The Steps in Printmaking

The Chalcographie du Louvre collection consists of several thousand print matrices, the oldest of which date back to the seventeenth century. These are engraved copperplates: the pattern is incised into the metal (unlike in relief engraving). Burin and etching are the two most common engraving techniques in the collection, which also features aquatint, crayon-manner, drypoint and prints.

The Chalcographie du Louvre collection also includes a hundred or so wooden (woodcut) and stone (lithography) matrices. For technical reasons, these plates are not used.

To print a plate, the printer first removes the varnish protecting it, and ensures that it has been properly preserved while in storage. After cleaning it, they makes sure that it is in good condition, in order to ensure a quality print and not to damage the plate. Once this reconnaissance is complete, the printing process begins.

First, the printer generously inks the matrix: the entire surface of the metal must be covered with thick ink made of linseed oil and pigments specifically designed for intaglio printing. It is distributed with a roller and then with a leather pad. To facilitate this operation, the engraved plate is placed on a heated table to make the ink more elastic. The printer ensures that each incision is well inked.

Next comes wiping, the most important and difficult step.

Using a muslin fabric, known as tarlatan, the printer removes the excess ink, gradually revealing the pattern. The unengraved parts are cleared of ink, which must remain only in the incisions.

The printer completes the operation with their palm, covered with little whiting, to remove the last traces of unwanted ink. The bare metal must then shine like a mirror. This last operation, known as paumage, requires great dexterity.

The printer then places the inked plate on the intaglio press plate. They cover it with a sheet of paper, previously moistened to make the fiber more receptive to the ink. Everything is protected by thick felt strips, which buffer the very high pressure of the machine. The matrix and paper pass under the cylinder press in a horizontal motion. The ink is transferred from the incisions to the paper: it is described as being “in love with the paper”.
The printer can then remove the sheet and reveal the print. Due to the high pressure exerted on the wet paper, the sheet retains a bowl shape, which corresponds to the perimeter of the matrix: this is called the printing plate.

The printed proof, still damp, is placed between blotters and thick cardboard. The printer can re-ink the plate and repeat each operation to obtain another print.

After drying for forty-eight hours, each print is carefully examined to ensure that the print has no defects. Prints that do not meet the quality requirements of the art workshops are systematically discarded.

Then comes the final stage in the production process: applying the dry stamp of the Chalcographie du Louvre. This mark, “embossed” onto the edge of the print, certifies the quality and authenticity of the print.