The Fine Art Print - Lesson Plans for Printmaking

Rubbing

Materials Needed:

Sheet of light weight but durable paper such as Gampi or Hosho
Textured surface such as: manhole covers, tree bark, some rough cut wood surfaces, low relief carvings
Soft graphite pencil or graphite stick (3B to 5B)
Rubbings can be a beneficial and safe exercise for all age groups. The older the student the more complicated the textured surface that can be used.

Younger Aged Students:
STEPS:

Tape paper over textured surfaces in the classroom.
Give students a soft graphite pencil or graphite stick 3B to 5 B.
Have each student go around the room and make marks on the paper picking up the texture under the paper.
Take down the sheets of paper and ask what the students can image they see in the textures-what shapes or objects might their imagination see being formed by the textures.
Then have them repeat the assignment but have each student have a piece of paper that they personally draw on and move from spot to spot. A sheet of paper that has multiple textures can be a good beginning assignment.
Note to always use drawing materials that are easily cleaned. Never use permanent marker or any drawing material that can leave a mark on the wall or the student that cannot be cleaned.

Middle School Aged Students: combining textures to create an image can be a good assignment. It can be a self-portrait, a landscape, an urbanscape or anything they wish to create.

Have the students look for textures outside of class that when combined will make the parts of the image.
Give each student several sheets of paper to begin to collect textures. By giving them several sheets of paper the student can experiment with different imagery and textures.
Have the students attempt to create a duplicate of the original rubbing/image. This can lead to a discussion of what makes something art and the nature of multiples in nature and in art.

High School and College students: I recommend the Surrealist frotage method where after making a rubbing the student looks for patterns and imagery within the rubbing. The work of Max Ernst or Matta give excellent examples of this technique.

Give the students several sheets of paper and a soft graphite drawing medium.
Send them out to find interesting textures which they are to transfer onto the paper.
Have the students bring the rubbings into class and hang them up and look at them finding potential hidden imagery. Then the student is free to adapt, add to, remove from or alter the image in any way in order to create their final work. This can also be an interesting assignment when working with the creation of texture in a beginning design or drawing class.

Stamp Print

Materials needed:

Rechargeable ink pads-multiple color
Rubber stamps of various types: letters, numbers, pointing hands, (can be ordered from stamp supply companies)
Non-textured paper
Rubber stamps can easily be purchased from office supply companies and are a safe method for introducing students to the ideas of alternate drawing techniques and easily made multiples.

Younger Aged Students:
STEPS:

Take a rechargeable inkpad and a shoebox full of different stamps.
Give each student a sheet of newsprint and have them cover the sheet of paper with stamp images. Water-soluble inks will create fewer problems with students stamping each other and their environment.
You can add more complication to the assignment by adding different colors of ink or by having the students create an image of their house or family. Have the student select a stamp they really like-I have seen stamps that create the image of a cupcake, dollar signs, trees, pointing hands or simply letters. They can use that stamp as a drawing tool and make a representation of something or someone they like.

Middle School Aged Students: For this age group I would attempt to create a series of nearly identical prints

Show the students examples of interesting patterned wallpaper like that by William Morris.
Have the student create a basic repeating design usingthe stamps.
Have them attempt to reproduce this design on two separate sheets of paper, creating a print edition of two. This can lead to a discussion of multiples in nature (identical twins), in society (magazines) and in art (prints).
Next I would also use the stamps as a drawing tool and have the students attempt to create a portrait of a classmate using a stamp that reminded them of that student.

High School and College Students:

I would use stamps as a drawing tool having the students select one or two stamps that symbolically represent them.
Give everyone a mirror, paper, inkpad and the stamp they selected.
Have them do a self portrait using one color of ink. For this assignment you want the students to take their materials home.
When using a stamp as a drawing tool the impression lightens when the stamp is reused without recharging the ink. More intense areas of color or black can be created by placing impressions of the stamp one on top of the other.

Drypoint on plastic

Materials Needed:

6" x 8" piece of 1/8" thick acrylic
Drypoint needle (carbide tip or diamond tip stylus is preferable)
One yd. of tarlatan
Tube of Graphic Chemical black intaglio ink
One 22 x 30 inch sheet of Arches Cover White or Lenox or B.F.K. Rives
4 ply matboard cut into 1 1/2" squares
Plastic bag large enough to hold paper flat and be sealed
Paper blotters
Etching Press

Drypoint is an intaglio technique. Examples can be found in the prints of Mary Cassatt.

Younger Aged Students: I do not recommend this for young children because of the tools that are involved.

Middle School Aged Students: with careful planning and supervision this is an assignment that could be attempted if you trust your students to not impale each other with the drypoint needle.
STEPS:

Take several sheets of the printing paper and lightly dampen them at least 4 to 5 hours before the class. Place them into a plastic trash bag and seal the bag while being careful to keep the paper flat. You can do this the night before this assignment.
Cut a sheet of plexiglass glazing into equal size sheets. A simple hand tool will work. Hardware stores and plastic centers in large cities will often give free of cost, pieces of plexiglass that are large enough.
Have the students create a simple line drawing on a sheet of paper the same size as the plastic.
Tape the drawing to the back side of the plastic. Have the students scratch the drawing into the plexiglass plate. Be sure that they apply enough pressure to create a groove deep enough to hold ink. You might have students do a test plate by simply making marks into a plexiglass sheet and then you printing it to show the line quality that is produced.
I would recommend using water-soluble ink for easy clean-up. When the drawing has been scratched into the plate do a demonstration on how to ink and print the plate. Take a mat board squeegee and carefully using a circular motion, apply ink to the plate surface. You are putting ink into the incised lines without scraping off the burr that was created. Cover the entire plate evenly with the ink trying to not leave globs of ink on the surface.
Next take the tarlatan (starched cheesecloth) and making a loose ball with it in your hand begin wiping the plate removing the excess ink. You can reform the ball if the wiping surface has too much ink imbedded in.
When wiping is complete, go to the pre-prepared bag with the sheets of paper and remove one sheet placing it between two blotters. Lightly blot the sheet removing any excess water. Place the inked and wiped plate on the bed of the etching press-face up. It sometimes helps to have a clean sheet of newsprint on the bed of the press to keep any stray ink from getting onto the press bed and smudging subsequent prints.
Place the paper over the plate.
Take the first of the three felts, known as the starch catcher, and place it over the print. This piece of felt is the thinnest and is like what you buy in a fabric shop. Next place the thickest of the weaved felts known as the cushion. One end of the felts should be anchored under the printing press roller. Place the last of the felts, the pusher, over the plate, paper and other felts.
You are now ready to run the print through the press. Please note that the pressure of the top roller which forces the paper into the inked grooves and creates the print can be too light or more disastrously to strong. Begin with the roller barely putting pressure on the plate and then evenly lower the pressure adjustments until the plate when coming through the press creates a slight indent around the size of the plate into the paper. You repeat this process each time you print the plate.
Repeat the inking and printing process and have the students print three images of their plate. The ink on the print is viscose so the print needs time to dry. You can pin the print to a wall (put a pushpin in each corner so the paper does not curl when drying) or stack the prints where they can dry with newsprint between each print to keep the ink from transferring onto the back of the other print.

High School and College Students: this is a good beginning assignment for an introduction to intaglio printmaking. If you have proper ventilation and an odorless solvent I prefer using traditional inks for their visual richness when printed. If you do not have proper facilities use water based inks. For an assignment either have the students create a portrait or create a playing card design. Many early intaglio prints were playing cards. The class can develop their own deck with different designations and values e.g., the Queen of English Literature, the Jack of History or the Joker of Art. Follow the steps given above under Middle Aged Students.

Relief Print done with mat board that is shellacked

Materials needed:

Two sheets of 4 ply mat board each 10" x 20"
Mat-knife able to cut curls and straight lines in the mat board.
Wood glue
Brushes for spreading glue and for shellac
Container of shellac or powdered rosin and denatured alcohol to make shellac
Complementary colors of Graphic Chemical relief ink.
Two relief rollers
Smooth surfaced paper capable of accepting ink
Smooth surface such as a sheet of plate glass for rolling out the ink
Relief Printing Press or Intaglio PressRelief Print With Mat Boar

Younger Aged Students: This assignment can work for younger children if you have all the mat board pieces cut out for the student to use and you trust the class not to roll ink onto themselves, classmates or the classroom. Also, you have to schedule the assignment so you, the teacher, operate the printing press. Students can too easily run the wrong things including their classmates fingers through a printing press. This is an inexpensive means of creating a relief print. See the steps below for how to create the print.

Middle School Aged Students: I would repeat all the steps used for Younger students except I might make the assignment very specific to create a greeting card of some kind for any of the holidays or special occasions like birthdays. I would then have the student select the appropriate two colors that would best communicate the feelings associated with the holiday or special occasion.
STEPS:

For each student cut one of the two mat board sheets into a number of basic geometric shapes, symbols, letters or representational objects as if making a jigsaw puzzle. Retain the piece or pieces of mat board that remain from making the shapes.
Have each student draw a simple line design on a piece of mat board using the precut pieces of mat board as stencils to trace around. Remember that the image on the mat board will be reversed in the final print. If you have any letters or words you will have to reverse them on the plate.
Have each student glue either the pieces that were cut into distinctive shapes or the remaining board onto their remaining mat board plate. Leave some pieces out but be able to place them back in the glued plate where they originally belonged like in a jigsaw puzzle.
After the glued pieces are completely dry have the students shellac with a minimum of two coats both the glued mat board section and the few remaining unglued pieces.
On the glass in separate place roll out two different colors of water based ink and then have the students roll one color onto the raised pieces of the glued mat
board plate.
Carefully roll the second color onto the unglued mat board pieces and place them back into the open areas of the glued mat board plate, ink side up.
Place this ink side up onto the bed of the relief press. Remember to put a clean piece of newsprint under the inked plate to keep the printing surface clean.
Place your printing paper over the inked plate and another sheet of clean newsprint between the printing paper and the felts of the etching press (see EX. 3, #10 for felt placement) or the cushion and platen for the relief press to keep any stray ink from spreading to those surfaces.
Run the print through the press and repeat the inking process for each new print.

High School and College Students: For this aged group I would allow the student to develop their own theme and composition although suggestions sometimes help and I would add a degree of complication into the inking process. Again, if your facilities have the means I would use traditional inks because of the richness they create in the final image. Because you are using shellac to seal the plate pieces these can be cleaned with a mild solvent like mineral spirits. Never, never use something as strong as lacquer thinner. The extra pieces can be inked a variety of colors and the main glued plate can have what is called an ink roll or blended roll put on it.
STEPS:

Give each student two pieces of the same size 4 ply mat board.
Have the student create the design on one of the pieces of mat board and cut out the sections of the design.
Trace the cut pieces onto he whole mat board.
Have the students glue some of the pieces that correspond to those in their design carefully onto their other piece of mat board. Leave some pieces out but be able to place them back in the glued plate where they originally belonged like in a jigsaw puzzle.
After the glued pieces are completely dry have the students shellac with a minimum of two coats both the glued mat board section and the few remaining unglued pieces.
Take one ink roll-out surface (plate glass or marble) and squeeze out or carefully place two or three ribbons of different colored inks parallel to each other a
short distance a part but close enough so the roller can go over all the ink colors at the same time. Do not make the ink too thick but enough to roll out and
give a sufficient quantity for inking the plate.
Take your roller and carefully roll out the ink always going the same direction and never reversing the use of the roller. This will evenly distribute the ink and begin to blend the different colors where they touch. Repeat the rolling until there is a thin and even coating of ink on the roller and on the inking surface.
Take another ink roll-out area and prepare a single color of ink rolling it out using a different roller into a smooth even coating.
Then carefully roll the first prepared ink from steps 6 & 7 onto one section of the plate (main plate) and the second ink from step 8 onto the remaining part of the print plate (the loose pieces).
This can create some wonderful color effects.

Embossed Print

Materials needed:

10" x 10" piece of quarter inch plywood
Modeling paste
Pieces of 4-ply mat board cut into various shapes
Wood glue
Various textured materials that can be adhered to the surface including: lace, small pebbles, coins. Items should not have sharp edges that might cut the paper.
Sealing material such as spray plastic or a varnish and applicator like a brush
Piece of two to four-inch thick foam rubber large enough to cover the width of the plate and more than twice as long as the plate
Intaglio printing paper such as 200 lb. Arches Cover or B.F.K. Rives
Etching or flat bed relief press

Embossed Print:
Younger Students: For this assignment to work with younger students you have to select all the items for gluing and be ready to operate the printing press (see previous print directions and warning in Lesson III). The trick to creating an interesting embossing is to keep the texture bold and yet not too high or deep. Intaglio paper even 400 lb. Arches can only change shape so much.
STEPS:

I would start with simple shapes like stars or Christmas trees. Cut these out of a minimum 4-ply mat board. A double thickness will do better. Do not use any material like cardboard that will be crushed under the pressure of the printing process.
Keep the height variation of the items to be glued the equivalent of two 4 ply pieces of mat board stacked together. Have the students glue their pieces onto the surface of the plywood. If you can trust your students they can create the forms directly out of modeling paste applied onto the plywood plate. The simpler the form that is created the more successful the embossing will be. The modeling paste can be difficult and messy for really younger children to use.
After the glue has dried or the modeling paste has set up you may want to seal the surface with several coatings of shellac against the moisture that will be present in the prepared intaglio paper.
Take the number of sheets of intaglio paper (minimum 200 lbs.) you want to use and dampen them and place them flat one on top of the other in a large plastic trash bag. Seal the bag and let it sit over night. Good print paper will keep its integrity for several days in this condition.
When you are ready to print the embossing, take a sheet of the paper out of the plastic bag and blot it to remove excess moisture but do not get the paper dry. You want it moist not wet.
Place the prepared embossing plate on the press face up and place the sheet of prepared paper over it.
Place a sheet of foam rubber over the paper. Make sure if you are using an etching press that the height of the press roller is sufficient for the plate, paper and foam rubber to travel under it while applying pressure to the paper and image. Print the image. Repeat the printing process. Note: you can also try this with dry paper to see the effects. I have seen it work better using dry paper depending on the plate.

Middle School Aged Students: The older the student the more diverse the types of materials that can be used. Modeling paste, non-sharp hardware like washers or small gravel can be attached to the plate. Remember that either sharp objects or too much height variation on the surface of the embossing plate can cause the paper to be cut when put under the pressure of the printing press. This can also lead to damage to the printing press roller. The basic rule that the simpler the image the better the embossing still holds true. If you want to do paper relief sculpture you can take your plate and put paper pulp on it in sufficient thickness with blotting and placing a fan on the paper pulp for drying, but this is more of a sculpture assignment. If doing the embossing I would still supervise the operation of the printing press with this age group.

High School and College Students:
STEPS:

Although the basic process of creating an embossing outlined above is still true this age group can experiment with the medium. Have the students create their plate by using found objects, modeling paste forms, cutting mat board shapesor even cutting into the plywood plate.See if they can have more than one level to the embossing.

Linocut

Materials needed:

Piece of artist quality linoleum also known as battleship linoleum.
Linoleum cutter with various cutting blades
Heating pad
Sharpie drawing pen
Tube of Graphic Chemical Relief Ink
Hand roller
Smooth surface relief printing paper such as
Etching or flat bed Relief Printing Press or hand press (see instructions)
Smooth surface such as a sheet of plate glass for rolling out the ink

Linocut:
Younger Students & Middle School Aged Students: Because sharp tools are required for cutting linoleum, I do not recommend this medium for either of these two groups.High School and College Students: these groups are perfect for the creation of linocuts (relief prints made using linoleum). Linoleum used for relief printmaking can be purchased from any number of art and craft supply companies. The linoleum will come in precut pieces or in a roll and you can cut it into the desired sizes and shapes using a sharp mat knife and straight edge.
STEPS:

Linoleum is very flexible for ease of handling and cutting after cutting to size, I recommend gluing the linoleum to a piece of plywood of the same size. The backing side is obvious and wood glue works well.
A relief/woodcut plate holder can also be helpful. This is a flat piece of plywood with a 1 by 2 board glued and screwed to one bottom side of the plywood to hold it against the edge of a table top and two adjoining 1 by 2 boards attached to the plywood top opposite the bottom board to act as stops for the relief plate in the cutting process.
Linoleum can become brittle with age and become difficult to cleanly cut. Both for older linoleum and to make newer material easy to work, take a hot pad (the type used to put on aching muscles), setting it on low or medium, and place over the linoleum. Warming the linoleum allows the student to easily cut away the material with less resistance and with greater accuracy.
Sharpie drawing pens do a good job of creating the image on the linoleum plate without indenting the plate. Any depression in the plate will show up in the final print as a negative, non-inked area. What remains uncut on the plate is what takes the ink and what produces the positive forms of the print. Remember that when printed the image will be reversed from what is seen on the plate.
Speedball linoleum cutters and blades are inexpensive and work very well. If you have a sharpening stone the blades can be sharpened over and over.
The type of visual assignment will be determined by the artistic level of your students. Portraits, still-lifes, urbanscapes, landscapes--all can be created using this medium. This is an excellent medium to have students learn about the compositional balance between object and ground.
When printing the plate, it is sometimes useful to carefully spread talcum powder into the more delicately incised lines of the plate to resist the ink from filling in those areas.
Use a good quality Graphic Chemical relief ink and for the beginning student a gelatin or rubber roller large enough to cover the plate in one passing of the roller over the plate. Once an art student is familiar with the medium a smaller roller that takes multiple passes of ink onto the plate surface will work.
Roll out the ink onto the inking surface creating a smooth coating of ink on the piece of glass or marble. If small pieces of thickened ink or foreign matter appear in the ink carefully remove them with a tooth pick or edge of a putty knife. These imperfections will eventually end up on the printing plate and show up in the final print as either as lumps of raised ink or block the ink from transferring to the paper and create paper-colored areas where there should be ink.
Once the plate is inked, place the plate face up onto the bed of the press. The type of relief paper you select can have a huge impact on the quality of the print image. You might have your student try several types of relief paper to see which works best.
Place the paper over the inked plate, cover with a clean sheet of newsprint, the platen (hard plastic sheet) and print. Repeat the inking and printing process for each print.

Veneer Plywood Woodcut

Materials Needed:

Sheet of 1/2" to 1" thick veneer quality plywood. The type depends upon the desired wood grain wanted in the finished print. Oak will create a grain while birch will not create a strong grain pattern. Size of the wood depends upon the size of the desired print, the availability of paper and means to print the image.
Various wood gouges, veiners and cutting tools
Graphic Chemical Relief Ink in the desired color
Hand roller
Appropriate sized relief printing paper such as Gampi or Hosho
Etching or flat bed Relief Printing Press or hand press (see instructions)
Smooth surface such as a sheet of plate glass for rolling out the ink
Shellac and brush for application
200 grit sandpaper

Veneer Plywood Woodcut:
Younger B and Middle School Aged Students: Because sharp tools are required for cutting the plywood, I do not recommend this medium for either of these two groups.

High School and College Students: This is another print medium that is best used in this age group. Large planks of quality wood are either impossible to find or extremely expensive. This limits the size of woodcuts unless you are using veneer quality plywood. Artist Leonard Baskin was known for his use of this medium.
STEPS:

To help maintain the integrity of the layers of wood that comprise plywood I recommend shellacking the plywood with two thin layers of the sealant.
Lightly sand the plywood between coats of shellac using a 200 grit sandpaper.
Veneer plywood comes in several varieties. Birch, cherry, and oak are three common types that are excellent for this project. Birch plywood will cut easily and give minimal grain pattern in the ink surface of the print. Cherry has similar qualities. Oak because of its more pronounced grain is harder to cut and the grain of the oak veneer is often visible in the final print. Select the type of veneer plywood that best meets your needs and cut it to size using a jigsaw with a blade designed for cutting plywood.
Draw the imagery on the board using a Sharpie pen or similar type drawing tool. What you draw will remain and will be what accepts the ink and creates the imagery.
Using gouges, veiners and wood chisels remove the non-image areas of the plate. If you selected oak veneer be careful when cutting across the grain because areas that you may want can easily chip away. I find carefully outlining some surface areas using a sharp x-acto knife can help protect image areas.
Use a good quality Graphic Chemical relief ink and for the beginning student a gelatin or rubber roller large enough to cover the plate in one passing of the roller over the plate. Once an art student is familiar with the medium a smaller roller that takes multiple passes of ink onto the plate surface will work.
Roll out the ink onto the inking surface creating a smooth coating of ink on the piece of glass or marble. If small pieces of thickened ink or foreign matter appear in the ink carefully remove them with a tooth pick or edge of a putty knife. These imperfections will eventually end up on the printing plate and show up in the final print either as lumps of raised ink or block the ink from transferring to the paper and create paper colored areas where there should be ink.
Once the plate is inked, place the plate face up onto the bed of the press. The type of relief paper you select can have a huge impact on the quality of the print image. You might have your student try several types of relief paper to see which works best.
Place the paper over the inked plate, cover with a clean sheet of newsprint, the platen (hard plastic sheet) and print. Repeat the inking and printing process for each print.

Simple Etching

Materials needed:

Cooper or Zinc etching plate preferably with acid resistant backing
Liquid hard ground
Metal file, intaglio scraper and burnisher
Anti oxidation material like "BrassO' or Rubbing Compound like Putz Pomade. Rags to apply anti oxidation material and to clean plate.
Liquid ammonia and whiting
Sink with running water and good ventilation large enough to hold plate
High quality 1" brush to apply ground
Etching needle
Either a horizontal acid tray with built in spigot or a vertical etching container for using ferric-choride.
Well ventilated area for doing work.
Safety equipment appropriate to the caustic material that is used to create the etch. For Dutch Mordant or Nitric Acid an eye cup for washing out the eyes, shower, acid resistant gloves, acid resistant apron, goggles, tongs for picking up the plate while in the acid.
Sawdust box
Rags and fire safety used rag holder
Solvent
Graphic Chemical Intaglio/Etching Ink in appropriate color
One yard of tarlatan per student
Small squares of four ply matboard approximately 2" x 2"
Appropriate sized etching paper such as Arches Cover
Etching press with blankets (felts)

Simple Etching:
Younger and Middle School Aged Students: Even with water soluble inks and safe etching materials like ferric chloride I do not recommend etching for these age groups. They can be introduced to printmaking using other techniques that pose less technical problems and will be more rewarding.

High School and College Students: This is an appropriate medium and technique to introduce at this level.
STEPS:

Have the zinc or copper plate cut to the appropriate size for the students. You can order plates in various sizes or buy larger plates and cut them down by using either a plate cutter or a saber saw with duct tape placed over the bottom of the saw so the it does not scratch the surface of the plate.
Have the students file the edge of the plate taking it from a 90 degree angle to a 45 degree angle with the widest part of the plate being opposite the image area. Next take the intaglio scraper (three-sided knife) and scrape down the filed edges to remove file marks. Finish this by smoothing the edges with the burnisher. This accomplishes two things: First, it keeps the edges from taking on ink and printing a messy dark border around the print, and second, it minimizes the chance that the sharp edge of the plate will cut the paper when put under pressure in the printing process.
This last process will probably leave finger prints and oil from the skin on the plate. The plate needs to be degreased to properly accept the ground (acid resistant material). Put the plate in the sink and lightly spread whiting over the surface. Then begin putting ammonia on the plate, rubbing it into the whiting and using the two to remove any greasy or oily spots. When you can run water over the plate without any areas rejecting the water the plate is ready for the next step. Be careful to remove any of the residue left by the ammonia and whiting.
Let the plate dry and then, depending upon the type of hard ground you are using, either place the plate flat with newsprint under it or prop the plate at a 45 degree angle with newsprint under it.
One version of hard ground comes in a solid form. Take another etching plate and warm in on a hot plate at sufficient temperature to melt the hard ground.
Take a small rubber roller dedicated for this purpose and roll out the melted hard ground and when the roller has sufficient hard ground on it, roll it on to the degreased plate. Repeat this until the plate has an even coating over the entire plate surface. Let the ground set up before using.
If you are using liquid hard ground take a high quality one-inch brush and carefully apply a horizontal layer of the ground at the top of the leaning plate. Repeat this step moving down the plate and alternating directions from left to right and then right to left. This will allow the excess ground to flow down the plate and will give an even coating. Once completed let the ground dry before using. I recommend over night.
Most hard ground has a dark brown-black color and will allow you to transfer your image onto the surface of the ground. Take tracing paper and using a soft graphite pencil (3B to 5B), trace the drawing. Place the grounded plate on the etching press face up with the tracing paper drawing on the plate face down so the graphite is coming in contact with the ground. Place a sheet of newsprint over the tracing paper. Place the felts over the plate, tracing paper and newsprint and run it through the press. Carefully remove the tracing paper from the plate. The graphite image should be reversed and transferred onto the ground.
Have the students scratch through the ground copying the graphite image. The student should see the plate color through the line but should not have to push too hard.
The etch: if you are using ferric chloride the caustic action of the dark brown liquid creates a heavy residue that can remain in the etched line causing problems (blocking the action of the ferric choride) so the plate should either be etched on its edge or upside down. Ferric choride takes a long time to work. If you use Nitric Acid dilute it with water one part to nine parts. Always, and I repeat, always carefully pour the acid into the water. When mixing acid with the water, wear an acid resistant apron, acid resistant gloves and goggles to protect the eyes. The acid booth area should be properly ventilated with exhaust fans. The etching process with Nitric Acid produces bubbles that will sometimes attach themselves over the etched line. This causes the acid to eat into the plate unevenly. When the bubbles form take a large feather and simply wipe the surface of the plate clean of the bubbles. This is called feathering a plate. For either process the depth of the etch can be tested by carefully taking the etching needle and probing the etched line to see if it is of sufficient depth.
The day before you are going to begin printing the plates take intaglio paper such as a 200 lbs. Arches Cover White or a B.F.K. Rives that is the appropriate size for the print and dampen a sheet thoroughly. Place that sheet in a plastic trash bag making sure it will lay flat. Take a dry similar sized sheet of the paper and place it on top of the dampened sheet. Next place another dampened sheet on top of the dry sheet and continue this until you have stacked enough sheets to do the printing. Seal the bag and leave over night.
On the day of printing have the student put their plate on newsprint to keep the area clean and using the mat board squares carefully place ink onto the plate surface. A circular motion that spreads the ink into the recessed plate surfaces works.
Form the sheet of tarlatan into a ball and with a flat surface begin wiping the plate gently with a circular motion. The porous nature of the material will begin removing the excess ink. DO NOT SCRUB the surface with the tarlatan! Repeat the circular action changing the surface of the tarlatan to continue to remove the excess ink. When the image appears in the plate, cease.
Clean the edges of the inked and wiped plate using a rag then place the plate upon the bed of the etching press face up. A sheet of clean newsprint under the plate will keep the bed of the printing press clean and help deter the spread of unwanted ink onto the print.
Take a sheet of the printing paper out of the plastic bag and if necessary blot the sheet between two paper blotters. The printing paper should be moist but not wet. Then place the paper over the inked plate on the bed of the press.
Lower the felts of the press over the plate and paper and run them through the press. If the paper is forced around the plate with an even plate indentation, the proper pressure has been used. If the paper is barely indented, increase the pressure on the printing press evenly on each side and repeat running the plate and paper through the press. Remove the paper and check the print image.

Pseudo Mezzotint

Materials Needed:

One 8" x 10" intaglio plate (zinc or copper) with or without acid backing
Electric vibro-engraving tool
Burnisher and scraper
Marking pen such as a Sharpie
Tube of Graphic Chemical intaglio ink, preferably black
Squares of 4 ply mat board cut into 1 1/2" squares
One square yd. of tarlatan
Appropriate sized etching paper such as Arches Cover
Plastic bag large enough to seal while holding printing paper flat
Etching Press

Pseudo Mezzotint:
Younger and Middle School Aged Students: Even with water soluble inks I do not recommend the intaglio print techniques for this age group. The tools for making the image, the inking process and the printing are too complicated and have potential safety questions for this age. They can be introduced to printmaking using other techniques that pose less technical problems and will be more rewarding.

High School and College Students: This is an appropriate medium and technique to introduce at this level.
STEPS:

After the intaglio plate (zinc or copper) has been prepared by beveling the edges, have the students draw an image onto the plate using a marking pen and duplicate the image on a piece of tracing paper. A good assignment is to create a night image such as a person under a lamppost. The desired image should have sufficient black areas to utilize the strengths of this technique.
Have the students, using an adjustable electric engraving tool roughen the entire plate surface. To have the best results in creating rich black tonal areas set the engraving tool at its highest stroke level and have the student go over the surface multiple times until there is an even roughened texture on the plate. This will be created by the combination of indentation and the metal burrs that are raised. This combination will hold the ink and create the rich mezzotint black.
For the areas on the plate that need to be lightened for the final image, have the student take the burnisher and rub down the burr on the plate in those areas. In a way the student is working in reverse from the normal drawing procedure when a pencil leaves a dark mark. Here the mark of the burnisher creates the light areas.
The day before you begin printing the plates take intaglio paper such as a 200 lbs. Arches Cover White or a B.F.K. Rives that is the appropriate size for the print and dampen a sheet thoroughly. Place that sheet in a plastic trash bag making sure it will lay flat. Take a dry similar size sheet of the paper and place it on top of the dampened sheet. Next place another dampened sheet on top of the dry sheet and continue this until you have stacked enough sheets to do the printing. Seal the bag and leave over night.
On the day of printing have the student put their plate on newsprint to keep the area clean and using the mat board squares carefully place ink onto the plate surface. A circular motion that spreads the ink into the recessed plate surfaces works.
Form a sheet of tarlatan into a ball with a flat surface and begin wiping the plate gently with a circular motion. The porous nature of the material will begin removing the excess ink. DO NOT SCRUB the surface with the tarlatan! By repeating the circular action and changing the surface of the tarlatan to continue remove the excess ink. When the image appears in the plate, cease.
Take the inked and wiped plate and clean the edges of the plate using a rag then place the plate upon the bed of the etching press face up. A sheet of clean newsprint under the plate will keep the bed of the printing press clean and help deter the spread of unwanted ink onto print.
Take a sheet of the printing paper out of the plastic bag and if necessary blot the sheet between two paper blotters. The printing paper should be moist but not wet. Then place the paper over the inked plate on the bed of the press.
Lower the felts of the press over the plate and paper and run them through the press. If the paper is forced around the plate with an even plate indentation the proper pressure has been used. If the paper is barely indented increase the pressure on the printing press evenly on each side and repeat running the plate and paper through the press. Remove the paper and check the print image.

Spray paint aquatint

Materials Needed:

Zinc or copper etching plate preferably with an acid resistant backing
Can of inexpensive spray enamel in a color visible on the plate: white and yellow are good colors
Acid tray or etching container large enough for the plate and easily handled. The type of tray will be determined by the type of corrosive material that is being used.
Corrosive material such as Nitric acid or Ferric Choride used in the etching process.
Acid protective gloves, goggles, apron
Tongs
Eye bath and safety shower
Properly ventilated acid both for use with acids
Graphic Chemical Etching Ink
1 yard of tarlatan
Matboard cut into 1 1/2" squares
Intaglio paper such as Arches Cover or B.F.K. Rives 200 to 400 lbs
Etching Press

Spray paint aquatint:
Younger and Middle School Aged Students: Even with water soluble inks I do not recommend the intaglio print techniques for this age group. The tools for making the image, the inking process and the printing are too complicated and have potential safety questions for this age. They can be introduced to printmaking using other techniques that pose less technical problems and will be more rewarding.

High School and College Students: This technique is doable and useful for this age group. It should not be the first technique taught in intaglio printmaking. This should follow both the drypoint and the etching techniques. It can be used to add tonal areas to an etched plate. Goya was known to do this. Have your student draw an image that includes shadows. A landscape is a doable first image for this process.
STEPS:

Have the zinc or copper plate cut to the appropriate size for the students. You can order plates in various sizes or buy larger plates and cut them down by using either a plate cutter or a saber saw with duct tape placed on the bottom of the saw so the saw does not scratch the surface of the plate.
Have the students file the edge of the plate taking it from a 90 degree angle to a 45 degree angle with the widest part of the plate being opposite the image area. Next take the intaglio scraper (three sided knife) and scrape down the filed edges to remove file marks. Finish this by smoothing the edges with the burnisher. This accomplishes two things: First, it keeps the edges from taking on ink and printing a messy dark border around the print, and second, it minimizes the chance that the sharp edge of the plate will cut the paper when put under pressure in the printing process.
This last process will probably leave finger prints and oil from the skin on the plate. The plate needs to be degreased to properly accept the spray paint which acts as an acid resistant material. Put the plate in the sink and lightly spread whiting over the surface. Then begin putting ammonia on the plate, rubbing it into the whiting and using the two to remove any greasy or oily spots. When you can light pour water over the plate without any areas rejecting the water the plate is ready for the next step. Be careful to remove any of the residue left by the ammonia and whiting.
Let the plate dry thoroughly.
Place the plate in a well ventilated area and using a back and forth motion where the spray begins and ends off the edge of the plate begin spraying the plate with the paint. A lower priced spray enamel works best for this process. You do NOT want the plate totally covered with paint. Spray till you have approximately an equal amount of sprayed dots of paint and exposed plate. The idea is that the acid will eat around the paint. If the plate is totally covered with paint that cannot happen.
At the same time you are spray painting your main plate take a small etching plate and spray it too. We will use this plate as a test plate in the acid.
The etch: if you are using ferric chloride the caustic action of the dark brown liquid creates a heavy residue that can remain in the etched area causing problems (blocking the action of the ferric choride) so the plate should either be etched on its edge or upside down. Ferric choride takes a long time to work. If you use Nitric Acid dilute it with water one part acid to nine parts water. Always, and I repeat, always carefully pour the acid into the water. When mixing acid with the water, wear an acid resistant apron, acid resistant gloves and goggles to protect the eyes. The acid booth area should be properly ventilated with exhaust fans. The etching process with Nitric Acid produces bubbles that will sometimes attach themselves over the etched line. This causes the acid to eat into the plate unevenly. When thebubbles form carefully lift the plate out of the acid which will release the bubbles and then gently lower the plate back into the acid bath. If you are very careful not to push on the paint surface too hard you can take a large feather and simply wipe the surface of the plate clean of the bubbles. This is called feathering a plate.
Aquatints create tonal areas and there are two things to consider in the acid process. First, the depth of the pit created by the acid helps determine how much ink is retained by the plate and the darkness of the printed area. Second, because the acid is eating around small dots of paint it can do what is called undercutting a plate. When this happens the acid eats down and sideways undercutting the dot of paint and essentially removing the pit you need for holding ink. For this reason it is best to do a test strip. Take the small plate you prepared (cleaned and sprayed) at the same time as your main plate and lower it into the acid leaving it for a specified timed interval, say one minute. Remove the plate after that time, carefully rinse the plate in water, allow it to dry, then coat a narrow strip of it with stop out varnish. Let the varnish dry and repeat the etching process for another minute, remove, rinse, dry, coat another area, etc. Make sure that the etched areas of the plate are protected by the coating of varnish. Keep repeating this for approximately 10 minutes. This will mean that the aquatint area will have etched areas of 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 and 10 minute durations. When completed clean the varnish off the plate and follow the directions below for printing. This will give you an idea of the length of time needed to create the values you want. Remember that as acid is used it loses strength so such test strips may need to be done again.
The day before you begin printing the plates take intaglio paper such as a 200 lbs. Arches Cover White or a B.F.K. Rives that is the appropriate size for the print and dampen a sheet thoroughly. Place that sheet in a plastic trash bag making sure it will lay flat. Take a dry similar size sheet of the paper and place it on top of the dampened sheet. Next place another dampened sheet on top of the dry sheet and continue this until you have stacked enough sheets to do the printing. Seal the bag and leave over night.
After the students have etched the tonal areas for their image have them carefully degrease their plate and prepare it for a simple hard ground etch. Then add the etched line areas into the image. It is best to create the aquatint areas first because the hard ground will protect the aquatint pits when creating the line work while the plate exposure to acid in creating the aquatint can severely diminish the quality of the etched lines.
On the day of printing have the student put their plate on newsprint to keep the area clean and using the mat board squares carefully place ink onto the plate surface. A circular motion that spreads the ink into the recessed plate surfaces works.
Form a sheet of tarlatan into a ball with a flat surface and begin wiping the plate gently with a circular motion. The porous nature of the material will begin removing the excess ink. DO NOT SCRUB the surface with the tarlatan! By repeating the circular action and changing the surface of the tarlatan continue to remove the excess ink. When the image appears in the plate cease.
Take the inked and wiped plate and clean the edges of the plate using a rag then place the plate upon the bed of the etching press face up. A sheet of clean newsprint under the plate will keep the bed of the printing press clean and help deter the spread of unwanted ink onto print.
Take a sheet of the printing paper out of the plastic bag and if necessary blot the sheet between two paper blotters. The printing paper should be moist but not wet. Then place the paper over the inked plate on the bed of the press.
Lower the felts of the press over the plate and paper and run them through the press. If the paper is forced around the plate with an even plate indentation the proper pressure has been used. If the paper is barely indented increase the pressure on the printing press evenly on each side and repeat running the plate and paper through the press. Remove the paper and check the print image.

Paper stencil silkscreen

Materials Needed:

Properly stretched screen
Squeegee large enough to fit into the screen and dispense ink through it
Paper stencils cut out and corresponding to the negative space in the desired image. Layout paper that looks similar to tracing paper works well. You can experiment with different papers.
X-acto knife with multiple blades
Masking tape
LePage's glue
Water based screen ink
Flat table with screen hinges attached
A smooth hard surface paper

Paper stencil silkscreen:
This process is a good introduction to screen printing. Although screen printing lends itself to the use of overlays of transparent color and of a rich use of multiple colors it is good to begin with a basic one color print. This eliminates the necessity of multiple screens and paper registration. These images can look similar to a basic relief print.

Younger Aged Students: Unless you have older students who can be with the younger children in the actual printing of the image I do not recommend this for the youngest students.

Middle School Aged Students: This can be used with this age group if they can be trusted to cut the stencils out of the paper and if you use water base ink.
STEPS:

Have the screens and printing stations (flat surface with screen hinges attached to the surface) ready for the students.
Have each student draw on a piece of layout paper the basic image they want to create. Remember that this will be in one color plus the color of the paper. The layout paper should be the same size as the paper on which the image will be printed and neither should be larger than the screen area.
Each student should cut away the area in the drawing that will receive the ink. This could be done with X-acto knifes or for some patterns scissors could work. Pieces that are not attached to main image can be attached to the screen separately but be careful to not lose them.
For the main body of the stencil, place wide masking tape 3" or wider with gum side up on the bottom of the stencil with 2 or more inches of the tape showing around the edge. Carefully lay the stencil under the screen so that it is lined up properly with where you want it attached. Lower the screen onto the taped stencil and attach the tape to the screen holding the stencil in place.
For stencil pieces that are free from the other areas lower the screen onto them making sure they are in the proper position and place a little LePage glue on them through the screen. Allow the glue to thoroughly dry before printing.
Have your screen printing ink ready for printing and your paper ready to quickly place under the screen. Screen ink can sometimes be too thin to easily flow through the screen. In that case mix it with a transparent base or a little liquid to create the proper viscosity. Take a small mat board squeegee and test the ink by spreading it onto a sheet of paper to guarantee that the ink has sufficient pigment and sufficient
viscosity to print properly.
Place a sheet of the good printing paper under the stenciled screen. Place a sufficient amount of the ink across the top of the screen and with the large squeegee pull the ink across the screen and force the ink onto the paper creating the image. Repeat.
Remember that the ink on the prints is wet so do not lay the prints one on top of the other.
To clean the screen when finished, first, remove any excess ink from the screen using squeegees made of cardboard or mat board. If the ink is still usable put it into a sealable can. Once this is complete a high pressure water wash like seen in a carwash is ideal. If you do not have access to one of these then quickly put the screen under water and with a good scrub brush go over both the front and back of the screen until clean.

High School and College Students: This can be an exciting assignment for this age group and the sky is the limit for the number of colors in a print and what types of prints are created. With proper fabric ink you can even create fabric prints or T-shirt designs. If using multiple colors in the print two things should be considered. First, make sure that the paper and stencil image are registered (lined up) so that the different colored inks will print properly. Second, you either have to have multiple screens available for each student, one for each color in the print or have storage for the prints between printings and clean ups.

Paper Registration Steps:

Registration of paper can be accomplished through multiple methods: registration pins or the use of paper tabs or registration marks. The point of registration is that the paper and screen should line up for each print and for each color in the print.
Take all of the sheets of paper and make sure they are the same size. Place at the top edge of the paper-at the same exact spot on each sheet-two vertical lines one near each corner (right and left). Place two horizontal lines near the corners on one of the adjacent sides of the paper. Place one of the marked sheets under the screen and on a larger sheet of paper that has been taped in place so it will not move. Place the mark of a "T" on the bottom paper lined up so that the cross bar of the "T" is next to the print paper and the vertical line of the "T" corresponds to the line made on the print paper. When printing you will line up each sheet before printing so that the paper comes up to the edge of the marks and the vertical lines correspond to each other.

Image Registration Steps:

When creating a multi color silkscreen the multiple stencils need to line up with each other. I recommend creating a master image (drawing) of the desired image from which the stencils are traced and aligned. If the screen is marked with the same registration marks as are on the master image the various stencils will align.
Create your master image on sturdy paper that is larger than the screen for printing and the stencils you will be cutting. Mark the paper with registration marks similar to what was done for the printing process above and in line with those created for the printing process. Mark your stencils the same way so that they will attach to the screen the same way. An additional help in this is that often the screen even after a thorough cleaning will have a ghost image of the previous color dyed into the screen. This helps with the registration of new stencils.

Printing Steps: follow the procedure outlined above under Middle School Aged Students.

Combined Intaglio-Relief print

Materials Needed:

Single intaglio plate (zinc or copper)
Proper corrosive materials to bite the plate
Hard ground or other acid resistant material
Oil of Clove
Two different colored intaglio inks
Matboard (4 ply) squeegee cut into 1 1/2 inch squares
Tarlatan 1 yd
Ink roller (gelatin, plastic, or hard rubber)
This paper such as tracing paper or thin mylar for stencils
Inking station
Intaglio paper
Etching Press

Combined Intaglio-Relief print:
This technique combines the process used for creating an etching with that used in a relief print. The steps listed below are essentially the same steps for an etching with the edition of a few steps in the inking stage.

Younger and Middle School Aged Students: Even with water soluble inks and safe etching materials like ferric chloride I do not recommend etching for these age groups. They can be introduced to printmaking using other techniques that pose less technical problems and will be more rewarding.

High School and College students: This is an appropriate medium and technique to introduce at this level.
STEPS:

Have the zinc or copper plate cut to the appropriate size for the students. You can order plates in various sizes or buy larger plates and cut them down by using either a plate cutter or a saber saw with duct tape placed on the bottom of the saw so the it does not scratch the surface of the plate.
Have the students file the edge of the plate taking it from a 90 degree angle to a 45 degree angle with the widest part of the plate being opposite the image area. Next take the intaglio scraper (three-sided knife) and scrape down the filed edges to remove file marks. Finish this by smoothing the edges with the burnisher. This accomplishes two things: First, it keeps the edges from taking on ink and printing a messy dark border around the print, and second, it minimizes the chance that the sharp edge of the plate will cut the paper when put under pressure in the printing process.
This last process will probably leave finger prints and oil from the skin on the plate. The plate needs to be degreased to properly accept the ground (acid resistant material). Put the plate in the sink and lightly spread whiting over the surface. Then begin putting ammonia on the plate, rubbing it into the whiting and using the two to remove any greasy or oily spots. When you can run water over the plate without any areas rejecting the water the plate is ready for the next step. Be careful to remove any of the residue left by the ammonia and whiting.
Let the plate dry and then depending upon the type of hard ground you are using, either place the plate flat with newsprint under it or prop the plate at a 45 degree angle.
One version of hard ground comes it a solid form. Take another etching plate and warm in on a hot plate at sufficient temperature to melt the hard ground.
Take a small rubber roller dedicated for this purpose and roll out the melted hard ground and when the roller has sufficient hard ground on it roll it on the degreased plate. Repeat this until the plate has an even coating over the entire plate surface. Let the ground set up before using.
If you are using liquid hard ground take a high quality one-inch brush and carefully apply a horizontal layer of the ground at the top of the leaning plate. Repeat this step moving down the plate and alternating directions from left to right and then right to left. This will allow the excess ground to flow down the plate and will give an even coating. Once completed let the ground dry before using. I recommend over night.
Most hard ground has a dark brown-black color and will allow you to transfer your image onto the surface of the ground. Take tracing paper and using a soft graphite pencil (3B to 5B), trace the drawing. Place the grounded plate on the etching press face up with the tracing paper drawing on the plate face down so the graphite is coming in contact with the ground. Place a sheet of newsprint over the tracing paper. Place the felts over the plate, tracing paper and newsprint and run it through the press. Carefully remove the tracing paper from the plate. The graphite image should be reversed and transferred onto the ground.
Have the students scratch through the ground copying the graphite image. The student should see the plate color
through the line but should not have to push too hard.
The etch: if you are using ferric chloride the caustic action of the dark brown liquid creates a heavy residue that can remain in the etched line causing problems (blocking the action of the ferric choride) so the plate should either be etched on its edge or upside down. Ferric choride takes a long time to work. If you use Nitric Acid dilute it with water one part to nine parts. Always, and I repeat, always carefully pour the acid into the water. When mixing acid with the water, wear an acid resistant apron, acid resistant gloves and goggles to protect the eyes. The acid booth area should be properly ventilated with exhaust fans. The etching process with Nitric Acid produces bubbles that will sometimes attach themselves over the etched line. This causes the acid to eat into the plate unevenly. When the bubbles form take a large feather and simply wipe the surface of the plate clean of the bubbles. This is called feathering a plate. For either process the depth of the etch can be tested by carefully taking the etching needle and probing the etched line to see if it is of sufficient depth.
The day before you are going to begin printing the plates take intaglio paper such as a 200 lbs. Arches Cover White or a B.F.K. Rives that is the appropriate size for the print and dampen a sheet thoroughly. Place that sheet in a plastic trash bag making sure it will lay flat. Take a dry similar size sheet of the paper and place it on top of the dampened sheet. Next place another dampened sheet on top of the dry sheet and continue this until you have stacked enough sheets to do the printing. Seal the bag and leave over night.
On the day of printing have the student put their plate on newsprint to keep the area clean and using the mat board squares carefully place ink onto the plate surface. A circular motion that spreads the ink into the recessed plate surfaces works.
Take the sheet of tarlatan and forming a ball with a flat surface begin wiping the plate gently with a circular motion. The porous nature of the material will begin removing the excess ink. DO NOT SCRUB the surface with the tarlatan! By repeating the circular action changing the surface of the tarlatan continue to remove the excess ink. When the image appears in the plate cease.
Once the plate has been inked and wiped as an etching place the plate on a flat surface with a piece of newsprint under it. You need to plan what areas of your image are to have color. Cut a paper or mylar stencil that exposes the area(s) of color and covers the other areas of the plate. Place the stencil over the inked plate making sure it will stay in place.
The relief ink that will be used to create the color area(s) should be rolled out onto an inking surface. Add a little plate oil to this ink to make its viscosity different from the intaglio ink used in the etching. This can be done by adding a few drops of oil and working it into the ink with a putty knife. Once the ink is ready and rolled out into an even surface, take the roller (large enough to ink the plate with one pass of the roller) and carefully ink the plate leaving the colored ink on the exposed area.
Take the plate and clean the edges using a rag then place the plate upon the bed of the etching press face up. A sheet of clean newsprint under the plate will keep the bed of the printing press clean and help deter the spread of unwanted ink onto the print.
Take a sheet of the printing paper out of the plastic bag and if necessary blot the sheet between two paper blotters. The printing paper should be moist but not wet. Then place the paper over the inked plate on the bed of the press.
Lower the felts of the press over the plate and paper and run them through the press. If the paper is forced around the plate with an even plate indentation the proper pressure has been used. If the paper is barely indented increase the pressure on the printing press evenly on each side and repeat running the plate and paper through the press. Remove the paper and check the print image.

Collagraph

Materials Needed:

Base material for the plate that can be 1/8" to 1/4" Masonite or Plexiglass, 4 ply matboard, or any thin and durable material that can have items glued to its surface.
Textured fabric, a variety of textured papers, thin metal items without sharp edges or anything that can be glued onto the surface of material A.
Acrylic gesso and wood glue or Epoxy glue
Scoring tools which can be anything from an etching needle to a nail.
Polymer medium
Modeling paste
Clear plastic spray
X-acto knife and multiple blades
Scissors
A variety of brushes
Graphic Chemical Intaglio ink
Tarlatan, 1 yd.
Etching press
Etching paper minimum of 200 lbs.

Collagraph:
Younger Aged Students: Because of the mess involved in this process both in the gluing and in the printing I do not recommend this process for the youngest aged children.Middle School Aged Students: With the use of water-based inks which are healthier to use and easier to clean, and if you operate the printing press this is a technique that would be used with some students in this age group.
Steps:

Have your students bring to class a variety of items like washers, plastic bottle caps, wire mesh, coins, scrap pieces of fabric that have noticeable texture, etc. These will be used in their plates. You supply the mat board pieces pre-cut into a variety of shapes that can be used. Cut the mat board pieces with a bevel so that they will be easier to print once secured to the plate.
Give each student a piece of pre-cut Masonite that will be used for the plate. Make these platse reasonably small such as 8" x 10" to facilitate ease of printing. These plates should be treated just like an intaglio plate and should have the edge of the plate beveled to minimize the chance that the paper or the press felts would be damaged in the printing process.
Have the students draw with a soft pencil (2B to 4B) and make an image on the plate that they will then create as a low relief. It could be a portrait, their house, a landscape or even an abstract pattern.
By using gesso or Elmer's glue have the students begin adhering their pieces to the Masonite plate. Make sure that the surface that is created is not too high. Two thicknesses of 4 ply mat board would be about right.
You can even spread gesso onto the plate and embed textured items in it like wire mesh, very small pebbles, and sand. Once this area has dried give it another thin coat of the adhesive material.
When the plate is completely dry spray a thin layer of clear plastic coating over the surface. This type of spray is used to protect charcoal and pastel drawings.
Because of the texture of these plates the use of old mat board squares recommended in earlier intaglio techniques does not work with this one. Ink can be applied using a stiff stipple brush or a piece of inexpensive felt rolled into a cylinder with duct tape placed around it to hold it in place making an ink dauber.
The day before you are going to begin printing the plates take intaglio paper such as a 200 lbs. Arches Cover White or a B.F.K. Rives that is the appropriate size for the print and dampen a sheet thoroughly. Place that sheet in a plastic trash bag making sure it will lay flat. Take a dry similar size sheet of the paper and place it on top of the dampened sheet. Next place another dampened sheet on top of the dry sheet and continue this until you have stacked enough sheets to do the printing. Seal the bag and leave over night.
Use a water base ink but be aware that it can dry quickly if conditions are right and if the plate is too large. Have this age student work small. Apply an ample amount of the ink over the entire surface of the plate.
Have several pieces of tarlatan ready for each student. Take the sheet of tarlatan and forming a ball with a flat surface have the student begin wiping the plate gently with a circular motion. The porous nature of the material will begin removing the excess ink. DO NOT SCRUB the surface with the tarlatan! By repeating the circular action change the surface of the tarlatan to continue to remove the excess ink. When the image appears in the plate cease.
Take the inked and wiped plate and clean the edges of the plate using a rag then place the plate upon the bed of the etching press face up. A sheet of clean newsprint under the plate will keep the bed of the printing press clean and help deter the spread of unwanted ink onto the print.
Take a sheet of the printing paper out of the plastic bag and if necessary blot the sheet between two paper blotters. The printing paper should be moist but not wet. Then place the paper over the inked plate on the bed of the press.
Lower the felts of the press over the plate and paper and run them through the press. If the paper is forced around the plate with an even plate indentation the proper pressure has been used. If the paper is barely indented increase the pressure on the printing press evenly on each side and repeat running the plate and paper through the press. Remove the paper and check the print image.

High School and College Students: This can be an exciting printing technique for this age group. Because these students will want to work larger I recommend using an oil base intaglio ink which will dry slower. It is best to add a little plate oil and even a little oil of clove to the ink to help retard drying and create ink that spreads and prints better. The process outlined above is essentially the same except that this aged student can cut their own mat board pieces and work larger