Customer Reviews

Printmaking: History and Process

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
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If you're going to have just one book on the wide world of printmaking, make it this one. Despite its heft, over 400 pages in large format, it almost comes across as rushed. I don't mean sloppily done, quite the opposite, but with just so much to say that the pages can barely hold it all.

Saff and Sacilotto start with relief techniques, the processes that are easiest to intuit and that have the longest histories. This isn't just a history book, though, it includes modern materials and techniques, all in enough detail for a beginner to get going on. The next section, on the many kinds of intaglio printing, is equally thorough. It covers the whole range of ways that people can create images on printing plates. That includes familiar etching, engraving, and drypoint techniques, but also lift, aquatint, mezzotint, mixed technique, and more. The discussion covers every step, from preparing a plate to take the ground on through to printing the edition and cancelling the plate.

The section on litho, though, is where this really comes into its own. It's an exhaustive discussion of everything about the process, from the chemistry of stone or metal, to creating multiple lithographic stones in good registration, to surfacing the stone, to drying the finished prints. And, unlike many other discussions of printmaking, these authors never shy from photographic techniques and technological support. I really appreciate the fact that they see the artistic potential in everything, not just some purist list of historical techniques. The last section on printmaking covers serigraphy, and does just as complete a job as the other sections did. Final chapters cover papermaking, blind impressions, framing, and curatorial care.

There's not a lot to object to here. The authors often recommend formaldehyde as a preservative, something that only the best-equipped shops would attempt to handle today. Likewise some of the more aggressive etchants - HF is so hazardous that its use seems hard to justify for most purposes. Well, in the nearly 30 years since this was written, attitudes toward work place hazards have changed a lot. On the positive side, though, it's illustrated with 675 black and white figures and forty color plates, another reason this book seems so dense. There's more information per page in this book than in any other I can think of, and far more pages than in most other books. It has my highest recommendation.

//wiredweird

Excellent!Printmaking along with The Complete Printmaker and The Tamarind Book of Lithography are the shop manuals for Parsons School of Design and New School University Printmaking Studio.

This book is an absolute must-have for printmakers, professionals as well as amatuers and students. I'm an art student whose focus is in printmaking and this book was strongly recommended to me by my professor. It is an encyclopedia of information on printmaking, including not only the "how-to" but the history and development as well.

All the different types of printmaking explained... a bible for all beginners and a great reference book for experienced printmakers.

Excellent overview of the Printmaking Process. Good book for secondary and college level Art students.

The description given for the book I ordered was just what I received in the mail. The book was delievered in a timely manner in a excellant manner to protect the item. I would be very happy to buy from this merchant again, and would recommend to others. Thanks!

This used book is as good as new. It will be a big help in my class and my friends already want to borrow it.

I have had this book for decades and it IS in my opinion THE book on printmaking. It is well written, packed to the gills with information, and leads to new inspiration every time I pick it up. If you are a serious printmaker, or a serious collector of prints, you should have this book in your library! This book has stood the test of time and is still at the top of the list... timeless.

More than anyone would want to know about printmaking. Excelent text book or if you want a good book that explains everything and everyong to do with printmaking.

I received this book in great condition, with no markings in it, even though it is a bit old! I got my book in time for my class, and I saved a lot of money shopping online for my textbooks!