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M a tis s e ' s Pr in tM a kin g
P r o c e s s e s
aquatint : Aquatint is a variation on the etching process that allows the
artist to add passages of tone to the print. To create an aquatint, an etching
plate is dusted with a fine rosin powder and heated to bind the rosin onto
the plate. The particles of rosin dust are acid resistant; thus when immersed
in acid, the metal is bitten in small areas around the particles. The result is
a plate etched with fine recesses that hold onto ink and print as a network
of small, irregular dots. The depth of the recesses, and hence the darkness
of the tone, can be controlled by varying the amount of time that the plate
is exposed to the acid. Aquatint plates can be burnished or rubbed with a
smooth metal tool to modify or add highlights to areas of tone.
D r y P o i n t : Drypoint is an intaglio process, meaning the design (image)
is actually incised in a metal plate. This is in a class of printing techniques
that also includes aquatint, engraving, etching, and mezzotint. To take an
impression from an intaglio plate, ink is forced down into the incised lines
of the plate, and excess ink is wiped from its surface. A sheet of paper is
placed on top of the plate and passed under the roller of a printing press.
Under the pressure of the press, the paper is pushed down into the lines toreceive the ink. To make a drypoint, the artist scratches lines directly on the
plate with a sharp instrument such as a needle or a knifepoint. The process
of scratching the plate displaces metal and creates a rough burr of metal
along the edges of each line. The burr holds extra ink that, when printed,
creates lines that have a soft, feathery quality.
e t c h i n g : Etching is an intaglio process in which the lines of the design
are etched or bitten into the metal plate using the corroding action of acid.
To make an etching, the plate is covered with a ground layer of an acid-resis-
tant material such as wax or resin. The artist draws through the ground with
a needle to expose areas of bare metal. When the plate is brushed with or
immersed in acid, the artist’s drawing is etched into the metal. The ground
layer is removed, and the plate is inked and printed using an intaglio press.
L i f t - g r o u n D a q u a t i n t : Lift-ground (also known as sugar lift)
aquatint is an intaglio process that allows the artist to create prints that
have the fluid appearance of pen and ink or brush and ink drawings. In
this process, the artist draws or paints on the plate with a sugar-based (wa-
ter soluble) solution. After the solution dries, the plate is coated with an
acid-resistant varnish and immersed in water. As the water-soluble solution
slowly dissolves, it lifts the varnish from the areas of the plate where the art-
ist drew. Then, as with a standard aquatint, the plate is dusted overall with
rosin, heated to fuse the powder in place, and etched with acid.
L i n o L e u M c u t : Linoleum cut is a variation on the woodcut in which
a sheet of linoleum is carved instead of a plank of wood. Introduced in the
late nineteenth century for use as floor coverings, linoleum was originally
produced from solidified linseed oil mixed with wood dust and adhered to
a burlap backing. Because linoleum is strong but relatively soft and has no
directional grain, it can be more easily carved than wood and is not suscep-
tible to splitting during carving or printing.
L i t h o g r a P h : Lithographyis aplanographicprocess,meaningthatthe
inkdesignisimpressedonpaperfromaflatsurfacethathasbeenchemically
alteredratherthanfrom anincised,carved,or otherwiseirregularsurface.The
processisbaseduponthechemicalincompatibilityofoil andwater.Tomake
alithograph,theartistdrawswithanoil-basedcrayonorinkona smoothpo-
roussurfacesuchasa limestoneblockor aspeciallygrainedmetalplate.The
stone isthenpreparedin orderto holdinkin areasofan artist’sdesignand
repelinkinnon-imageareas.Oncetheimageis fixedonthestone,theartist
canaddhighlightsanddetailtothedesignbyscrapingthesurfaceofthestone
witha needleor aknife. Printinga lithographrequiresa specialflat-bedpress
thatforcesthepaperincontactwiththeinkedstoneata high,evenpressure.
M o n o t y P e : A monotype is a print made after an artist paints or draws
with printing ink directly on a flat, smooth surface such as a sheet of glassor an otherwise unprepared metal printing plate. Normally, only one good
impression can be taken from a monotype. Monotypes generally fall into two
distinct groups: those made in the “white field manner,” where the ink is built
up on the plate in the same manner as an ink drawing; and those made in the
“dark field manner,” created by removing ink from a fully inked plate.
t r a n s f e r L i t h o g r a P h : Lithographs do not need to be drawn di-
rectly on the stone. Drawings made with lithographic crayons on another sur-
face, such as paper, can be transferred by pressure onto a stone and prepared
for printing using the standard techniques. The advantages of transfer lithog-
raphy include the convenience with which the artist can draw on a surface
that is more portable and familiar than a lithographic stone and the fact that
the printed image will be in the same orientation as the original drawing.
W o o D c u t : A woodcut is created by carving into a plank of wood with
knives, gouges, and other cutting tools. Since woodcut is a relief process,
the areas carved away from the wood define the highlights, or non-printed
areas. To take an impression, the raised areas of the block are rolled with a
layer of ink, and then the image is printed on paper with pressure applied by
a printing press or through rubbing.
t o M P r i M e a u
Directorof Conservation and PaperConservator
TheBaltimore Museum of Art LargeOdalisque with BayadèreCulottes , 1925. Crayontransfer lithog
(image);29 ½ x22 A/af in. (sheet). Pierreand Tana Matisse Foundati
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Printmaking, a truly
democratic art, enabled
Matisse to create a lib-
rary of images that could
be made available to a
wide range of collectors
and public institutions. He produced more than 850 single prints and
many more through his production for book projects. In printmaking,
Matisse’s reliance on drawing becomes most evident. For instance, his
use of transfer lithography allowed for the direct transcription of the
weight and character of a drawn line. Although he relied on printers
to realize the editions of his prints, Matisse understood what a par-
ticular medium might facilitate and when another would be more ap-
propriate. Unlike his contemporary Picasso or earlier masters such
as Rembrandt or Goya, Matisse’s engagement with the processes of
printmaking did not require that he wrestle with techniques. There
was no need to immerse his hands in the acid or to struggle withcoaxing a dark passage from the lithographic stone. His orientation
to printmaking afforded him the same opportunity of trial and de-
velopment that his drawing sessions in the studio enabled. His was
the same collaborative impulse present in the turn-of-the-c entury
print production by such artists as
Pierre Bonnard, Paul Cézanne, and
Edouard Vuillard. Initially using
the same printer as they, Matisse
relied upon the abilities of a profes-
sional, enabling him to fully realize
his expectations.
Matisse as Printmaker brings
printmaking from the shadows of
Matisse’s work as a painter, fore-
grounding his use of black and
white over the vibrant colors that
most often characterize his work.
The exhibition loosely follows the
chron
reer, p
focus
his fir
in the
ings a
and f
etchin
and a
of lith
rich interiors with odalisques that mark the g
paintings. Like his drawings, the prints follow
ing the outline of the figure, observing the con
contrast, acknowledging the role of light in
its surroundings. Once the evolution of his
printmaking techniques becomes familiar, it
one period in the chronology from another. instance, that the lineage of a lithograph of 19
An idea introduced in a woodcut from 190
formed in a lithograph or sculpture of 1925.
Through Matisse’s concentration on a re
subjects, we recognize his pro-
found interest in variations on
themes. Above all other mediums,
prints—whether single or sequen-
ced in books—enabled Matisse to
advance the importance of serial
imagery. Matisse as Printmaker
includes many groups of prints
in series rather than a sampling,
which would create a false impres-
sion of a printmaking oeuvre of
stand-alone images. A series can
manifest various themes; a style
of drawing; a medium-centered
h e n r i M a t i s s e was a
printmaker, draftsman, sculptor, and of
course a painter. An extraordinary artist,
he was deeply engaged with all these
pursuits, which he saw as closely relat-
ed. Matisse worked in various mediums
simultaneously—sometimes setting one
aside for years, taking it up again when a
particular technique offered the possibil-
ity of a desired result. Just like painting
or sculpture, printmaking was a means to
an end—the end being a visual statement
that emerged through a gradual process
of transformation. The generosity of Matisse’s art stems
from his desire to lead his audience to a new way of seeing by leaving
traces of his creative process along the way—whether the still visible
pentimenti in a painting; the remains of erased lines below new ones
in graphite or charcoal drawings; the impression of immediacy in the
modeling of wet clay; or the freedom of exploration in printmaking.
Even though Matisse integrated all of these artistic means, separat-
ing them enables us to comprehend most clearly his particular reasons
for choosing a given medium such as printmaking. Only then can the
full intent of Matisse’s art be legible and can we recognize a process of
refinement toward the pure and essential , as found in his last paper
cutouts, in the simplicity of drawing in his early monotypes, and in his
final aquatints of faces .
Henri MatisseEngraving , 1900–03.
Drypoint, 5Y x7 Y inches(image);
9 AC/af x12 AE/af in. (sheet). Pierre
andTana MatisseFoundation (1303
-105083)
Nadia,Face in Three-quarterProfile , 1948. Lift-
ground aquatint, 17 V x13 AA/af in. (image);
2 6 x19 AA/af in. (sheet). Pierreand Tana Matisse
Foundation (1442- 104038)
TheLar
tuschelit
in. (imag
and Tan
Nudeon BlueCushionNext toa Chimney,1925.
Crayontransferlithograph (afterreworkof drawing,
usedfor transferfor Nudeon BlueCushion) ,25 A/afx
18 AC/af in.(image);29 O x22in.(sheet) . Pierreand
TanaMatisse Foundation (1265-1 01056)