Steps and methods of making watermark prints for overlay prints

Drawing The completion of a watermark print is first to make a good design of the small composition, the design should be based on the printed works after the performance of the dry and wet, light and dark, virtual and real characteristics of the drawing on the draft in advance, and then complete a small drawing. According to their own creative intent and ink, color to make a variety of attempts, from which they can pick out to reflect their own intentions, but also watermark characteristics of the drawing for enlargement. After enlarging the drawing, taking into account the characteristics and features of the watermark prints at the same time, we should start to solve a series of technical problems in the production of watermarks in the plate, plate division, engraving the main plate, the change of water, the procedure of overlaying the plate, the configuration of the color and so on.

In the draft, the composition of the form of expression once determined, it is necessary to further follow the laws of the form, the composition of the form of the structure of the refinement, enhancement, enrichment. The structure of the composition of the work is a combination of form, color, knife flavor, wood flavor, rhyme and other formal factors, different structures create a colorful composition of the form of formal beauty, giving people different artistic infectivity.

Reproduction of the draft With a sharpened pencil on the copy paper with a single line outline and structural parts of the drawing, and then reverse this drawing on the surface of the board has been treated. In addition, no matter what method is used to trace the drawing to the board, before engraving, it is necessary to brush the board with a light color, so that the engraving moment or the part left on the board is clear, the knife touch is clear, which will help the author to run the knife better.

Sub-plate watermark prints generally need a master plate and a number of sub-plates, sub-plates of the method: the drawing traced over a plate, carved into the main plate, and then based on this plate, borrowing the transparency of the copy paper, with a pen to the main plate of the object depicted on the paper. Then, based on the copy paper with the location of the main plate coloring area, the pad on the copy paper, copying to the second board, that is, the secondary version. According to the needs of the picture, the main and secondary version is not enough to set, depending on the specific circumstances of the third and fourth engraved plate, to increase the picture after covering the shape or color of the object. Such as encountered in a bad carving, you can increase a carving plate to make up for the alignment in the original part of the overprint up.

Carving with a knife on a wooden board, regardless of what kind of knife, you can carve a lot of different shapes of points, lines, blocks. Several knives can also produce different feelings and artistic effects. The basic method of transporting the knife is no more than the use of the blade of the front, side of the blade on the board for push carving, pick carving, halo carving, trembling carving, shaking carving, shovel carving, scraping carving, single carving and so on.

Push carving This is the main knife carving object, pinch the knife to the wood, with a round mouth knife, triangular knife, square mouth knife smoothly and evenly according to a certain angle to push forward to carve, can cause neat Yang or Yin line, block, surface.

Pick carving with a round knife, triangular knife, square mouth knife short with the plate, the knife into the plate surface that is upward pick, can form the size, length, width and other different round, triangular, square points. If you choose to use the triad plate engraving, picking carving need to pay attention to the direction of the knife and the wood grain towards the perpendicular force, pick when the wood can be natural break. If you go along with the wood grain pick engraving, not easy to break.

Halo carving with a square mouth knife, flat mouth knife, slanting mouth knife tilt carving layout, light and heavy, after the knife, it will produce a similar effect of the transition between the depths of the brush.

Flutter carving When moving the knife forward with a round knife, a triangular knife, a square knife, before and after the staccato, up and down, forming a thick and thin, the lack of lines and surfaces, with a "golden stone flavor".

Shaking the carving with a round knife, triangular knife shaking the knife forward, can be carved into the two sides of the jagged zigzag, strange change in the effect.

Shovel engraving The head of the knife is slightly flat, the knife flat shovel over, it becomes "shovel engraving". Shovel surface is generally wider, in addition to the square knife, other than the knife shovel out of the knife touch, rough edges, more changes. Because of the wide surface of the shovel, the force also needs to be larger.

Scraping the use of the blade or the tip of the knife in the woodblock scraped out of the depression, light scraping can be scraped out of the soft indentation, scraping will appear more intense scraping. The scraping out of the knife touch, often has a more subtle feeling.

Single-knife carving The use of a beveled knife can be negative or positive carving, using the knife to maintain a certain degree of obliquity.

"Yin carving" is carved into the black background concave in the layout of the lines, surfaces, points, in addition to the layout remains on the plate; "Yang carving" is carved into the white background of the lines, surfaces, points, in addition to the layout of the carving off. The use of "yin carving" or "yang carving" of a single line, outlining the outline of the form, which is our traditional techniques, used properly, very beautiful and rich in national characteristics.

The key to the use of the above knife is how to shape the shape of the object, whether it is the choice of yang carving, yang carving or the use of what kind of knife, what kind of knife, we should pay attention to grasp the object's shape and features, but also to give full play to the knife touch, the knife marks, to enhance the role of the art of infectious energy. The use of knife, choose the type of knife, in a piece of work can not change too much and clutter. Also want to prevent the knife mediocre monotonous, according to the manuscript tracing the carving, and the lack of vitality.

Topography The key to the watermarked layout is to master the changes in moisture. Whether it is the water of the board, or paper absorbed water, have a direct impact on the quality of topography. Topography before, first with a water spray can evenly spray the paper damp, so that the water mist evenly spread on the paper. Hot weather or dry season is sprayed wet. If it is cloudy and rainy weather, the air humidity, the water in the paper is not easy to evaporate, the most appropriate. Paper in the moisture will be more than dry when swelling some, in the entire topography process, basically to maintain a certain degree of humidity, so as not to set inaccurate. In general, the first printing plate after printing the main plate, the first printing light color after printing dark color. In the topography process will be wet paper flat on the plate, covered with old newspapers or plastic film, pressed paperweight tools, good marking line (in the watermarking prints will be printed on the side of the paper aligned with the longer and the picture parallel to a line, and then extend the vertical line marking the middle of the printed paper, so that even if the printed paper deformation after draughts, distention, can only be from the middle of the two even extended, will not affect the accuracy of the set of the plate). Begin to lay the color on the plate, each layout lay the color needs to be repeated several times. If the topography found that too much water seepage, you can use the "broken ink method", that is, the urgent use of clean brushes dipped in water in the opposite direction of the pen, so that the water pressure color water retraction.

In addition, an ancient watermark prints, aimed at reproducing Chinese paintings. After meticulous plate division, production, overprinting, can be done with pen, ink, color, and water color moist, thick and thin, almost like the original special effects. China's Rongbaozhai, DuoYunXuan and other publishing units, still use this method of copying ancient and modern Chinese painting.

This way of printing process is:

(a) sketch: by the painter specializing in this work. The first step of the first color plate, the drawing of all the same tone of the handwriting in a set of plate, the picture has a few shades, can be divided into several sets of plates. Color simple picture has two or three sets, work fine and complex to be divided into dozens of sets. Sketch in accordance with the number of sets on the ink line hooked on a transparent paper, requiring the picture of the depth of the layers and brush strokes faithfully reflected, and then stick the paper on the board to pay the carving.

(2) engraved version: in addition to engraving based on the ink line, the engraver must also refer to the original, carefully understand, hold the knife as a pen, in order to convey the spirit of the original and the penmanship of the exquisite.

(3) printing: each sub-page engraved, in accordance with the needs of the picture, in turn, one by one version of the overprint into a painting. Printing using paper, rice paper, silk-based, ink color material must be identical to the raw material.

Because of the printing materials and mounting form and the original work of the same, and thus this watermark is particularly strong reproduction, with a cool original, a few can be messed up the real effect.

Modern watermark prints topography is completed after drying, according to the international prints of the title of the convention, must be immediately adjacent to the bottom of the picture half a centimeter, from left to right, with a pencil sign on the number of prints of the work (with the denominator indicates the total number of prints, the numerator indicates the first few), the title of the work, the type of prints, the size of the work, the author's name and the year and month of creation, in order to express the author's sense of responsibility for their own work and the work of the authenticity of the difference between the signs. .