HoviBahamas
12-11-04, - 10:33 PM
What is Silk-screen printing?
SILK SCREEN PRINTING has its origins in Japanese stenciling, but the screen-printing process that we know today probably stems from the patents taken out by Samuel Simon of Manchester at the turn of the century. He used silk stretched on frames to support hand painted stencils, a process also used by William Morris. In 1914 John Pilsworth of San Francisco also took out a patent for multicolor printing, using the screen process.
We can trace the origin of serigraphy as far back as the fifth century when oriental cultures of that time made use of stencils. It is through a specialized printing process, using hand cut lacquer sheets as stencils, that the twentieth century silk-screen (serigraph) is produced. In the twentieth century, a printing frame (sometimes referred to as a silk screen frame) was introduced. A piece of silk is stretched on a frame to serve as a carrier of the hand cut stencil. The name of the art form comes from this process: Seri for silk, and graph for drawing...in other words, a silk drawing or a serigraph.
An original work of art or a sketch by the artist is the first step in the process. The serigraph artist then must, with his knowledge of color, and the combinations of color, cut a different stencil for each color to be used on the artwork. Each color represented in the original
artwork (or original sketch) is cut out of a thin lacquer sheet forming the stencil, which is then adhered to the stretched silkscreen frame. The cut lacquer sheet (stencil) controls where the different colors will appear on the print. At times, the artist will place two colors or more on the same spot in order to produce another color. For example, using pink and a blue on the same spot will produce a purple.
Once the stencil is cut, it is adhered to the silk screen on the printing frame. The artist then uses a squeegee to pull the color (paint) across the printing frame, which has been placed above the sheet of paper that will hold the artwork. The paint is forced through the screen and on to the paper below. This process is repeated on all the sheets of the total edition, then the lacquer image (stencil) is removed from the silk; a process that destroys the stencil. The next stencil for another color is cut and adhered to the silk screen; and the next color is applied to the artwork. This process is repeated until all of the colors have been applied. The number of colors on a serigraph varies; usually they have at least 5 different colors, but they can also have 30 or 40 different colors.
Thanks to its technical and creative potential, serigraphy became the favorite graphic media of Puerto Rican Artists during the 50’s, and has retained its popularity as we move into the twenty-first century. Originally, the printing process was used for promotional and educational applications, but as the posters that were produced this way became popular, the process of silk-screen making developed into a unique and independent art form. Because an edition usually includes from 50 to 300 prints, the artist can distribute his work among a more ample public, at a more economical price, when compared to one of a kind originals.
An artist usually makes a limited edition of his designs. When applying the signature, the artist numbers each print with what looks like a fraction. For example, if the fraction 27/150 appears, you will know that it is the 27th print of an edition of 150 prints. Occasionally, you will see A/P or P/A instead of the fraction. The letters stand for Artist’s Proof (in English) or Prueba de Artista (in Spanish). This Artist’s Proof is different from the edition, but remains a valid piece of work.
Serigraphy has become a popular art form in Puerto Rico, and has been elevated over the years to the level of tradition. Our educational and cultural institutes lend support to the art form by providing a well-developed program of classes in serigraphy, and financial aid and grants to the developing serigraph artists of Puerto Rico.
How does Screen printing work?
The equivalent of the printing plate for the screen printer is the SCREEN - a wooden or aluminum frame with a fine nylon MESH stretched over it. The MESH is coated with a light sensitive emulsion or film, which - when dry - will block the holes in the mesh. The image that needs to be printed is output to film either by camera or image-setter. This film positive and the mesh on the screen are sandwiched together and exposed to ultra-violet light in a device called a print-down frame. The screen is then washed with a jet of water, which washes away all the light sensitive emulsion that has not been hardened by the ultra-violet light. This leaves you with an open stencil, which corresponds, exactly to the image that was supplied on the film. Now the screen is fitted on the press and is hinged so it can be raised and lowered. The substrate to be printed is placed in position under the screen and ink is placed on the topside of the screen, (the frame acts also as wall to contain the ink). A rubber blade gripped in a wooden or metal handle called a SQUEEGEE (not unlike a giant wind-screen wiper) is pulled across the top of the screen; it pushes the ink through the mesh onto the surface of the substrate you are printing. To repeat the process the squeegee floods the screen again with a return stroke before printing the next impression.
Silk Screen-Printing Process
Silk-screening is the process used to produce most t-shirts.
1) Setting up the printer
2) Adjusting the screen so the image is where you want it
3) Placing the ink in the screen and removing the screen
4) Spraying textile adhesive on the t-shirt platoon and placing a test
pellon on the t-shirt platoon
5) Spreading the ink over the screen to print an image
6) Placing a t-shirt on the platton, taking the test pellon off because it
is done
7) Placing the screen on the t-shirt to print it
8) After printing, place the t-shirt in the dryer
9) While the first t-shirt is drying, the next one can print.
SILK SCREEN PRINTING has its origins in Japanese stenciling, but the screen-printing process that we know today probably stems from the patents taken out by Samuel Simon of Manchester at the turn of the century. He used silk stretched on frames to support hand painted stencils, a process also used by William Morris. In 1914 John Pilsworth of San Francisco also took out a patent for multicolor printing, using the screen process.
We can trace the origin of serigraphy as far back as the fifth century when oriental cultures of that time made use of stencils. It is through a specialized printing process, using hand cut lacquer sheets as stencils, that the twentieth century silk-screen (serigraph) is produced. In the twentieth century, a printing frame (sometimes referred to as a silk screen frame) was introduced. A piece of silk is stretched on a frame to serve as a carrier of the hand cut stencil. The name of the art form comes from this process: Seri for silk, and graph for drawing...in other words, a silk drawing or a serigraph.
An original work of art or a sketch by the artist is the first step in the process. The serigraph artist then must, with his knowledge of color, and the combinations of color, cut a different stencil for each color to be used on the artwork. Each color represented in the original
artwork (or original sketch) is cut out of a thin lacquer sheet forming the stencil, which is then adhered to the stretched silkscreen frame. The cut lacquer sheet (stencil) controls where the different colors will appear on the print. At times, the artist will place two colors or more on the same spot in order to produce another color. For example, using pink and a blue on the same spot will produce a purple.
Once the stencil is cut, it is adhered to the silk screen on the printing frame. The artist then uses a squeegee to pull the color (paint) across the printing frame, which has been placed above the sheet of paper that will hold the artwork. The paint is forced through the screen and on to the paper below. This process is repeated on all the sheets of the total edition, then the lacquer image (stencil) is removed from the silk; a process that destroys the stencil. The next stencil for another color is cut and adhered to the silk screen; and the next color is applied to the artwork. This process is repeated until all of the colors have been applied. The number of colors on a serigraph varies; usually they have at least 5 different colors, but they can also have 30 or 40 different colors.
Thanks to its technical and creative potential, serigraphy became the favorite graphic media of Puerto Rican Artists during the 50’s, and has retained its popularity as we move into the twenty-first century. Originally, the printing process was used for promotional and educational applications, but as the posters that were produced this way became popular, the process of silk-screen making developed into a unique and independent art form. Because an edition usually includes from 50 to 300 prints, the artist can distribute his work among a more ample public, at a more economical price, when compared to one of a kind originals.
An artist usually makes a limited edition of his designs. When applying the signature, the artist numbers each print with what looks like a fraction. For example, if the fraction 27/150 appears, you will know that it is the 27th print of an edition of 150 prints. Occasionally, you will see A/P or P/A instead of the fraction. The letters stand for Artist’s Proof (in English) or Prueba de Artista (in Spanish). This Artist’s Proof is different from the edition, but remains a valid piece of work.
Serigraphy has become a popular art form in Puerto Rico, and has been elevated over the years to the level of tradition. Our educational and cultural institutes lend support to the art form by providing a well-developed program of classes in serigraphy, and financial aid and grants to the developing serigraph artists of Puerto Rico.
How does Screen printing work?
The equivalent of the printing plate for the screen printer is the SCREEN - a wooden or aluminum frame with a fine nylon MESH stretched over it. The MESH is coated with a light sensitive emulsion or film, which - when dry - will block the holes in the mesh. The image that needs to be printed is output to film either by camera or image-setter. This film positive and the mesh on the screen are sandwiched together and exposed to ultra-violet light in a device called a print-down frame. The screen is then washed with a jet of water, which washes away all the light sensitive emulsion that has not been hardened by the ultra-violet light. This leaves you with an open stencil, which corresponds, exactly to the image that was supplied on the film. Now the screen is fitted on the press and is hinged so it can be raised and lowered. The substrate to be printed is placed in position under the screen and ink is placed on the topside of the screen, (the frame acts also as wall to contain the ink). A rubber blade gripped in a wooden or metal handle called a SQUEEGEE (not unlike a giant wind-screen wiper) is pulled across the top of the screen; it pushes the ink through the mesh onto the surface of the substrate you are printing. To repeat the process the squeegee floods the screen again with a return stroke before printing the next impression.
Silk Screen-Printing Process
Silk-screening is the process used to produce most t-shirts.
1) Setting up the printer
2) Adjusting the screen so the image is where you want it
3) Placing the ink in the screen and removing the screen
4) Spraying textile adhesive on the t-shirt platoon and placing a test
pellon on the t-shirt platoon
5) Spreading the ink over the screen to print an image
6) Placing a t-shirt on the platton, taking the test pellon off because it
is done
7) Placing the screen on the t-shirt to print it
8) After printing, place the t-shirt in the dryer
9) While the first t-shirt is drying, the next one can print.