production
T E C H N I Q U E

A  U N I Q U E  P R I N T M A K I N G  S T Y L E

 

E V O L U T I O N   O F   A   S T Y L E

Vermont, where the artist has lived for many years, possesses a natural beauty that is both inspirational and challenging. In her first attempts at portraying the landscape that lay at her doorstep, Ms Raphael worked in oils and pastel. Over time she sensed the need for a medium and technique that would more accurately reflect the multi-layered textures and tonalities she perceived in nature. Always a student of tradition, she began a study of the great landscape artists of the 16th and 17th centuries, particularly the etchings of Rembrandt. After an intensive postgraduate immersion in the art of printmaking, Ms Raphael began a long journey of experimentation and discovery. The printmaking style she has evolved is unique and eloquent.

 

R E P R O D U C T I O N   M E T H O D S

One of the main goals of printmakers is to produce an edition so that their designs can be seen and enjoyed by more than one person. Before the invention of modern printing methods, engravings, both on wood and metal, and etchings were the only means of creating multiple copies of a single work. When she began her etching series, Ms Raphael had a similar objective. The first in her Vermont landscape series, Neilsen's Farm, in fact was produced as an edition; each impression being printed from the actual etched plate. Meditations on Vermont, the artist's current series, began with the same intention. However, as she tried to capture more texture and color in her etchings, the process became more complex and experimental. The actual printing often involved ten or twelve impressions for the same picture. Aesthetically, the results were very satisfying. But, the technical challenges of the printing proved too imposing to guarantee a faithful edition, even a small one. She decided, therefore, that Meditations on Vermont would consist only of monoprints. The only drawback is that the potential audience is much larger than the supply of prints. The artist has been approached many times to have her series reproduced. Several years ago she did do one of her most sought after prints as a traditional offset reproduction. She was not happy with it and decided not to offer it publicly. Fortunately, for those who have collected her art over the years, a new printing process has appeared that seems tailor-made for Meditations on Vermont. It is called Giclee printing.

 

T H E   G I C L E E   P R I N T

 

The beauty of a Giclee print is its ability to capture the subtleties of the medium it is used to reproduce. Ms Raphael's prints are characterized by their multi-layered sense of texture and color, a result of the many times they are passed through the etching press. Capturing this essence was the challenge for the Giclee production team. The process is digitally controlled. It begins with a very high resolution scan of the master monoprint. The resulting representation is an array of millions of microscopic color samples, stored in a computer. These samples are then transferred to printmaking paper as specks of colored ink, deposited by the Giclee printer under computer control. Four factors now work together to insure that the reproductions are faithful to the master print -- in fact, good enough to fool even the artist. The first is that the Giclee printer uses eight component ink colors, twice the number used in most full color printing. The second factor is the fine resolution and accuracy of the printing mechanism itself; it produces millions of tiny dots per square inch, difficult to discern even under a magnifying glass. Thirdly, the inks are of archival quality, insuring a long life for the print. Finally, like the inks, the paper, a heavyweight artist's paper such as Arches, is of archival quality, and holds the ink so well that its printed surface mirrors all the aesthetic qualities of the master copy. All of these factors happily conspire to produce what the artist and her admirers have long sought -- a reproduction technique worthy of her series, Meditations on Vermont.