Monotypes & Monoprints: Printmaking methods : eBay Guides

A monotype is a one of a kind, hand-pulled print. An artist creates an image with paint or ink on a smooth plate (usually plexiglass, mylar or metal), and transfers the image to paper on a printmaking press, or manually with pressure & rubbing.  By pressing the plate & paper together with the pigments sandwiched in between, the artist creates a texture not possible when painting directly on paper. After the paper is squeezed against the still-wet image on the plate, it’s literally peeled off the plate by the artist (see the image below), and this stage of printing is called “pulling”, since we are pulling the print off the plate. Pulling a monotype is almost always a surprise, since the art created on the plate gets squished, and smeared and moved around when the paper is pressed into the ink.

The images in these photos were created with black printmaking ink, but artists can use oil paint, water-soluble crayons, or any medium that will leave the plate and stick to the paper when they’re pressed together. There are no permanent lines or etch marks on the plate, so the image is not repeatable, as an edition in a woodcut or an etching, and the finished work is created solely by the artists’ manipulation of the medium on a smooth plate.

Monotypes are unique, because only one impression of the art can be pulled from the plate before the ink is gone. (Some people refer to monotypes as the only original art printed in an edition of one.) After the initial print is pulled, there may be just enough pigment left on the plate to pull a second, faint impression, called a ghost. The ghost (or cognate), is a much lighter reprint, with substantial variations from the first print, and is more of a transparent suggestion of the first image. A ghost print can be treated as an “under-painting”, giving the artist creative license to re-work the image with other mediums to create an entirely new, one of a kind work of art. The image below shows a dark field monotype on the left, and the ghost print on the right, painted/altered with watercolor on the right.

I use two methods when I make monotypes: Dark Field and Light Field. A dark field monotype is made by covering my plate entirely with ink. While it’s still wet, I wipe the ink off the surface of the plate with my finger tips, rags, pointed tools, and solvents to create light areas and values. This method - lifting the ink away from the plate - is a subtractive process, and a very painterly form of printmaking.

A light field monotype is an additive process. I begin with a clean plate, and much like starting a painting on paper, I draw the image directly on the plate’s surface with a variety of water soluble crayons. I may also use brushes to add pigment or move transparent color around, or lay washes of color, one over the other, to get surprises after they’re squished together on the press. When a moist sheet of printmaking paper is pressed against the pigments on the plate with enough pressure, they adhere to the paper, leaving the plate relatively clean. After the print is dry, I add more color and increase the contrast with watercolors.

What’s the difference between a Monotype & a Monoprint? The terms monotype and monoprint are sometimes used interchangeably, but they represent two distinct printmaking processes. A monotype is made by drawing or painting on a smooth surface, and transferring the image to a sheet of paper. It’s a singular printmaking method, since there are no permanent lines or marks on the plate. A monoprint plate has etched lines or drawn elements adhered to the plate,  so they can be repeated in a series or edition. This underlying image remains the same, and is common to each print in a given series. The artist may vary the colors, or the density of the inks in each image, creating a unique impression, but some permanent element of the plate carries the same design or markings repeatedly over to each print, making it possible to print multiples in an edition.

Currently, Ebay doesn’t have a sub-category in Fine Art Prints for monotypes/monoprints, so your best bet to find one is by doing a title search. Try using each word, one at a time in separate searches, and be careful to read the art description to ensure that the art you’re looking at is really a monotype or monoprint.

There are lots of other methods for printmaking beyond the two that I’m employing here, and I encourage you to take a class or a workshop to learn more about Monotypes & Monoprints if you’re curious. Creating a monotype happens somewhere in between the process of making a painting, and planning a traditional relief print; the medium is rich with surprises, the methods are equal parts planned and spontaneous, and the results are always exciting. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me.

This guide was written by the artist: Belinda Del Pesco

For more information about Belinda’s work, visit her About Me page for links, or visit her Ebay store Belinda Del Pesco Fine Art to see original work for sale.