A Printmaking Glossary

Á la Poupée: Intaglio technique for inking several colors at one time on single plate by using small dabbers to apply colors.

Aquatint: Intaglio technique using melted rosin dust to etch areas of textured tones. [click for sketch]

Artist's Proof: Print reserved for artist's use.

Asphaltum: Resists acid after being brushed or poured onto metal plate; a hard ground.

Bevel: Angled or rounded edge of metal plate.

Bite: Action of acid as it attacks exposed areas of the metal plate.

Blanket: Woven felt used on press to push paper into inked lines of metal plate.

Brayer: Hand roller for inking blocks for relief printing.

Burin: Squared-shaped, sharpened steel wire in a mushroom-shaped handle; used for engraving on copper plate. Also used for engraving jewelry, guns, knives, etc.

Burnisher: Smooth steel rod for polishing the surface of a metal printing plate.

Burr: Ridge of metal created alongside a scratched line. Or spring-like cutting of metal removed from a plate by the burin.

Cancellation: Defaced plate, block or stone after an edition is pulled.

Chop: Decorative mark of identification embossed on a print by a printer.

Counteretch: In lithography, stone is treated chemically to resensitize it for making changes to image.

Counterproof: Wet ink on a fresh proof is transferred to another sheet of paper.

Crevé: In etching, an area is bitten too long in the acid, resulting in the metal surface between the lines being etched away.

Dabber / dauber: Inking pad made of rolled felt, leather or cloth.

Deckle: Ragged edge of handmade paper. Also, wooden frame used on a mould (or paper-making screen) when the sheet is formed in papermaking.

Drypoint: Intaglio technique in which image is drawn directly into the surface of a metal plate with a sharp etching needle. This raises a burr which will hold the ink if wiped properly.

Dutch Mordant: Etching solution or acid. Potassium chlorate-hydrochloric acid-water.

Edition: Impressions pulled from plate, block, etc.

Embossed print: Image is printed by intaglio process without ink. It results in raised paper.

End grain block: A block of wood used for wood engraving. It is the cross section of a tree, usually boxwood or maple.

Engraving: Lines are cut with burin into surface of metal plate.

Etching: Corrosive action of acid eats into surface of metal plate.

Etching needle: Needle used for drawing through hard ground on a plate to be etched.

Extender: Colorless ink. It causes pigmented ink to become more transparent.

False Bite / Foul Bite: Accidental penetration of acid through ground to attack surface of metal plate.

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Gauge (abbreviate either g or ga): The thickness of a sheet of copper or zinc (usually 16, 18, 20, or 22 gauge) used for etching and engraving. Refers to the number of stacked sheets required to make an inch. (Not to be confused with weight, which refers to the number of ounces per one square foot of the metal). For comparison: 16 gauge equals 36 ounce; 18 ga equals 30 oz; 20 ga equals 24 oz; 22 ga equals 18 oz.

Gouge: Tool with "V" shape or "U" shape cutting edge.

Graver: Similar to burin, but made in various shapes. Used for wood engraving.

Ground: In etching process, any acid-resisting substance used to protect metal.

Hard Ground: Image may be drawn through hard ground with etching needle.

Impression: A print or a proof.

Impression number: A number assigned to a print in edition. Also called serial number.

Intaglio: One of four traditional categories of printing. Ink is below the surface of the plate.

Levigator: Heavy steel disk used to grain litho stones.

Lift ground: Etching technique; a substance applied by brush to metal plate; resists varnish, leaves plate exposed to action of acid. Creates brush-stroke character in lines.

Linen Tester: A folding magnifier. Used to examine prints, plates, burins.

Linoleum cut / lino cut: Relief print made with a linoleum matrix.

Litho Crayon: Used in Lithography to draw on stone. Contains grease.

Lithography: A planographic process in which the ink is transferred from a flat surface that has been chemically prepared to accept water in some areas. The other areas will accept the ink.

Matrix: Material which transfers ink to paper in a printing process. Traditional examples are: metal plate (intaglio), wood block (relief), stone (planographic), screen (stencil).

Mezzotint: An intaglio process. A copper plate is roughened to hold the maximum amount of ink. Areas which are burnished or made smoother will hold less ink and show up as lighter areas.

Monotype / Monoprint: Freely painted or inked flat surface is printed on paper; yields a unique impression.

Mordant: Acid

Muller: Stone, glass or metal tool for grinding pigment in oil when making ink or paint.

Open bite: In etching, a large open area is exposed to acid.

Original print: Original, creative art printed from original plates, blocks, etc. It differs from the reproduction of an earlier work of art which was created in a different medium.

Plank-grain block (also Side-grain): A plank of wood is carved into the side to create a woodcut.

Planographic: One of four traditional categories of printing; the ink is transferred from a flat surface. Lithography is an example.

Plate film: In intaglio printing, a film of ink remaining on surface. Black ink will leave a light gray film.

Plate Mark: In intaglio printing, outside edge of plate is an embossed imprint.

Pochoir: Color applied through stencils.

Proof: A print or impression.

Registration: In color printing process: exact placement of paper and printing matrix to ensure accurate location of color.

Relief Etching: Metal plate is etched deeply, then printed by a relief printing process.

Relief: One of four traditional categories of printing. Ink is transferred to paper from raised surface of a matrix.

Reproduction: Copy or facsimile of an artist's work. Not an original piece of art.

Resist: Substance applied to plate to protect it from acid while etching metal plate. Also called a "ground".

Rocker: Serrated cutting tool used to create the rough surface of a mezzotint plate, permitting it to print solid black before scraping or burnishing.

Rosin: Made from pine sap. Dissolved rosin in alcohol is used as stop-out varnish. Powdered rosin is used in aquatint.

Roulette: Textured wheel used to roughen surface of a metal printing plate.

Scorper / scauper: Wood engraving tool or graver with a curved cutting edge.

Scraper: Three-edged knife for scraping metal surface in etching. In Lithography, a scraper is the bar that applies the press pressure to the paper.

Screen print: Stencil process which uses fabric to maintain stencil elements. Formerly called "serigraph" or "silk screen print".

Serigraphy, serigraph: See Screen print.

Signed print: Print, proof, or impression signed with pencil by the artist.

Silk Screen print: See Screen print, Serigraphy.

Slip Sheet: Tissue between stacked proofs to prevent offseting of ink to next print.

Soft Ground: Acid resistant etching ground that is soft enough to be removed from the plate when touched lightly.

Spitzsticker: A sharp-pointed graver used in wood engraving.

Squeegee: Used in screen printing: A rubber blade with wooden handle to force ink through fabric.

State: A step in the development of a print. Not the final or finished version.

Steel facing: Copper plate is coated with very thin deposit of steel to make the surface more durable.

Stencil: One of four categories of printing. Ink passes through openings in a matrix. Examples: screen print, pochoir.

Stopout varnish: Used to protect areas of a metal plate from acid. Usually made from rosin and alcohol.

Tack: The quality of stickiness in printing ink.

Tarlatan: Starched cotton gauze used by printmakers for wiping intaglio plates.

Template: Used to assure proper color registration or a centered image during the printing process. A clean sheet of paper or plastic on bed of etching press is marked with correct positions for the plate and paper.

Tusche: Grease-based ink for drawing on litho stone. Also used to resist glue for screen stencil.

Wood engraving: Relief process; image is cut into end-grain wood block with gravers and burins.

Wood cut: Relief process; image is cut into side-grain plank of wood with gouges and chisels.