Printmaking Processes: Lithography

Lithography works on the principle that grease and water repel each other. There is no carving involved. The artist draws on a stone with a greasy crayon and then covers the stone with a thin film of water. the oily ink will stick to the greasy image but not to the water-covered areas.

[@chaz2290]

I don't think I've ever appreciated my printer so much.

[@rubyanahi673]

Oh cool! Lemme just go get one of my huge pieces of limestone and my chemistry set !

[@lisathaviu1154]

Thank you for posting this. It has been many years since I did this. For people that don't know how you get multiple colors, the answer is that you need to draw multiple stones, basically one for each color. The wonderful thing about litho prints is that you can get watercolor-ish effects and therefore, with the correct registration technique, you can get many colors using about 2-4 color stones or plates.

[@sarojinichaudhury179]

Happy to know one that actually did this.

[@AngelineSmiles]

My mediocre brain cannot handle the complexity of this process. Darnit. I really wanna understand clearly.

[@KingKiavash]

Angeline Smiles Really? All the complex bits with the chemicals are basically etching the image onto the stone surface.

[@Android-be5kf]

Saying etching is incorrect, that's why people find it hard to understand, "etch" comes from biting, from etching, where the acid bites the metal, creating gaps. In lithography this term should not be used "etching. We simply must talks about fixing the drawing, the gum arabic protects the areas from absorbing greasy, the acid weakens the fat on the surface of the rock, which is removed, and only the areas of fat that were absorbed in the stone remain, these will attract the ink, while the white is protected from getting grease, because it has gum arabic.

[@Android-be5kf]

I used the google translator, because I speak Spanish, in some parts I put "fat" instead of "oil" or "greas"

[@Chris-wb7wf]

so basically if i start printing at the age of 20, ill be done by my mid 40's

[@MegaDobrich]

you just made my day. I thought something similar too. WHY litography? WHY? aahahhaah

[@Chris-wb7wf]

hahaha lol

[@EragondelsChannel]

FUCK SCHOOL hahha IDGAF about thisss

[@anonymoususer8446]

+Eragondel lol

[@latenightcashews]

hahahahaha

[@KpxUrz5745]

This is a good basic description of the stone lithography process, which was my specialty. I really like this workshop and the beautiful large press. Few people recognize the labors involved in this remarkable and traditional process, which has largely fallen by the wayside and is often replaced by less creative and less sensitive newer methods of creating prints.

[@Andrew5DMII]

Super, super video. Thank you for taking the time to make it. My grandfather made lithographs for decades (Walter "Wally" Richards) out of southern connecticut and watching this helps me appreciate his work. It seems to me that the process itself could be considered an art. Those stones are unbelievably heavy!

[@alexiswiftrock]

Definitely a time-consuming process. Those old practices are truly an art. We are so unrefined in some ways theses days compared to these aged methods. I was taken back by this, but should I really be? People used to work a lot harder back then and therefore feel more gratification with what they had done with their hands. Man sometimes I wish I could just simply get into something like this and not worry about anything else. Just be utterly absorbed in my craftsmanship

[@GoldHelicoprion]

I just had my first day of Intro to Litho this morning and I am so in love! Thanks for the video, I couldn't help but watch it and geek out - so excited to make a print.

[@iplayloud2]

Might have added that in the year 1798 photocopiers didn't exist and this must have been an impressive technology.

[@lancelot1953]

Thank you for taking the time and effort to create this video. I have many lithograph reproductions of Currier & Ives works and I was fascinated by the process that you describe. Thank you for illustrating that for the viewers, Ciao, L

[@SamPendleton]

Much easier than just drawing the image onto the paper.

[@ansh0133]

😂

[@muhammadadibzailan3248]

Thank you so much for the upload! An eye-opener for sure!

[@MELDtoys]

KZbin is simply the best school in the history of the world... of course it helps to have a master-teacher!

[@jwithington]

Very very cool. Thanks for such a succinct video of a complicated process!

[@vankraft]

Absolutely amazing process... so much work. Wow to artists, who work with this technique. Thnx for the video, I havent´t had the idea of the process until now ;-)

[@transylvanna]

lithography is one of the most laborious, yet gratifying, print processes. thanks for the post! i

[@408Magenta]

Fantastic!! Well done!

[@DoglessEndeavor]

Thank you so much for this. You have saved me so much stress.

[@mooselove]

Weird how the glossed over this in all the art classes I ever took in hs and college. They just said it’s a printing technique with a block, never explaining the etching process with grease and chemicals! So cool

[@mammalianmollasses4784]

I'm here because my college class on the history of design is making me write an essay on 19th-20th century design innovations. The textbooks attempt to explain the process can only be described as word salad. This video really helps lol.

[@learnerlearns]

Excellent concise descriptive video on this subject!

[@radiofrog]

My right ear loved this video

[@YeloOoszz]

Looks so awesome, i want to do one myself one day!

[@lPlagueBearer]

3:07 That's sooo intense. How he checks to see if it's etched. This is a great and simple video!

[@robbieman23]

Excellent, I did not realise there was so much involved, thanks to Senefelder!

[@mistercubs]

I spent six years at ASU making hand-pulled stone lithos, and this is a VERY simplified version of how lithography is done! Hell, it takes hours just to grain a stone! Also, there's no mention of applying laquer V to the stone in this vid after removing the image with lithotine.

[@HyunAYuchi]

That's a craft best left to the experts :)

[@ZaynahZihoa]

@transylvanna Two years late, but if you still have this problem; keep the stone wet, you can roll some ink back off if you "pull" the roller towards you quickly, or try re-etching the stone.

[@AffordBindEquipment]

I build a simple letterpress. I was asked why bother with all the work and money when you can go print it on a $75 laser printer and get it perfect. For a party, why hire a live band when you can hire a DJ to do the same thing for less? It's about doing the real thing, the art of it, saving lost and dying arts for future generations. Why plant a garden when you can buy food at the store? Some things are done just for the satisfaction of doing them, and the beauty that comes from the old ways.

[@LegoDroidJ]

Why you use right speaker instead of mono?!?!?!?!

[@caochhui]

Very informative video clip, Thanks

[@MagdalenaDrMags]

I agree completely! at the time i'm doing my diploma form lithography and I have so much work preparing stones each time and pulling this insolently hard to pull lever while printing that i don't even know where my arms and legs are anymore ;-)

[@mout12]

Good video.

[@anglebeat2332]

sorry to ask but is the pressing machine different for relife of wood, lithography and etching method??i am new to this so..

[@Sheriff_K]

So much trouble for just one print... Or can you do multiples? What about when there is color ink involved, how would that work? o_0

[@Frosties160]

so much effort, wow

[@RossGerard]

Beautiful

[@anaglyphx]

Such a complicated and convuluted process. Is it really worth the time and effort?

[@waxmaster-c]

not at all

[@XXLittleLolitaBoyXX]

Omfg....I'm taking this class next year. I am so screwed.

[@Lozzaa]

+EctoRoyal dont worry, i might be working at an apprenticeship at a place that prints like this and digitally :S

[@nickpassion123]

+EctoRoyal what college/university do you go to?

[@XXLittleLolitaBoyXX]

Angie Nimo I go to a Private Fine Arts highschool. So far I'm doing pretty well in the course.

[@nickpassion123]

EctoRoyal oh wow

[@KingScuzzo]

Open your eyes, when is the last time you stepped into a contemporary art gallery. Opening your mouth like this makes you sound like you've been living under a rock.

[@iplayloud2]

How many times can the stone be used to print the same image? Can the stone be cleaned and reused for another drawing?

[@sonjasullivan934]

May I use this video for my fine art gallery exhibit about Tadeusz Lapinski?

[@michaelbrasuela]

such effort

[@kelloggcerealxoxo]

yaaawwwwnnn....too much work...

[@onehilwonder]

cool!

[@Ringcaat]

I don't understand why the water collects in the non-image portions of the stone just before the ink is applied. This implies that the grease from the pencil is still there... but didn't the video say that the was dissolved by the oil-based solvent?

[@Andrew5DMII]

@mistercubs Do you know of any sources online or in print that describes this process in greater detail? My grandpa worked in this medium for most of his life and I would love to understand better what he did.

[@SimonDouville1]

@garvam In fact, it's more more complex than what you see in this. I used to do it at University. The whole process of what you see here in 5 mins would take up to 4 hours and more if you do one than more stone and how complex is your image. BUT, even if complex this Technique is transparent and keep grayscale which make more complex images at the end than Silkscreen would in one print.

[@Brettagher]

nice, very informative.

[@nelsonwilby]

yeah, stone litho. there are a lot of steps. and this is definitely a simplified version. i love this process but because of the graining I usually end up just using ball grained aluminum plates..

[@obitobi100]

dude... this video blew my mind O.o

[@Zandoraful]

the image and non-image area is etched? that doesn't make sense to me. can someone please explain?

[@konzwambii]

has made his choice: unrewarding work in a salt mine. Anyone who would argue otherwise probably thinks Christo is an artist.

[@Thanatar13]

@konzwambii Well, in the end what is important in my opinion is the image that an artist's work results in, who cares what method used... Say what you want about digital, but it does come out with some nice results- and you seem to forget that lithography and similar processes were made to do the exact same thing; to make many copies of the same print.

[@LiquidRelief]

nice, need this for examination tomorrow :D

[@lithographer64]

@transylvanna Mag. ink or print w/ a stiffer ink, print while it's cool in shop, use cold fountain solution... i

[@DaedalEVE]

Wow.... that is a LOT of work. If it was me though, I'd design in the computer, and use some sort CNC milling machine to just machine the stone and be done with it. You get the same outcome (authentic litho print from a stone), but it would be 100% accurate to the original work.

[@KingScuzzo]

I think the real challenge is accepting both forms as art. I've seen beautiful stone lithos, but I've also seen amazing digital prints that not "everyone idiot" could have completed. Old school printmakers crack me up. You are so afraid of technology yet it's what your medium is based on.

[@FeatheredFriend1]

I'm fairly certain that the opposite is true, and that we ALL agree with konzwambii. All being inclusive only of those who care one way or another. Extra points to k for not circularly repeating their argument and getting snide and petty. A reasonable and calm approach is generally the best one in an argument (don't worry - I won't start repeating that for emphasis without further elaboration. That would be unreasonable.)

[@NinuRenee]

would love to try out this method, but i bet it's going to cost a lot of money

[@konzwambii]

2) to make room for the computerized printer. It is in the end mechanical, unlimited, and detached. I stand by every comment I made, including that no great work of art will ever come of such methods. If it ever does, I will be the first to acknowledge it, but don't hold your breath.

[@ShilohOMG]

@ToffeeTornado I know it's a little to late, but.... A greasy liquid is used to draw or paint an image directly onto the plate, and then the plate is rinsed with water. When ink is added to the plate, it sticks to the greasy liquid and rolls off the wet part of the plate. Then, paper is flattened against the plate, and the plate's ink is pressed against the paper to make a print. :)

[@firehandszarb]

that process looks very involved

[@KingScuzzo]

It's also printmaking which by its very nature is linked to efficiency. I have a MFA in printmaking so think twice before you cast me down as some plebe who doesn't understand "true" art. Stone lithography is fun and produces amazing results. It's also extremely toxic because of all the chemicals used. Producing a lot of those chemicals has been detrimental to the health of thousands not to mention all the artists that have been hurt by the chemicals.

[@KBAFourthtime]

About that liquid greasy substance, how is that word spelled? "Touche"?

[@RadiantLenore]

+Ricky M Tusche

[@MissFalling]

This is hard :O I'll never compare it with photocopying again :O

[@ZaynahZihoa]

@Mouse6524 Most stones are "recycled". It's what he does in the beginning, normally there's an image that you have to sand off before you can make a new one. And 1 etching won't print 200.

[@transylvanna]

i always get really "scummy" prints from my stones...any tips?

[@ZaynahZihoa]

@spenceyg Well, usually you print a series.

[@ONEOFHAM1]

I came across this completely by accident, and then became completely transfixed for the next four and a half minutes.

[@du6167]

Also..how the hell is his press so flawlessly clean?

[@4seasons223]

Okay, now explain Alphonse Mucha...

[@SpaceCowboy1218]

art.

[@transylvanna]

in my studio, at my school, we have to wear goggles, aprons and gloves! in the past, they used to test the nitric acid on their tongues...

[@guammike]

@TheDaedalEVE That wouldn't work. Litho isn't a relief process like lino or wood block. The acids and gums change the chemical properties of the stone which affects what areas will hold ink and which ones hold water. And for most artists the litho process isn't about reproducing an existing work of art like a photocopier but about creating an original work through the stone and paper printing process. Its all really a great deal of fun and if you haven't tried it yet, you should.

[@dsagent]

Thanks for uploading this. I was reading the description in my art text and it barely made any sense whatsoever.

[@ZaynahZihoa]

@konzwambii I do art by digital AND traditional means; litho, etching, woodcut etc. All types of media have their advantages and challenges, digital art is no less a valid form of art than others.

[@SimpleSubash]

Damn, I thought something was wrong with my headphone when I couldn't hear anything in my left ear.

[@transylvanna]

it is a tamarind fan! they're fun to play with XD

[@TheMGA93]

Art of the poster midterm tomorrow.. people who are watching this for the exam good luck lol

[@xpikarawr4212]

same lol xD good luck to u too

[@dryang4722]

ı saw "lithography" in the reading section of toefl preparation book. ı confused and said lets search in youtube. ı think the writer and the person who speaks only right is the same.

[@Euroliite]

If you think that's hard check out Japanese woodblock printing.

[@waxmaster-c]

wow

[@abcdefg0394]

A fanfic brought me here (I think I'm the only one) And this is interesting. How did people find acid in the old days? Like And all that edging and colours Seems fun but I think I would get easily frustrated if I did this

[@qw3rtypounc3s]

I'll bite. What fanfic?

[@abcdefg0394]

qw3rtypounc3s www.fanfiction.net/s/6714320/1/Numbered-Lithograph Hetalia Spamano fic I didn't know what the descriptions in the story were bout so I came here

[@qw3rtypounc3s]

Harmony Lucis I see. Cool thx bby

[@areyoufreetolisten]

All those wondering why lithography? This is the technique used for chip designing.

[@punkaneeter]

Zulema that's a good question and I think best answer is probably in 2:53 - 3:00.

[@importedmusic]

shame we didnt actually get to see the finished thing

[@someNYkid]

Wow, that was a really complicated way to draw a picture.

[@djnima]

alternatively, practically speaking, the artist could just photocopy the image in a fraction of time 😁

[@SpoonEtunes]

AMAZING & INFORMATIVE DEMONSTRATION! There is a brand new book, THE KNAPPS LIVED HERE on historic lithographers the Joseph Knapp family whose firms, Sarony Major & Knapp, Major & Knapp, and American LIthographic Co.were some of the most advanced in color lithos and largest printing firms the world has ever known Full book info is located at The Knapps LIved Here website

[@konzwambii]

uh... I think you just proved my point...

[@Tom-Bomb]

Seriously.. who tf thought to do all of that?!? What artist was just sitting there one day and was like “let me get some big ass limestone slabs and sketch some shit on it with greasy crayons then wipe it all off and put some wet paper on it n press it to make a perfect copy!” Seriously, that shit boggles my mind how this one got figured out! Crazy!!! As well as a completely ridiculous process

[@konzwambii]

1) I did not state categorically that digital processes involve photography, but they certainly may. My big complaint with digital processes, as for art, is that much sensitivity and personal nuance is gone by definition, because it is filtered in numerous ways by software and hardware. My other serious complaint is there is no "artistic" way of printing it to paper. Gone is the artist/printmaker, [cont'd]

[@roofnkeith]

Alot of fluids

[@du6167]

It's used for art

[@Greg.Lacoste]

Milton Bradley did this for a living before coming up with the original game of Life..

[@BIZEB]

@mistercubs Because there isn't a need to.

[@lithographer64]

Sponges should be placed on their edges vs. face as in this demo during damping stage... this avoids surprises on first roll up.

[@katapruiz]

shit how am I supposed to do that in art class ._. i want to try doing lithography as my final medium but oh my god this process it's so complicated ._.

[@TheDogofTin]

My right ear is sad :( *T O O S H*

[@konzwambii]

@Nitrohelp Printmaking, by definition in its highest meaning, means that the artist has a personal hand in the platemaking. Like life, art is original and subject to death, meaning it has a lifespan. True woodblocks wear out. True printing plates wear out, and are therefore limited in edition size. Computer printing is just another unlimited, mass produced, "unfelt" and therefore "unartistic" method of reproduction. Therefore, meaningless as art. True prints show the hand and mind of the artist.

[@konzwambii]

@ZaynahZihoa The proof, as I said before, is that no great work of art has been (or will be) the result of digital processes. These processes have value in a commercial, not artistic, sense.