SOLARPLATE

PRINTING

nontoxic guide to
contemporary relief
and intaglio printing

Spark Box Studio

 Introduction

The world of printmaking is diverse and exciting, but often times

environmentally unsafe and challenging to pursue outside of an
established studio. Solarplate printing offers a safe alternative to such
printing processes as etching and photo-etching, while also allowing
you to experiment with relief print.

The following is a guide to the process, including its setup, exposure,

printing, and cleanup. We hope this handbook will open the doors to a
new wave of printing one that allows schools and home printers to
work with a range of practices without the expensive equipment and
environmental concerns.

This handbook was created

with the support of:

Indroduction
 Table of Contents

4 Materials
23 Plate Preparation
27 Exposing the Plate
34 Printing the Plate
38 Clean-up

table of content
3
 Materi- 4
Solarplate printing requires two main materials a steel
plate coated in a thin layer of light-sensitive emulsion and
transparent film. The other materials involved are standard
printing materials for relief or intaglio processes.

The Plate 5
Preparing the Plate 5
Paper Preparation 6-7
Drawing Materials 9-11
Photograph & Digital Imagery 12-13
Plate Exposure 13
Post Exposure 14
The Printing Station 15-20
Material Checklist 21
 Solarplates

USE | Solarplates are simply a steel sheet coated with a thin layer
of a light sensitive polymer surface. Solarplate sheets are
sold by Hampton Editions Ltd. in New York State. This light
sensitive polymer surface allows the plate to become a relief
print or an intaglio print.
PRICE | Sheets can be purchased in various sizes making it easy to
handle and allows studios lacking metal cutting equipment
the ability to work with the plates. Plate prices range from
$10.00 - $30.00 US.
QTY | We find that if you have a paper cutter or good quality utility
knife you can cut our own plates, which allows you to order
the larger plates and cut them down. This saves in up front
costs and shipping fees. This company does offers lower
prices for larger orders. The bulk amounts range from 1-9
plates, 10-19 plates, and 20+ plates.

5 Preparing the Plate

Emery Board
USE | Used to bevel the edges of the solarplate. Although it is not a
necessity to have beveled edges a light filing will make them less
sharp and safer to run through an etching press.
PRICE | On average you can get a pack for $1.00 - $3.00
Can be purchased from a pharmacy.
QTY | Only one file is needed. optional
If you want to cut your own plate it is easy. You can either use a heavy
duty paper guillotine or a utility knife. Be sure to do this process in a
room without direct sunlight as the UV light will expose the plate. Keep
the plate face down on its protective foam (which comes in the packag-
ing). Using your knife or cutter create any size plate you would like.

Solarplate Information
 Paper Preparation

CUTTING MAT
USE | A self healing cutting mat is a staple item when cutting fine art papers. We tend not
to rely on the measurements and ruler grid lines that come with the mat. Cutting
mats can be expensive, but should last many
years if not abused. The bigger the cutting mat
the better as the smallest printing paper comes
in 30 x 22. Buy a mat that is bigger than the
standard paper.
PRICE | $38.99 for 24 x 36 green cutting mat
Can be purchased from an art supply store.
QTY | One. Order the mat from an art supply store
instead of purchasing the mat from a store like
Michaels where it will be extremely over priced.

UTILITY KNIFE
USE | These heavy duty knives are strong, sharp, durable and
their blades are easily replaced. Being able to cutout
delicate collage piece and cut through drywall make these
knives very versatile. We recommend the OLFA brand of
knives with the ratchet wheel locking mechanism.
CAUTION | The blade is literally razor sharp and care should be taken
when used.
PRICE | $10.99 for housing and comes with a blade
$19.99 for 20 Replacement blade pack
Can be purchased from a hardware store.
QTY | One knife and extra blades when required.

PENCILS
USE | The most basic tool to have within the studio. Used for rough sketches, marking
cuts on paper and other general task.
PRICE | $6.39 for a set of 12 pencils ranging 4H to 6B
Can be purchased from an art supply store.
QTY | A range of 4H to 6B

Paper Preparation
 RULER
USE | Used to measure, cut straight lines and to rip paper. A steel ruler with a cork
backing is ideal for many projects in the studio. Clean acrylic rulers are useful as
well. Purchase a ruler that has both metric and imperial measurements.
PRICE | $5.49
Can be purchased from an art supply store.
QTY | Have a variety of sizes in the studio

NEWSPRINT
USE | Newsprint paper is suitable to pull test proofs from your plate. Used to pad above
your plate and paper when printing. Newsprint may also be used to package prints.
PRICE | $1.59 for a 18 x 24, 40 sheet pad
Can be purchased from an art supply store.
QTY | 4 to 6 sheets per individual per session.

PRINTMAKING PAPER
USE | Use good quality printmaking paper for your final prints. Purchase an archival
quality 100% cotton paper. Paper ranges in both quality and price, look for a pa-
per that does not have a lot of tooth, is cost effective, archival and recommended
for printmaking. Legion, Stonehenge, and Sommerset, and are all good brands of
papers with affordable price points.
PRICE | $1.50 for Legion, white, 250gm, 22 x 30
$2.25 for Stonehenge, white, 250gm, 22 x 30
$5.39 for Somerset Velvet, white, 250gm, 22 x 30
Can be purchased or ordered from an art supply store.
QTY | Budget with an expectation of 25% loss.

paper preparation
PRINT | This is an example of Monica Laceys work which showcases the plate and the
print. Here she is working with an intaglio process and a photographic image.
 Drawing Materials

NOTE | These tools are great for either drawing your original artwork on paper before
taking it into the computer via a scanner and printing out a digital copy on
transparency (see Digital & Photography Imagery). While some of these tools
can be used to draw directly onto a sheet of acetate. Solarplates are exposed
to UV light and the image is created by using a transparency which acts like a
contact positive/negative. When working directly on a sheet of acetate you want
to make sure you use a light-stopping drawing material as this is what will create
your image on the plate surface.

drawing materials
 ARCHIVAL PEN
USE | Micron Pen / Faber-Castell / Staedtler Pigment Pens.
These brands are all fairly standard illustration pens used by artists. It is a
comfortable drawing tool to use and is great for detailed drawing, cross hatching,
pointillism, contour drawing, lettering, and sketching. Tonal rage can be achieved
through mark variation. This tool can be used on either the paper or the acetate.
PRICE | $3.00 - $9.00 depending on the brand
Can be purchased or ordered from an art supply store.
QTY | Purchase a box set to get various pen widths. For example, the Faber-Castell set
comes with four pens, which range in size for $9.00.

GRAPHITE CRAYON or PENCIL

USE | This is a comfortable drawing material to work. It is great for line drawing,
illustration, and gesture drawing. Graphite ranges in grades like a pencil. This tool
can only be used on paper and must be scanned and printed digitally as the grey
tone will not stop light if used on the acetate.
PRICE | $4.00 for one crayon
Can be purchased or ordered from an art supply store.
QTY | One graphite crayon or pencil will last several years.

SHARPIE
USE | Sharpie (or any other black marker) is great for illustration due to its thick lines
and ability to achieve large areas of solid black. While Sharpie appears to be a
solid black it is often a purple or blue colour when looked at through a light table
causing it to sometimes allow light to shine through. Mixed results can occur when
using this material directly on acetate as your stencil.
PRICE | $6.00 for a package of 5 with various sizes
Can be purchased from an office supply store.
QTY | Buy a pack of these as they tend to run out quickly.

LITHOGRAPHY CRAYON
USE | It is a perfect medium for drawing fine lines, shading, and a variety of tonal ranges.
They come in different grades (soft, medium, hard) each providing you with a
final look. Lithography crayons are great for detailed drawings, soft shading, or
gestural drawings. This can be used for both paper and acetate (with acetate try
putting a bit of baby power on the drawing once you are finished as it will darken
you work).
PRICE | $1.50 - $3.50 crayon or stick format.
Can be purchased or ordered from an art supply store.
QTY | Order many of these as they get used quickly due to their soft consistency. I would
also advise ordering a variety of densities to create images with good tonal range
and depth.
drawing materials
 Liquid Ink
USE | Any black liquid ink can be used on paper or acetate to create an image. This can
allow for a more gestural, painterly image and allows for a great range of mark
making.
PRICE | Our preferred brand is Koh-I-Noor Fountain India Ink Black $5.00 at Above Ground.
Fluid Ink can be purchased at any art supply store.
QTY | One bottle will last but for a classroom it is best to order at least five.

Relief Printing Ink

USE | Working directly on the acetate with relief printing ink using rollers and brushes
can be a great exercise. It is loose, playful, versatile, and allows you to create a
monoprint which can then be turned into a relief or intaglio print. You will want to
sprinkle some baby powder onto your image to make the ink darker and to absorb
some of the moisture in the ink.
PRICE | Ranges greatly depending on company and quantity. Best to ask your local art
supply store.
QTY | One 1 lb can of black will last several years.

optional
TRANSPARENT FILM
USE | Also called acetate sheets serve as a transparency and drawing surface for this
process. Remember that if you use acetate for your original drawing the draw-
ing tool has to be light-stopping. If you have access to a light table, or even a
window, be sure to hold your acetate (with its drawing on it) up to the light to see
if any light is shining through your drawing.
PRICE | $4.79 for 10 sheets of 8 x 11
Can be purchased from an office supply store or art supply store.
QTY | You will need to use a sheet for each image you want to create.

drawing materials
 Photographic & Digital Imagery

NOTE | Solarplates are exposed to UV light and the image is created by using a light-
stopping stencil (transparency) which blocks light from hitting certain parts of
your plate. If you are creating a relief print you will want to use a negative image
transparency, and if you are creating an intaglio print you will want to use a
positive image transparency (see page 26). When you bring your drawing or
photograph into photoshop remember this before printing the image. You will
want to inverse your image to create the negative film.

Photoshop
This is the best photo manipulation program on the market for this type of
image creation. Photoshop will allow you to work with any image whether digital
photography or scanned drawing.
Scanned drawing: If you drew your image on paper and didnt use materials
that were light-stopping you can scan that image and bring it into Photoshop to
create your stencil. When you have your image open in Photoshop you will change
the mode to grey scale. This will make your image black and white. Any grey tones
will be lost during the exposure process so keep this in mind and make those
areas black if you do not want to loose them. Once you have a fully black and white
image you can print it onto your transparent film.
Digital Photograph: If you have purchased the Aquatint Screen from
Hampton Editions Ltd. then you can change your photograph to grey scale mode
and adjust any levels you feel are appropriate and print that image onto the
transparent film. If you do not have an aquatint screen you will want to change
you image to either a stencil, posterization, or a halftone image. Doing any of the
following will give you a black and white stencil with no grey tones, you will loose
some detail in this process and end up with a stylized image.

Aquatint Screen
USE | Whenever you are creating an intaglio print with an image that has a wide tonal
range or rich, deep blacks you will want to use a double exposure with an aquatint
screen. This will help to eliminate emulsion washout and retain those various
tones.
An aquatint screen is a transparent film with a digital pixilation on its surface. When
exposed first to your solarplate it creates a rough surface which will hold ink well
during the printing stage.
PRICE |
$13.00 - $272.00 US depending on size.
Purchase through Hampton Edition, Ltd.
QTY |
Only one screen is needed per plate size. We recommend getting something
slightly larger than your plate which allows you to use it on your average plate
size or smaller.

Digital & Photograph Imagery

 Positive Film
USE | When you are working digitally you want to make sure you use a transparency that
is going to hold blacks well and not run when going through the printer. CamStar
+ Water Proof Ink Jet Film is the best product available for high quality inkjet
transparencies.

PRICE | Range in price and size. We recommend $75.00 per 100 sheets of 8.5 x 11 from
Camstat Graphic Arts Products.
QTY | 100 sheets.

Plate Exposure

HEAVY GLASS
USE | A heavy sheet of glass must be place over your solarplate and transparency
before being placed under the UV light. If you are using a silkscreen exposure unit

13
you will not need this extra glass, however if you are putting your plates out in
the sun this will be necessary in order to keep your transparency flat and in direct
contact with your solarplate.
PRICE | Range in price and size. We have found sheets at yardsales and thrift stores. For
small plates picture frame glass or photography easels with glass tops work as
well.
QTY | 1 sheet per image and plate.

SPRING CLAMP
USE | When exposing your plates in the sun you will need to clamp the glass, plate and
transparency together. Spring clamps are the best option as they are cheap and
easy to use.
PRICE | $2.99 each at Home Hardware.

QTY | 4 clamps per image and plate.

NOTE | If you stagger your exposure times you wont have to buy glass and clamps for
each student, which will save money and allow students to support one another
in the exposure process.

Plate Exposure
 Post Exposure

SURGICAL BRUSH
USE | Used to washout the plate after exposure and to washout the plate after printing.
These soft bristle brushes dont do damage to the image while washing the plate
after exposure. They also dont scratch the image when washing out the plate
after printing.
PRICE | $1.90 a pair or $9.50 a dozen at Lee Valley

QTY | We recommend you get at least a dozen.

NEWSPRINT OR PHONE BOOK

USE | Once your plate has been washed out after exposure you will need to dry it off.
You dont want to use paper towel as the texture will transfer onto your plate so
newsprint or phone book paper are the best.

PRICE | $0.99 per pad of newsprint or free for a phone book.

All art supply stores will carry newsprint. 14
QTY | Both of these materials will be used for several parts of this printmaking process
so it is best to have a lot on hand. We buy cases of newsprint (40 to a box) to
ensure we dont run out at the studio.

BABY OIL
USE | Once you have printed your plate and cleaned it off you will want to protect it. A
thin layer of baby oil will keep the plate from damage.
PRICE | $1.00 at any Dollar Store.

QTY | One bottle.

Post Exposure
 Printing Station

15

TABLE
USE | Having proper surface space is key when print making. You will need two large
desks, 3 by 5 or several smaller desks place together. The more surface space
you have to work with the better organized you can be.
QTY | At least one big desk per printing station. Ideally two, one for inking and one for
paper to prevent transfer of messy inks.

GLASS
USE | Used to roll out ink. Ideally the glass should be the size of the table, but a smaller
piece, 14 x 14 will be large enough to roll out ink. The glass should be 1/4 thick
to prevent shattering.
PRICE | Price varies according to size.
Find used glass.
QTY | One piece per inking station.

printing station
 PALETTE KNIFE
USE | The metal palette knife is the essential tool for depositing, mixing and moving ink
on the glass table. Also called a putty knife or scraper.
PRICE | $3.37 for a value pack containing 5 scrapers.
Home hardware carries cheap, wooden handle value packs.
QTY | At least a couple. Acquire as many as you see fit.

COTTON SWABS
USE | Cotton Swabs are very useful when you need a small area of your print cleaned up
or if you want to get creative with your wiping and remove ink in selected areas.

PRICE | $2.47 for 300 pack

Can be purchased from a pharmacy,

QTY | One box should be plenty.

SILK ORGANZA
USE | Natural or synthetic, either will work, this material is used when wiping your intaglio
plate during the inking process.

PRICE | $25.00 metre (natural) from Fabricland.

QTY | Half meter would be enough.

PLASTIC CARD
USE | Plastic cards are used to deposit the ink onto the intaglio plate. This method
encourages the ink to get into the line work of the intaglio image. You will want
to make sure there is a beveled edge on the card so that you dont scratch the
surface of the plate.

PRICE | Free! Just cut your extra discount or gift cards in half and file one edge.
QTY | Each printer will need a card.

SOAKING TRAY
USE | You will need a large plastic tray that can hold the cotton paper you have cut for
your intaglio print. This tray will hold water which will soak your intaglio paper prior
to printing.

PRICE | $16.00 for a 23 x 17 Rubbermade at Home Hardware. Specialty darkroom or

printmaking trays are great but must be order from a specialty store.

QTY | One will be more than enough.

 Ink & Brayer

PRINTING INK
USE | It is important you use a high quality ink. We use Graphic Chemicals etching inks
for intaglio printing and Vansons rubber based inks for relief printing. Graphical
Chemical sell their inks in the standard can but consider purchasing the ink in a
caulking cartridge form instead. The cartridge conserves ink extremely well and is
a great solution to the problematic crusty ink layer that forms in the can. Vanson
creates a line of rubber based off-set printing inks that are amazing and great for
this process. Rubber based inks do not dry in the can, we have had cans of this ink
open for 4 years and no signs of it drying. This is because the rubber based inks
dry on absorption into the paper. These inks can be purchased from commercial
ink suppliers in major cities. Vanson inks are our go to inks in the studio when
relief or letterpress printing and our preferred ink for this process.
PRICE | $20.00 to $35.00 for Graphic Chemical 1 lbs can or cartridge.
Can be purchased from an art supply store or ordered.
$18.00 to $35.00 for Vanson 1 lbs can.
Order only, go to vansonink.com/pages/Dealer-Locator.html
*Price varies depending on colour
QTY | Single 1 pound can or cartridge to start in black.

17

BRAYER
USE | The brayer is used for rolling out ink onto the prepared relief plate or can be used
directly onto your acetate when creating your image. The brayer, being an integral
item within the print studio should be kept immaculately clean. Speedball brayers
are found at most craft stores and are therefore the most common brayer to own.
While the speedball brayer might be the cheapest there are fundamental problems
and limitations associated with its construction. The rigid plastic housing cannot
be dismantled and thus cannot be clean completely. A common problem with
brayers that cannot be dismantled is the build up of ink at the axel prevents
them from turning. Consider investing in a higher quality brayer, like the graphic
chemical brayer, that can be dismantled and cared for properly. A great brayer will
last a life time.
PRICE | $49.49 for a 4 Graphic Chemical polyurethane firm brayer.
$14.49 for a 4 Speedball soft rubber brayer.
Can be purchased from an art supply store or ordered.
QTY | One per station. Brayers come in many sizes, a good studio is equipped with
several of each size. The 4 is a common sized brayer.

ink & brayer

 Cleaning Supplies

RAZOR SCRAPER
USE | The retractable razor scraper cleans up ink remaining on the glass table. Using
the razor scraper reduces the number of rags wasted.
PRICE | $4.49 for housing and comes with a blade.
10 Replacement blade pack costs $4.99.
Can be purchased from a hardware store.
QTY | One razor scraper is enough.

COTTON RAGS
USE | A good print studio will have a large supply bin of cotton rags. Rags are essential
during the cleaning process. Cut down towels into smaller more manageable
6 squares. Thrift stores area a great place to buy towels at a cheap cost.
PRICE | $5.00 bag of towels.
Value Village sells a bag full of towels.
QTY | A few towels when cut smaller will make

18
many rags that will last several printing sessions.

SARAN WRAP
USE | Package up excess ink at the end of the session into a saran wrap bundle. The ink
will stay fresh, it will not leach an oily residue. The clear quality of serene wrap will
allow you to see what colours you have stored.
PRICE | $3.79
Can be purchased from a grocery store.
QTY | One box.

PHONE BOOKS
USE | Old phone books are a fantastic and cheap way to assist clean up in the studio.
Deposit excess unwanted ink onto the pages, rip out and throw out. Roll out the
remaining ink on your brayer (roller) before beginning to clean it with oil. You will
also use phone book paper to do the final wiping step on your intaglio plate.
PRICE | Free once a year.
QTY | At least one substantially thick phone book.

Cleaning supplies
 Print Without a Press

spoon
plastic
sheet
paper towel
good paper
plate

19 wooden SPOON
USE | If you are pulling a print without the aid of a press a wooden spoon is what you will
use to apply pressure and transfer the image. A metal spoon can be a substitute.
PRICE | $0.50
Go to a thrift store and buy as many as needed.
QTY | One per station.

PLASTIC SHEET
USE | When pulling prints without the aid of a press place this above the paper towel
pad. The clear plastic binder sheet reduces friction when using a metal spoon as
a barren to pull the print. These plastic sheets can be saved and reused. While not
a necessity it does help quite a bit.
PRICE | $5.49 for a package of 25
Can be purchased from an office supply store such as Staples.
QTY | One package.

NOTE | Working without a printing press can only be done with the relief print image.
If you are creating an intaglio print you will need a press as your hand cannot
exert enough pressure.

print without a press

 Print With a Press

ETCHING PRESS
USE | The most professional way to pull prints is with a press. The etching press is a
keystone for any print studio. The pressure should be set to print plates. Solar-
plates are relatively thin and will work at standard etching pressure. When using
the etching press you should lay down newsprint below the solarplate to protect
the press bed from ink and lay newsprint above your good paper to protect the
felt blankets from excess ink.
CAUTION | The edges of the solarplate should be beveled if you plan to use the etching
press to print. The bevel eases the roller up and onto the plate when printing.
A non-beveled edge will pierce and cut the felt blankets. Use an emery board to
bevel the solarplate edges. Another note of caution is that the etching press can
be a dangerous piece of machinery if misused. Please be careful when the press
is engaged and the wheel is moving. Do not put your hands near the roller, stand
away from the press as to not get hit by moving parts.

print with an etching press

 Material Checklist

preparing the support

Solarplate
EMERY BOARD
PAPER CUTTER OR
creating the plate
UTILITY KNIFE TRANSPARENcy
Solarplate
drawing materials GLASS
CLAMPS
archival pens
graphite crayon
sharpies paper preparation
lithography crayon cutting mat
RELIEF PRINTING INK utility knife
LIQUID INK
21
pencil
ruler
digital imaging newsprint
Computer print making paper
Photoshop
Ink Jet Films
Scanner post exposure
Surgical Brush
printing station Newsprint/phonebook
table
glass
palette knife cleaning supplies
Silk Organza razor scraper
Soaking Tray cotton rags
Plastic Cards saran wrap
cotton swabs phone books
brayer
 transparency options
paper drawing Acetate
photography or Light-Stopping
Scanner drawing material
Computer Baby Poser
Printer
Ink Jet Film

printing ink options

1 pound can 1 pound cartridge
vanson graphic chemical
rubber based ink etching ink
or chalking gun

printing options
wooden spoon etching press
plastic sheet
or
 24
plate preparation
There are two different types of prints that can be made with
solarplates relief prints and intaglio prints. Each create a
unique and interesting piece of work but require very different
transparencies and printing methods.
option A : relief printing
option B : intaglio printing
 Option A
: Relief Print

Creating a relief print with a solarplate is a much more accessible process than
option carving a woodcut or linocut. It will also yield a much crisper image and offer
a more diverse range of line. You can also experiment with creating graphic
design pieces, such as business cards. Keep in mind that everything will print
A in reverse so modify your digital image before printing your transparency. In
addition you can print these by hand so you do not require a press!
When you are creating your transparency for a relief print you have to keep in
mind that anything that is black on the transparency will become the white of
the paper and anything that is left transparent will become the area which is
CREATING THE inked during the printing process. Much like in linocut the area that is carved
TRANSPARENCY away remains the colour of the paper and any area that is left uncarved
carries the ink. Therefore, if you draw an image and want the drawing to be
the inked area you will scan that image, bring it into Photoshop, change it to
black and white, and inverse it so the white areas become black and the black
areas become white. Then you will print it on a ink jet film and expose it to
your solarplate. It is fun to experiment with this process, for example, bring
one drawing into Photoshop and print off one positive and one negative film.
Expose both films to two solarplates and print them. Here you will see the
difference between the two and understand the drawbacks and benefits to
each type of transparency.
The thing to remember is that the UV light is hardening the light-sensitive
emulsion on the steel plate, so any area that is blocking the light is not being
hardened and will wash away with the water after exposure.

Option B : Intaglio
option Creating an intaglio print with a solarplate is a great way to shop students this
amazing printing process without worrying about the harsh chemicals that are
B usual involved with the etching process. It also creates a clean, sharp line which
cannot be achieved with Plexiglas drypoints. You can also create photo-etchings
with the purchase of an aquatint screen.
When making the stencil for the intaglio print you will want to keep in mind the
limitations of this process without an aquatint screen. Large, flat areas of rich
CREATING THE black cannot be achieved as they will turn into open bites wide flat areas which
TRANSPARENCY will print light grey with dark edges. With an intaglio stencil you can keep your
transparency as a positive image. Everything you have drawn will carry the ink
during the printing process. If you are interested in creating a photo-etching it will
be in your best interest to purchase an aquatint screen as this will give you plate
a tooth that will hold ink in the grey tone areas and the rich black areas. With this
you will only need to print off a black and white image as your transparency. If you
wish to try a photo-etching without an aquatint screen it is best you watch a video
online about creating halftone images, here your image will become a series of
black dots. Or turn your photo into a stencil using a Photoshop filter. With both of
these methods you will loose detail in your image.
 1
EX. | This transparency is an example of negative film used to
create a relief printed wedding invitation.
26

2
EX. | These transparencies are of the same wedding invitation
by are the positive films, which could be used to create
intaglio prints or relief prints where the text is white and the
surrounding areas are coloured.
option A : Example Image
27
 28
Exposing the plate
You will need to purchase some key items to ensure success
in the exposing process, but most of the work is done by
the sun.
Pre-Exposure Setup 29
Exposing the Plate 30
Post Exposure 31-32
 The Pre-Exposure Setup

NOTE | Be sure that your transparency is laying flat and in direct

contact with your solarplate. Any raised edge will create a
shadow and will cause unwanted marks in the final image.
PREP | Find a room that does not have direct sunlight or that
you can work in low light. You do not need a darkroom for
this process. A room that has blinds which can be shut is
perfect. If you can work in the space with the blinds closed
and the lights off even better. You are trying to let as little
light hit the plate as possible. Assemble together you
plate, glass, clamps, and transparency.
STEP 1 | Take solarplate out of its protective packaging. Place your
transparency with the ink side touching the emulsion on
the solarplate. This step is very important have direct
contact with the drawing material or printing ink with the
emulsion will ensure that your solarplate exposes properly.
Place the glass on top of the transparency and clamp each
edge with the spring clamps. If you want to ensure that
the clamps do not leave a mark on your plate use a board.
Place your solarplate and transparency on the center of

29
the board. Place the glass on top of the board and clamp
around the outside edges (now the clamps are just on the
glass and board and not your solarplate).

material checklist

Transparency
Solar Plate
Glass
Spring Clamps

Pre-Expsure Setup
 Exposing Your Plate

NOTE | If your studio has an exposure unit you can use this to expose
plates instead of taking them outside.
Dark and dense transparencies take a longer exposure time, while
light and delicate transparencies take a short exposure time. If time
permits it is always a good idea to run tests. You can cut up small
pieces of the solarplate and test your transparency with different
exposure times. It is best to exposure your plate during the mid-
afternoon when the sun is the highest. We have had great luck with
1 min. exposures.
PREP | Make sure you have an area outdoors that doesnt get a lot of
shadows from buildings or trees. Also, make sure you have a flat
surface to rest your solarplate on outside. Before exposing your
plate make sure to setup your post-exposure station as you will
have to move quickly. By the washout sink have your surgical brush,
a set of nylon gloves, and newsprint or phone book paper.
STEP 2 | Take your solarplate and transparency, pressed together with the
glass and clamps, and head outside to your exposure location.
Remember to bring a stop-watch or timer with you. Place your plate
down in the sun and set your timer. When your timer beeps pick

30
your plate up and head inside for the next step.

material checklist

Clamped together Solar-

plate, transparency & Glass
Direct Sunlight Location
OR
Exposure Unit

Exposing your Plate

 Post-Exposure Process

STEP 3 | Quickly bring your exposed solarplate to the washout sink. Put on your gloves
and begin washing your plate under tepid water (preferably 20 degrees
Celsius). Using the surgical brush, gently scrub the surface of the plate helping
the unexposed areas washout. For relief images wash until the steel plate
can be seen and there is no longer any emulsion in the recessed areas. For
intaglio prints rinse and scrub your plate for no longer than 35 sec. because
you dont want to rinse out any subtle detail.
NOTE | For intaglio prints you will see your image if you tilt it on an angle, it will not be
as obvious as the relief. If you run tests you can try different washout times
and see what works best for your image (this is recommended).
STEP 4 | After you have rinsed your image immediately blot your plate with the
newsprint or phone book pages. Never re-use the blotting pages discard
after single use and get a new sheet. Your plate will be very sticky at this point
so take care not to put your fingers on the emulsion as any impression will
transfer.
STEP 5 | Once you have blotted off the excess water take the plate back outside for
post-exposure. Best to leave it for at least 15 min. or longer (you cannot harm
the plate by leaving it in the sun for too long). Always post-expose in direct sun
and do not place any glass on top of the plate for post-exposure. The plate will
turn a slight golden colour and less orange.

material checklist

sink
surgical brush
newsprint or phone
book sheets

Exposing the plate

 1
32

Washing and Post-Exposing

33
 34
Printing
Much like with the plate preparation you will have a different
printing method depending on if you created a relief print or an
intaglio print. Read through the following section to ensure you
have setup your printing station correctly and that you have all
the materials you will need prior to printing your plate.
Relief Print 35
Intaglio Print 36
Printing the Image 37
 The Printing Setup: Relief

NOTE | Ideally the table surface should be covered with a single large glass
sheet. However this is not required, a small piece of glass large enough to
roll out ink, hold a brayer and palette knife will suffice. Also keep a clean
area for good printing paper and newsprint. If your desk space is small
consider placing your good clean papers on another desk nearby.

Inking the Plate

NOTE | It is always best to have everything set-up and ready before you begin the
printing process. This will result in the best prints and a stress free printing
experience. Your printing area should be set-up with a roller (make sure
that your roller is wide enough to ink the whole image in one pass), ink,
your precut paper, your solarplate and newsprint.
INK | Remove the ink from the can and lay out a bead of ink on the table. Roll
out the ink with your roller so it is all ready to go as soon as you have your

35
plate ready. Set the pressure on your press or have your baren/spoon
ready beside your printing area.
STEP 1 | Take your roller with ink and roll it over your image. Do this a number of
times until the image appears to be fully covered in an even coating of ink.
Your print will roll up in a similar way to a wood cut or linocut print. The high
points will collect ink while the low points will stay ink free.
TIP | If you notice ink getting into large open low points you can use a rag or
cotton swab to wipe those areas clean. You can also cut pieces of acetate
to block those areas if it continues to be an issue.

material checklist

Solarplate
Relief Print Ink
Cotton Paper
Brayer
Palette Knife
Newsprint
Cotten Swabs
 The Printing Setup: Intaglio

NOTE | Similar to relief printing you will want to work on a surface that is stable
and has an area of glass where you can deposit your ink. You will need to
have your ink, plastic card, silk organza, phone book sheets, solarplate,
newsprint, soaking tray, and paper at your station.
STEP 1 | Place your paper into your soaking tray. You will want to let your paper
soak in the water for as long as you can. Having damp paper is a very
important part of this process as it allows the paper to get into the line
work you have created and to transfer the most amount of ink onto your
paper. Have a clean, white towel beside your soaking tray, you will use
this to blot your paper after you remove it from the water. You want damp
paper not wet paper.
STEP 2 | Remove the ink from the can and lay out a on the table. Pick some up
with your plastic card and spread it across your plate. You want to cover
your plate with ink (not pressing too hard with the card). Once you have
covered your plate with ink lightly scrap the surface of your plate removing
excess ink and revealing some of your image.
STEP 3 | Take your silk organza and make it into a ball with a smooth surface and
start removing ink from the plate. You do not want to push into the line
work of the plate, you are just removing the ink from the top surface and
leaving ink deposited into the line work you have created. Once you see all
of your image move to step 4.
STEP 4 | Take a sheet of phone book paper and wipe the plate evenly and lightly.
Do not crinkle the paper as it will create strange marks on your plate and
could remove ink from your line work. Just wipe the plate with the paper
flat, changing the paper frequently as it becomes dirty. Once the image is
clearly visible and the rest of the plate appears to be clean move to the
printing process.

material checklist
Solarplate Plastic Card
Etching Ink Silk Organza
Cotton Paper Phonebook
Soaking Tray White Towel
Palette Knife
Newsprint
Cotten Swabs
inking the plate
 Printing the Plate

spoon
plastic sheet
by hand paper towel
relief print only good paper
plate
newsprint

PRINT | Move your plate to your printing area whether it be onto your press or to
the table with your paper and hand-printing equipment. Place you paper
on top of your image, followed by a sheet of newsprint.

37 PRESS | If you are using a press place your blankets on top of your print and run
through your press.
HAND | If your printing with a spoon or a barren place the newsprint on top of
the paper, followed by a plastic sheet and begin rubbing the print with
the hand-printing equipment. Remember with handprint to move in a
circular motion around the entire image and every once and awhile
peeling up the edge to see how the image is transferring.
STEP 7 | Repeat this steps 1 -7 until you are happy with your edition size

felt blankets
newsprint
by press good paper
plate
newsprint

printing the plate

 38
clean-up
Proper studio clean-up is one of the most important parts
of the printmaking process. Cleaning up poorly will result in
ruined equipment, damaged prints, and unnecessary waste.
Follow these simple steps and you will have a perfectly clean
studio without ever using any solvents or hazardous cleaners.

The Basics 39
Cleaning the Brayer 40
Saving the Ink 41
All the Rest 42
 The Basics

1 3
vegetable oil vinegar
2 4
clean rag
clean rag
cuts the ink removes the oil

buff away the oil buff clean and dry

NOTE | Cleaning the print studio doesnt have to seem like a daunting task when
you know how to clean efficiently. This section will give you advice on
how to clean the elements of your print studio using safe cleaners and
absolutely no solvents.
SETUP| The basic clean up of the studio involves four rags. Apply vegetable oil
to the first rag, a small amount roughly several splashes the size of a

39
dollar coin is enough to get started. The second rag is a dry clean rag
that will absorb oily residue. Soak the third rag with vinegar, this rag will
clean up any oily residue that remains. The last rag is reserved as a clean
dry buffing rag. Everything can be cleaned by following the procedure
outlined here and illustrated above.
ORDER | We recommend that you clean the important item first, such as your
brayer. Followed by saving and storing the ink, the studio tools, the plate,
and last the printing station.

material checklist
Gloves
Palette Knife
Phone book
Rags (4)
Razor Scrapper
Vegetable Oil
Vinegar
Windex

the basic clean up

 Cleaning the Brayer

NOTE | Out of all the studio items to clean the brayer is by far the most important.
Improper cleaning methods will quickly lead to accumulated dried ink on the roller
and the housing. Ink that is allowed to dry on the axle will keep the brayer from
spinning. At the end of each printing session make sure you clean your brayer.
CAUTION| Speedball brayers, being the most accessible and cheapest of brayers have the
trouble of being contained within bulky plastic housing that is usually neglected
during the cleaning process. If you are using these brayers take extra time to
carefully clean the housing.
CAUTION| It should also be mentioned that cleaning products like Simple Green shouldnt
be used on the roller because it contains a concentrated amount of citric acid
that can dry out, blister, crack and swell the roller over time.
STEP 1 | Roll out excess ink onto phone book paper.
STEP 2 | Using the rag saturated with vegetable oil, rub down the roller and housing to
release the remaining ink. The vegetable oil will cut and clean off the printing ink.
Make sure to pay attention to the sides of the roller, the axle and sections that
could collect ink.
STEP 3 | Use the first clean rag to wipe down and buff both the roller and the

40
housing. This dry rag will absorb most of the vegetable oil and
remaining ink off the roller and the housing.
STEP 4 | Next use the vinegar soaked rag to further wipe down and clean the
roller and housing. The vinegar will cut and degrease the remaining oil.
STEP 5 | Lastly use the second clean rag to thoroughly buff and dry the roller and
housing. This will remove any remaining vinegar, oil, and grease. It is important
that you buff the roller really well to remove remaining vinegar since it contains
acetic acid.

2. vegetable oil 3. clean rag

1. newsprint 4. vinegar

5. clean rag

cleaning the brayer

 Saving the Ink
fig 1 NOTE | Your printing ink can and should be saved. The
method outlined here uses saran wrap to package
and bundle the ink. A commonly seen method of
saving ink is to package remaining ink into a folder
piece of wax paper. The problem with wax paper is
that within a period a few weeks the oils in the ink
will leech outward and causes an oily puddle. Inks
wrapped in saran wrap do not seem to exhibit this
fig 2 behavior.
CAUTION| Saving etching ink can be difficult as it dries out
unlike relief inks. If you have a lot of ink and want
to save it be sure to wrap it tight and use it as
soon as you can.
fig 3
STEP 1 | Use the palette knife and razor to scrap up as
much ink off the glass table as you can and
deposit it down in a pile off to the side.
STEP 2| Clean off the glass table with an oily rag, followed
by a clean rag, vinegar rag and another clean rag.
STEP 3| Tear off a section of saran wrap and lay it stretched

41 out on the clean glass table.

STEP 4| Use the palette knife to scoop up the piled up ink
and deposit it onto in the middle of the saran wrap
in line (fig 1). Depending on the amount of ink you
have left over you may have to do several scoops.

fig 4 CAUTION| Careful not to be too aggressive and rip the saran
wrap with the palette knife.
STEP 5| Fold the saran wrap in half (fig 2). Roll the saran
wrap into a tube shape (fig 3). Pinch one side just
fig 5 before where the ink starts and twist the tube a
few times (fig 4). Now pinch the other side where
the ink ends and twist (fig 5). Continue to twist
the ends and the ink should condense slightly into
a cylinder shape. Keep twisting the excess saran
fig 6 wrap until it wraps back on its self (fig 6). Cut the
excess off.

material checklist
Palette Knife
Razor Scapper
Saran Wrap
saving the ink
 All the Rest
STEP 1 | Once you have cleaned your brayer (if used) and saved your extra ink start
cleaning the ink off the other tools palette knives, plastic cards, razor scrapper,
etc. with the four rag process seen on page 38.
STEP 2| Once your tools are all clean put everything away in its proper area. If you used
silk organza put in a box to be re-use. Discard any used phone book sheets into
the recycle, as well as used newsprint.
STEP 3 | Clean the glass using the four rag method seen on page 38.
STEP 4 | Take the pressure off the press (if you used one). You do not want to leave the
press down as it will damage your blankets.
STEP 5 | To protect you solarplate it is best to put a thin layer of baby oil on the front
surface and wrap it in paper towel and saran wrap to be stored.
STEP 6 | Always put everything you use away and leave your studio as clean (if not
cleaner) than you found it. This will ensure that you tools, materials, and work last
longer and remains undamaged.

material checklist
Gloves
Palette Knife
Phone book
Rags (4)
Razor Scrapper
Vegetable Oil
Vinegar
Windex

cleaning studio items

If you are interested in relief print, graphics, type, intaglio, or
monotype you will enjoy the versatility of solarplate printing.
This handy guide will walk you through the steps of this
printing process of fering you helpful hints along the way.

Production of this handbook was supported by: