Relief Printmaking at Home
Relief printmaking is one of the oldest and most straightforward printmaking techniques, making it an excellent starting point for beginners. The principle behind relief printmaking is simple: you carve into a surface, leaving the areas you want to print at a higher level.
When inked, these raised areas transfer the design onto paper. You may have heard it referred to as a Woodcut, Linocut, or Linoleum cut. These are just a few of the materials you can use to create a relief print. There are many items from your own kitchen where you can join in on the fun of relief printmaking and start printing.
You can learn more about the relief printmaking using linocut here. Or about hand printing your prints without a press here.
The following are materials you will need to create a relief print.
Materials Needed:
– A carving block (potatoes, erasers, or linoleum)
– Carving tools (xacto blade, a firm point, carving tools, or craft knives)
– Ink (learn about my top 5 favorite inks to use at home) (if you are not at all equipped with ink, use acrylic paint but work fast as it dries very fast)
– Rollers (a brush or brayer)
– Paper (any kind will do, but thicker paper holds ink better if you’d like to know more about paper check out my post Linocut Paper Resources)
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If you want to see alternate materials you can use from around your house check out my post Printmaking at home: Printing with everyday household items.
Step-by-Step Guide to Print a Relief:
1. Design Your Print:
Start with a simple design. Draw directly onto your carving block or transfer a design using tracing paper. If you are using some of the other methods mentioned above you can skip this step and move towards the fun part of inking.
2. Carve Your Block:
Using your carving tools, carefully carve away the areas you do not want to print. Remember, the parts you leave behind will form your image. Learn more here.
3. Ink Your Block:
Apply ink evenly across the surface of your raised design. A brayer can help spread the ink smoothly.
4. Print:
Place your paper over the inked block. Using a spoon, a barren, or your hand, press down firmly and evenly. Peel away the paper to reveal your print.
Tips for relief printmaking:
– Always carve away from your body to avoid accidents.
– Test print on scrap paper to adjust the amount of ink and pressure needed.
– Experiment with different carving depths and widths for different results.
Your turn!
If you have been working on creating prints I would love to see them. Post them in my Facebook Group Printmaking for Beginners.
Happy Printing!
