The Linocut Printmaking Process

Designing the print

Each print begins with a drawing. I sketch my design loosely on newsprint to get the ideas onto paper and see what's working.

When I have a roughed out composition, I add a layer of tracing paper on top so I can hone the shapes and add details. I add one more layer of tracing paper to finalize the lines, making small adjustments as needed.

Once I'm happy with the design, I go over the whole thing once more in permanent marker to lock it in. Working in these stages forces me to focus on composition first. I only add details once the elements have been placed.

Preparing the block

I use standard grey unmounted artist's linoleum for all my blocks. I sand each block lightly to help ink adhere to the surface.

I stain the blocks with acrylic ink to help me see my progress once I start carving. Without the stain, it would be very difficult to discern carved areas from uncarved.

Using a registration jig, I align my design to my block. This allows me to lift the design throughout the transfer process and not lose alignment.

With carbon paper between my design and the block, I trace over the whole thing once more. I'm left with a clean carbon image on the linoleum.

Carving the linoleum

This is the part of the process I can relax into the most. All of the design decisions have been made and I simply need to reveal the image in the linoleum.

I often begin by outlining large shapes with a v-gouge. This creates a dam which will help prevent errors when I go to clear out empty areas.

I use lots of different tools throughout the carving process. I select whichever tool will best fit the shape I'm trying to carve out.

Mistakes are inevitable. Luckily, most are repairable or simply not large enough to bother with fixing. They add to character of a work made by human hands.

Rolling the ink

I build the ink up in thin layers so as not to flood the finer grooves. I don't want to lose all that wonderful detail I spent so long carving.

There's a particular sound that tells when there's enough ink on the brayer. It's a ripping sound as the viscous ink tears away from the glass surface onto the roller.

It's incredibly satisfying to make that first pass of ink onto the block. The ink reveals all the details of the design and the strong contrast of the unprinted areas. Once I've cleaned the block after printing, it will never look so crisp and clean again.

Pulling the print

Finally, it's time to print the design. I use the same registration jig that I used when transferring my design to the block. With the block in place, I align my paper to the margin markers and lay it down onto the inked surface.

As I don't own a press, I hand burnish all of my prints. This process takes time and care to ensure that each print is evenly transferred to the paper.

I check the print periodically throughout printing for bare patches. There are misprints in every batch but they've become fewer and fewer over time as I've improved. After printing, I hang them to dry fully, which takes a week or so.

Signing and editioning

Once the prints have fully dried to the touch, I can sign and edition them. I look over each print carefully and select the ones to be included in the edition.

I make limited editions, so I number each print out of the total number included. I then add the title, my name and the year. Limited editions means that the total number in the edition is all there will ever be. There's a special value in knowing there's a finite number of each print.

The final step is to photograph and store each print in my archive. They will remain there until the time comes to ship them out to their forever home.

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