl plates was that since there is only the edge to hold ink, only a line and some plate tone is printed. That is an easy solution. I screen print the surface I’m using with Speedball Carborundum gel and that gives the appearance of an aquatint.
I’ve started using the laser cutter to cut paper stencils for monotypes. I’ve also cut differencing types of wood plates and have started experimenting cutting plexi intaglio plates.
I’m troubled by using a plate and image once, even an edition of images from that plate and so have been using plates cut into shapes to be elements within images. With a shear, mostly that means triangles and hexagons and the like, nothing with curves. I was therefore happy to find that the water jet cutter could cut shapes out of both copper and stainless steel which then can be etched. I found that even photoplymer plates can be cut. You just have to harden them with UV immediately after cutting. The next tool I want to try is the CNC router with a needle to cut through grounded copper.
All these tools add quality of line and shape that is hard to get by hand. Like adding photography to printmaking, fabrication does not mean the print looses the feel of the hand. It just give a hand to the printmaker.