A zinc plate is a metal plate that is used in lithography and intaglio printing. Zinc plates were often used as a substitute for stone, aluminum and copper plates but nowadays, they are not used as frequently as before. They came to be used in pl

Tincture is a liquid produced by dissolving powdered asphalt, grease, beeswax, etc. in solvent such as turpentine, and is used to reinforce the oil content of the drawing when making metal lithograph plates. Tincture contains a lot of fat. Replaci

A screen is a piece of mesh woven in a lattice which is used for the production of screen prints. The screen is stretched on a frame and the holes in areas other than the image are filled. When printing, ink is placed over this screen and forced thro

A slip sheet is a thin piece of paper slipped between print and water color art pieces done on paper for protection when storing them. With paper, mold and oxidation can cause yellowing and deterioration. Ink and color materials on the surface of

Planographic lacquer is a pink volatile organic solvent used in the process of making metal lithography plates to reinforce the drawing. Compared to stone plates, aluminum and other metal plates are less sensitive to oil. Therefore, a coat of plan

Stone plates are generally a piece of natural limestone carved into a rectangular plate shape for use as a lithograph plate. The surface of the plate is polished flat with emery or something to that effect before it is used. The chief component in th

Platemaking solution desensitizes the non-plotting areas when producing a lithograph with a metal plate. It is a mixture of phosphoric acid and glacial acetic acid added to a gum Arabic solution and is also called gum etch solution. Lithographic p

Platemaking ink used in lithography is made of pigment and linseed oil and used in lithograph printing plates. Platemaking ink reinforces the lipophilicity in parts that have been drawn with crayon and tusche and also protects those parts from the

Resensitizing solution is used to adjust the sensitivity of lithographic plates to grease. The process differs for metal plates and stone plates. The surface of metal plates begins to oxidize as soon as it is roughened and therefore the solution i

A mordant is a liquid which corrodes metal used in indirect intaglio techniques (etching) to form grooves on the plate. Common substances used include aqueous ferric chloride and aqueous nitric acid solutions. An aqueous ferric chloride solution i

Copper plate is a plate of copper pressed out for use in copperplate (intaglio) printing. In days gone by, iron plate was used for intaglio printing but copper came to be used from around the late 1400's when artists such as Dürer were actively pr

Ganpishi is a thin, semi-transparent Japanese paper often used in wood engraving and copper plate printing. It is mainly made of bast fibers from a ganpi tree (Diplomorpha sikokiana), a plant of the Thymelaeaceae family. Ganpishi paper has a smoot

Cheesecloth is a loosely-woven, gauze-like fabric used in copper plate printing to wipe off excess ink from the plate surface. In the past, it was chiefly made of hemp but nowadays, it is usually made of rayon and other artificial fabric or cotton. C

Liquid ground is a liquid used in copper plate printing to make the surface of the plate corrosion proof. Applying ground shields the non-image sections and protects the plate surface from corrosion. When performing line etching and other etching

Velin Arches is a printmaking paper which is used widely around the world and is mainly suitable for lithography and copper plate printing. It was developed specially for printing use by Arjo Wiggins of France and is made of 100% cotton pulp. Comp

Plate oil refers to burnt linseed oil which, in copper plate printing, is blended with pigment to make printing ink or to adjust the ink's viscosity. It is included in copper plate printing ink as a medium to fix the pigment on to the plate surfac

Fabriano Rosaspina is a printmaking paper produced by the Fabriano paper mill in Italy, a time-honored paper manufacturer of Europe established in 1283, and is suitable for lithography, copper plate printing and screen printing. It is an acid-free

Art paper is a type of coated paper with a specially treated surface (coated with an agent containing China clay and viscosifier, and subjected to high pressure) for enhanced smoothness and whiteness, with an elegant white tone and gloss that facilit

BFK Rives is a printmaking paper which is used widely around the world and is mainly suitable for lithography and copper plate printing. It is sometimes used as a back mounting paper when printing woodcuts on ganpishi paper. This product was devel

Blotting paper is highly water absorbent because it has not been sized (treated to prevent ink from smudging) whatsoever. When printing with copper plates and woodblocks (mainly using water-based ink), the paper needs to be moistened first but if the

Resin powder is a light yellow powder used on a lithograph plate to hold the ink or coloring material and to protect the lines on the image from the acid of the platemaking solution. It is made of residual resin (resine in French) left over after dis

A print cleaner is a petroleum based solvent used in various situations but mainly for cleaning when making prints. It is used in the process of making lithographs, as a painting oil medium, for cleaning oil-based ink, and for removing ground in copp

Talcum powder is a white or light gray powder used on a lithograph plate to make the ink or coloring material hold and to protect the lines on the image from the acid of the platemaking solution. It is a fine powder produced by pulverizing talc (h

Etchant is an acidic compound solution used in lithograph printing to prevent thickness in drawing lines and ink smudges and to improve the moisture retention of the surface. It is used by adding a moderate amount to a dampening solution (the amou

Gum Arabic is a natural resin which is used as a raw material for the gum Arabic solution used in lithography and in printmaking solutions. It is also used as a binder in watercolor paint. Gum Arabic is produced by drying a resin mainly containing