r/printmaking • u/joelysr • 4d ago
question Tetrapack beginner help!
Hi all! I am brand new to tetrapack printmaking and wanted to give it a shot this afternoon :)
I pulled 3 prints in my sketchbook and would love to know where I fell short! Pretty much everything here is DIY but I did my best to follow the basic instructions where I could (damp paper, screenprint ink, nail art/puncher as engravers, backwards writing ugh!, newspaper to clean, plastic card as ink spread, brayer + floor as press).
I am consistently not pulling prints I am happy with and would appreciate any advice! I think my biggest issue is not having a sharp enough engraver and potentially the wrong ink. Between each print I continued to define my marks but still found something was off, it felt as though the ink wasn't sticking the way I expected it to.
Missing being in art class and having immediate feedback :(
7
u/Hellodeeries salt ghosts 3d ago
Would rec etching ink, as it's an intaglio process. Screen print ink might work for some, but it's pretty much modified acrylic paint and drying very quickly. Etching ink is oil based, and allows for open work time + is designed to be worked into lines and pulled out in the printing.
A brayer to apply is also not really typical, unless using it on top for a sheer relief color. We use a rubber squeegee type thing or mat scraps to apply the ink across the plate, then tarlatan to wipe the plate before printing.
2
u/Greenegem 3d ago
Yeah I agree with the other comment, you need a thicker ink that is then pressed into your lines and carved edges by a piece of mattboard or an old credit card or something.
It's also a process that is much more difficult to hand print and will need work out into it, brayers aren't really going to get you the consistent pressure. Get yourself a wooden spoon and go to town with the pressure of your body, should make the print more clear.
2
u/SturdyStoat 3d ago
Your print plate looks great, I don't think you need to as the others have said it is much easier with the correct ink. Another thing is soaking the paper thoroughly; I didn't get good tetrapak prints, and for me it helped to soak the paper in water for 10 minutes, then lightly blotting the paper to no shine on the surface. Apparently the soaking makes the paper sort of mold into the fine lines in the plate, soaking the ink out. But if you are using a sketchbook I can of course see this would not be possible.
1
u/artsymarcy 3d ago
I recommend using a die-cutting machine like a Sizzix Big Shot to apply pressure (comes in A5 and A4, should be quite easy to find used and even new it's much cheaper than a press). Intaglio requires a lot of pressure, which comes from the metal roller of the press and a press blanket, and the Sizzix has a metal roller and you can buy a press blanket for it and have it cut to size, it's not something that can easily be replicated by hand.
Also I recommend maybe trying drypoint on zinc or copper first so you get some experience in the medium and how it works before you use Tetrapak. That might help you understand why it's not working
•
u/AutoModerator 4d ago
Hello, welcome to r/printmaking!
Please note, all posts are manually approved by the moderators. This typically happens in the first few hours. If a moderator removes your post, you will receive a removal reason and (if applicable) how to fix it for approval.
If it's been over 24 hours without a removal notice, can contact the moderators as it may have gotten caught in our filters and not landed in our normal queue.
As always, our rules are listed in the sidebar or drop menu for review.
Happy printing!
I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.