Abigail Merickel: Solar Plate Etching and Monotype

Workshop Description

Solar plate etching is a form of intaglio in which a photosensitive polymer plate is used. A drawing on trace film is placed on the plate, which is exposed to light and developed in water. Ink is rubbed into the etched lines and printed onto paper.

With monotype, colored inks are applied by brush and brayer on a plexiglass plate.

Students will experiment freely with both techniques, singly and in combination, to achieve interesting hand-pulled prints. Students will create a line and tonal drawing, etch the drawing onto the solar plate, and print an edition on an antique press, while experimenting with the addition of colored inks (monotype) and decorative papers (chine colle).

Materials/Equipment to be Provided by Students

• Apron
• Sharpies
• Drawings
• Uniball pens
• Small paint brushes
• Scissors

See Materials Glossary for definitions and images

Materials/Equipment to be Provided by Instructor

• Antique letterpress
• Plexiglass plates for inking
• Akua soy-based inks
• Brayers
• Solar plates (1 per student)
• Monotype plexi plates (1 per student)
• Selection of printmaking and decorative papers
• Handout

Instructor Biography

Abigail Merickel lives in Oregon and Oaxaca, Mexico. She studied art and languages in Seville, Spain; Venice, Italy; and London, England, acquiring a BA in Spanish and English (University of Colorado–Boulder, 1981), a BFA in Painting (Accademia di Belli Arti-Venezia, 1989), and an MA in Teaching (George Fox University, Oregon, 2006). As a printmaker she experiments with monotype, collagraph, relief, intaglio, and lithography. Her creative process relies on the intuitive, informed by her senses and experiences. Working from memory and emotion, she captures her yearning, full of nostalgia, reverie, and—not least of all—joy. Her work is exhibited nationally and internationally.

Instagram: @abigail_merickel