I have attended both an etching and screen printing workshop.This was the first time that I had done etching and found it to be really inspirational. "Etching is the process of using strong acid to cut into the unprotected parts of a metal surface to create a design in intaglio in the metal (the original process - in modern manufacturing other chemicals may be used on other types of material). As an intagilo method of printmaking it is, along with engraving, the most important technique for old master prints, and remains widely used today". Although etching is a technical process the outcome is deffinantly worth while. "In pure etching, a metal (usually copper, zinc or steel) plate is covered with a waxy ground which is resistant to acid. The artist then scratches off the ground with a pointed etching needle where he/she wants a line to appear in the finished piece, so exposing the bare metal. The plate is then dipped in a bath of acid, technically called the mordant (French for "biting"), or has acid washed over i The acid "bites" into the metal, where it is exposed, leaving behind lines sunk into the plate. The remaining ground is then cleaned off the plate. The plate is inked all over, and then the ink wiped off the surface, leaving only the ink in the etched lines.
The plate is then put through a high-pressure printing-press together with a sheet of paper (often moistened to soften it). The paper picks up the ink from the etched lines, making a print. The process can be repeated many times; typically several hundred impressions (copies) could be printed before the plate shows much sign of wear."
The thing I like most about etching as a process was its ability to create such intercute mark marking on such a hard material.after the etching workshop I decided to incorporate mark making within my drawings which works really well on a simply sheet of A4 paper. I hope soon to use mark making within my work.
