Siligraphic Vitreography: The New Lithography

[@femkevandelft177]

Canadian here. What a gem the KZbin algorithm sent this morning. Just what I needed to jumpstart making. Thank you so much.

[@BillRitchie]

That makes my day!

[@femkevandelft177]

@@BillRitchie Mine too. Might have to draw the antiquated diverter in my bath cuz I am using the same silicon

[@MerlynChipman]

I love that there are people like you out there Bill Ritchie. Thanks for sharing.

[@BillRitchie]

... what a nice thing you say, MerlynChipman. - Bill

[@malcolmthompson9848]

A less hazardous way of cleaning oil-based litho and etching inks is with vegetable oil (the same stuff you cook with) followed by Simple Green cleaner to remove the vegetable oil residue. Use old t-shirt rags torn into 4" squares. Two should do it.

[@merce414]

What amazing channel I have just found!!! Thank you so much for sharing your knowledge

[@BillRitchie]

You are welcome. It takes a bit of work, but the feedback (and pushback, too) is informative. - Bill

[@StellanSchedin]

If I'm going to make any lithograph in the future, it will have to be from stone. That's the only thing I can do. It was so medidativ to grind the stones and grain them. After taking a long break in my artistry, I will return to copper engraving the burin method. Thank you for showing the lithograph variant. I Wish you a Happy New and successful Year. Stellan

[@BillRitchie]

I agree, I loved the drawing on stone, slow, meditative, and a faint resonance, a ringing sound coming from the contact of litho pencil and stone. Highly absorbing. When I made the demonstration plate, I was surprised how graining the glass - even this small plate - took me back to when I COULD make a lithograph. Then came the drawing, and after that I told people I heard the same, soft, barely audible sound I heard many years ago. Processing and printing the plate was different, being waterless, but I did not need gum arabic, acid, talc, etc. Finally, I could print on a roller press instead of a litho press with its greasy tympan, scraper bar, etc. My friend, Reka, will - like thousands of others who aspire to draw a lithograph - never have access to it; but with this "new lithography," she may. That is my hope. For me, it's over, and I'm happy to have been able to do it. For Reka - and even children (my current focus) there is hope. I understand, Stellan my friend in Sweden, what you are saying. Now I am wondering, "Could this be done on your Legacy Mini Halfwood Press No. 70?" Yes, it could!

[@416dl]

Wow...I am really surprised and delighted to see the printmaking process which I'd originally learned on lithographic limestone while studying for a BFA many years ago as part of my study now being applied to glass. Incidentally I recognize Harvey Littelton for his wonderful work in hot glass which I'd also pursued for a number of years and which still fascinates me. Oh, and I loved the look of the reverse image on the plate glass at least as much as the positive image on the prepared side. Thanks for sharing it with us and the world. Cheers.

[@BillRitchie]

@@416dl Hello, yours is a welcome account of your experiences, thank you. - Bill

[@416dl]

@@BillRitchie You're welcome, Bill. I woke up this morning thinking about Harveys technique and while it's been years since I've thought about printmaking in my workshop/studio as other things have come to occupy my small world, I love to experiment and am thinking about that lustrous look and drawing directly on the prepared surface using color. Again one of the aspects of Harvey's hot glass was how he employed the optical depth of the glass in his early glass 'flow' sculptures...they really inspired me to explore glass for its non-surface and optical qualities. Anyhow, thanks again. Cheerio.

[@BillRitchie]

@@416dl Again, you're welcome. Ninety-percent of the joy of creating belongs to the creator. Others are lucky if they can "get" what's left - the artifact of the process, a performance. At Pilchuck I witnessed dance at the glory hole.

[@416dl]

@@BillRitchie I was fortunate to be at Pilchuck for a couple of hot glass sessions over a couple of seasons: Thermon Statom, Dick Marquis, The Marionis...and y'know...the whole dang scene...nothing else could be like it.

[@BillRitchie]

@@416dl Like a jazz concert in time/space, innit. - b

[@grassulargranite]

A non-profit art education facility that has been around since 1920 kept their litho press, sink and most of their stones when they moved to their current location. The director of the print studio and the organization know they have something very precious. Like several here, I feel deeply connected to the stone litho process, especially grinding. It was one of the few moments during the crazy, hectic life of college that kept me centered.

[@BillRitchie]

@@grassulargranite you know you are lucky. Although I could say grinding glass is like that, it's not. Grinding stone is soft and soothing, almost musical. Glass grinding is harsh, almost painful on my ears. For my friend Reka I'm only thinking of her drawing on glass, the printing of it will always be out of reach - universally unsustainable financially for most folks. My work is for Kids STREAM Printmaking, and siligraphic vitreography is perfect for this.

[@lawrieyoutube4375]

Thanks for putting this up. I notice that after inking the plate he did not wipe the plate to remove the excess ink from the non-printing area. Do you know if this was intentional, or just a gap in the filming process? My art school, Griffith University, Queensland College of Art, Australia still had lithographic presses and all manner of traditional printing processes in a well equipped Printing department, 2023. The equipment was often very old having been acquired as redundant from government departments or big commercial print houses. The presses were rare, huge and in superb operating condition. As a student I had full continuing access after completing a printing course as part of my visual arts degree. After graduating, I have no access. I know that the printmaking rooms were popular with students exploring contemporary themes using traditional processes. The problem was finding the time to pursue it with all the demands of other studies. I have seen students working happily late into the night using the presses and associated facilities like vacuum hoods for chemicals etc. I know the academics are fighting to keep the print department open with all the cuts to higher education. Maybe allowing access on a fee basis to past graduates would be a solution. They were also struggling to keep the photography dark rooms open. Small minded bureaucratic thinking is a major enemy of art IMO. If I could justify the price of a halfway decent A3 roller press I would get one. And had somewhere to put it. Cheers

[@BillRitchie]

Greetings from Seattle. As for the excess ink, there was none to wipe off. This is dry lithography. Maybe that's why. At 10:51 seconds, I made a couple swipes on the hardboard, but now I don't know how any ink got there. Hmmm. As for trends in hand-printmaking, it's a lovely medium, but like all pleasurable pastimes we learn in art school, there is a price to pay. I believe the true cost of printmaking is never taught by printmaking teachers because we (I taught it for 20 years at the UW/Seattle) need students to keep our jobs, security, retirement, and, frequently, we can't afford our own studio. We need the school's facility to make our art, keep our jobs by showing our art and winning prizes, and the awe of the students we need to populate and justify the studio. Fewer than 1% of students who graduate will be able to continue after graduation on their own and make a living wage. It's best to regard printmaking as a hobby and be happy. Many people take up expensive hobbies like restoring antique cars or surfing. Approached this way you might find kindred spirits and open a cooperative. I visited the Melbourne shop in 1983, and it survived on government subsidies and whatever the artists could put in. Co-ops are best way to go after graduation because only the director and the board are getting paid, and only if they earn it and are not in it for themselves. Then there was the Australian Print Council doing its part. In these times a few talented and business-savvy souls (Bridget Farmer comes to mind) will manage. The reason small minded bc thinking rules over artists (but not art) is because of technology. It's ironic, because print is the historic ancestor of all technology, science, engineering, technology, and math (STEM). Now, having been enlightened old professors like me, freed of institutional thinking just in time, we can add reading and writing, the arts, and numeracy. It's never too late to relearn. And, yes, a roller press works well for siligraphic vitreography. I'm advocating for someone - and it may happen in Australia - to start a business manufacturing ground glass plates to artists and providing printing services to them. This would provide the artrepreneurs a press they need for the business and for themselves. If a person is as creative as they think they are, they could do this - in a partnership or cooperative venture, that is. Not alone. - Bill

[@lawrieyoutube4375]

@@BillRitchie Brilliant reply, Thanks. I agree with all your observations. It is hard to make a living by it, unless you become a darling of the New York gallery scene. I agree about co-ops but they are out of favour in the current financialist Zeitgeist. Bridget Farmer is indeed an example of success. This exchange makes me I feel I am right back in the classroom. I graduated with distinction in 2023 at age 74 after ten years part-time. (I am a carer for my wife) I loved the academic work, and learning to research properly and write academically. I had very broken schooling in childhood due to illness and no proper education with some bad experiences with educators. Most of my youth, and up to about age forty, I was treated as an idiot and often told I was 'retarded'. Starting and running my own successful small businesses turned that around. I even did some stints teaching apprentices at trade college, but I still had something to prove to myself. It was quite an emotional risk going back into an educational institution. Despite being pretty quiet with old-fashioned manners I had a few run-ins wih the odd tutor or two who lacked my life experience (much to their shock). I majored in photographic art, and finished with a GPA of 6.9. So yes, it's a retirement interest to do, but all the art theory and history drummed into me taught that art must add to culture or it isn't art. That sounds pompous but it is a driver against mediocrity I suppose. The beautiful thing about printmaking, in my opinion, is the way it can synthesise art and artisanry. The process itself is extremely satisfying. A good arts degree is indeed very undervalued. Sorry to babble on but it is so nice to chat about art again. I have some glass in the shed, Hmmmm. Cheers, Lawrie.

[@lawrieyoutube4375]

@@BillRitchie PS. I admire very much your archive. Such projects are enormously valuable to society. Sadly, most folk think, mistakingly, that the internet is forever. In reality, content costs money to keep on the server and stays there only so long as it suits the corporation to allow it to remain. It is a form of a privatisation of knowledge. It can be deleted forever with a keystroke without notice or accountability.

[@BillRitchie]

@@lawrieyoutube4375 this is the loveliest story I've read in years, and your wife is fortunate for your presence. I am reminded of yet another Aussie, Raymond James, in NSW. We had good exchanges, too. He's in the Halfwood Press Encylcopedia, too. It's a flipbook, free, on my website, emeraldaworks.com.

[@BillRitchie]

@@lawrieyoutube4375 One path to try is kids, so I'm role-playing a kid lookong for playmates.

[@oldreprobate2748]

Most generous Bill.

[@BillRitchie]

I'm glad you think so - you old probate : )

[@TheOldGuyPhil]

Just found your channel. Looking forward to seeing more. I would have loved more narration about what the process is. If I understand correctly, you are putting a water dissoluble medium on roughened glass, applied then removed with a dry rag??, removed how much??, would a squeegee work for removal??, cured the silicone then removed the water soluble medium leaving a relief area to hold the ink???? How about discussing more of what can be done with, or by modifying the process. You are really a wealth of knowledge and I.m fascinate to learn more. God bless your health, and bless you with Faith.

[@BillRitchie]

Not putting you off, but the best source is Harvey Littleton, who invented it. It's like stone lithography, where we use water soluble gum arabic over a grease-containing drawing medium, wiped down so thinly and dried that, when solvent removed the original drawing medium, it left a clean stone (in the vitreography method) or glass surface image which, when oil-based ink was rolled over it, held the image which then was printed on paper. Some people explain that it's a stencil method, the gum (or in siligraphy, silicone) surrounding the original traces of the drawn image.

[@betsyb4926]

This is absolutely fascinating. Thank you for sharing

[@BillRitchie]

I welcome this kind of response, thank you, BetstyB - Bill

[@InAHollowTree]

This is excellent, I can see all types of cool large projects with this,! I’ve only done metal and vinyl linoleum prints before. This was a very clever use of materials. By the way though, just wanted to mention a typo of what you were using so folks don’t get confused: silicone, not silicon.

[@BillRitchie]

Aaarggh! That typo you pointed out is a bad one. I made the mistake in the original in 2011. If ever I have an opportunity to re-edit the video, it can be fixed. But I never will, so I'll have hope people will figure it out from the tube of silicone I'm squeezing it out of. Hopefully, no one will try to buy some silicon. Cost is about $300/100 grams. Hmm. I've heard there's a valley of it in California, around San Jose, where I made my first lithgraphs. Thanks for the heads-up and I'm glad you like the rest of it, InAHollowTree. : ) - Bill

[@donaldfurst9342]

This is an interesting process to explore. I believe I was the first to do waterless glass plate litho with silicone back in 1995. I demonstrated my method to Harvey Littleton and his shop switched from their gum-based approach to my silicone-based approach. The printing can be a bit prone to scumming, though. If you have litho stones you will probably still prefer them as more flexible and forgiving than the glass.

[@BillRitchie]

@@donaldfurst9342 Donald, if I'd known you were the furst to use silicon, I would have referenced you instead. Sorry. However, if you have anything on the Web I can add as a "card" on this old video, point me to it and I'll try. True, stone is better. I'm looking for options for unequipped people, and seeing if there's business potential better than polymer "litho".

[@donaldfurst9342]

@@BillRitchie Bill, no worries. It was an interesting three-year season in my restless career as a printmaking omnivore. I do remember Harvey's enthusiasm when he told me, "Throw away your litho stones." The glass was fun and indeed, if you don't have a litho press, the direct drawing on glass is a fun, low-cost alternative.

[@art-creator]

Great! Thank you for sharing this technique, definitely I should try it. One question - is it tempered glass, or just plain?

[@BillRitchie]

It's important that it be plain, plate glass at least 1/4-inch thick. I THINK (but not positive) tempered glass may shatter in the graining or any tiny bump. Someone may jump in if I'm wrong. - B

[@art-creator]

@ as I see, there are no definite opinions about impossibly for sandblasting for tempered glass, some guides advised not to grind it too deep (less 10%). They aware about approx 30% loss of strength, but after temepering strength of glass plate raises much more, than 30%, which is acceptable to lose in comparison. How fine grinding powder did you use?

[@BillRitchie]

No sandblasting in siligrahic method, sandblasting is for making relief plates. I used #80 grit, a coarse grade. I wanted to be on the safe and easy side my first try.

[@GodzillaGoesGaga]

Could you explain what is going on please ? I assume the water bas3d pencils/markers etc sit proud on the surface. You then apply your silicone/turpenpiod solution and it becomes flat filling in all voids. Bake to solidify it and drive off solvents. Then you wash to remove water soluble inks. Using the printers ink I assume it refills the voids but won’t stick to the silicone ? Just trying to understand. Thanks.

[@BillRitchie]

Yours is as good an explanation as I could have give, faithful to the video, I think. If I can explain any more, please ask, and I am hoping someone else practicing it will step up. BTW, a Dusty Herbig made a reel titled, "Lithography, steps 1-728" showing graining stones.

[@GodzillaGoesGaga]

@@BillRitchie Thanks for confirming. I was guessing on what was going on.

[@rdt1104]

Will sandblasting the glass work?

[@BillRitchie]

It might, I can't try it. One wonders if texture is even necessary! I came to it from a stone lithography perspective. The other vitreography methods do not call for graining. Try it and put up an image of your results here. - Bill

[@chriscarroll277]

Curious as to what you think of polyester plate lithography?

[@BillRitchie]

It teaches the chemistry (oil and water antipathy) of lithography without the litho, but the surface is smooth like paper isn't it? I would not use it personally because, like "Kitchen Lithography" it looks and feels like photocopier, whether black and white or color. Also, I loved the resonance of stone and glass.

[@wickedcabinboy]

Very, very interesting video. The only real expense is the press itself and accompanying tools, I would think. Is anyone doing this today? Are these presses still available?

[@BillRitchie]

You are right, it takes a press, either a lithograph or roller-style press. And, yes, a few are doing this, but scarcely anyone on a noticeable scale. There are etched and sandblasted vitreographs, too. Locally, a woman named Nikki did a workshop and made a web page at www.seattleartistleague.com/2019/03/29/vitreography-test-prints/. And, yes, you can buy the presses anytime, priced from $500 to $25,000. What I envision is a co-op that produces the ground glass plates for Siligraphic Vitreography, sells them in art supply stores as kits like I showed, and does the printing service on the co-op's press. I think any printmaking co-op or university adjunct could start this. I'll help if asked. - Bill

[@wickedcabinboy]

@@BillRitchie - Thanks for your reply. I find this extremely interesting. I'm going to check in with the state university nearby to see if they're doing anything like this.

[@BillRitchie]

@@wickedcabinboy I'd be interested, let me know. - Bill

[@kareno8634]

*Thank You!*

[@BillRitchie]

You are welcome! - Bill

[@kenkelly5848]

That was amazing, I need to know more.

[@BillRitchie]

There is an abundance online, not so many videos but text in places like Wikipedia and in articles about Harvey Littleton. In Seattle, Nikki held a workshop in etched vitreography - a different method - documented as "Vitreography Test Prints" at www.SeattleArtistLeague.com

[@kenkelly5848]

@@BillRitchie Thanks Bill, I really like your kitchen table method all the same. not too many harsh chemicals

[@BillRitchie]

@@kenkelly5848 Maybe you're referring to "Kitchen Lithography," with aluminum foil and cola - that's not mine. - B

[@kenkelly5848]

@@BillRitchie no what I meant was that your method can all be done in a kitchen on a tabletop. Though now you have me intrigued with something else.

[@digramma_NL]

Hi, Bill! What would you clean the plate margins/edges with after inking?

[@BillRitchie]

It's been 16 years since I made the video, and I don't remember needing to. But it appears I made a swipe or two, and not on the plate but on the hardboard frame around the plate, the chase. This is dry lithography, so maybe there is less chance of fogging or filling. Maybe.

[@digramma_NL]

@BillRitchie Thank you, I will update if I notice anything

[@MannyEspinola-q4t]

Thank you for this video

[@BillRitchie]

You are welcome, MannyEspinola. - Bill

[@briseboy]

I did not know that 13 year old dvd deteriorates! Is this true?

[@BillRitchie]

Oops! My bad. No, the DVD lasts a long, long time. What I meant to say is the original KZbin old, legacy video passed through a couple owners of the company and got fuzzy, it seems to me so I ripped it off my DVD archive disc and remade it with Adobe Premier. Sorry for the confusion.

[@MrPanetela]

thank you

[@BillRitchie]

You are welcome, MrPanetela - any questions, just ask. - Bill

[@MrPanetela]

@@BillRitchie thank you for the offer, i would like some time to mull on over as it has wonderful potential and i can't see why others are not jumping on it. Did something like it in my school day with chisels and fake leather, cheap ink and construction paper, but the results wasn't even close to what i saw in your presentation. and if i have a good year, i might invest in equipment and make a few myself.

[@BillRitchie]

@@MrPanetela Your school-day application suggests you are an entrepreneur - or an artrepreneur if these days finds you watching printmaking videos. Maybe this idea has been exploited yet is because artrepeneurship is a rare thing. Let me know if I can help - I have time to invest. - Bill

[@ArnoWalter]

Thanks for sharing! It should be possible to use Cum Arabic like in the traditional lithography. P.S. I live close to Sonthofen and every other house here had a lithographic printshop in the back. My great grand uncle had one too and I still got his papers from trade school.

[@BillRitchie]

No, gum and stone are part of a chemical interaction whereas silicone and glass are - what? physical? merely a bond, like glue, and the silicone resists oil-based ink. Good observation on your part. - Bill

[@CariMachet]

I love you

[@f0xygem]

You're drawing of "The End of the Emeralda" immediately made me think of "The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald" by Gordon Lightfoot. Every time I hear that song, I have to cry. Since both ships began with "E", perhaps, just to be on the safe side, it's a good idea not to name a ship beginning with the letter "E". Just sayin'. kzbin.info/www/bejne/fKbdhZ59rt2ej6ssi=Bth8OlH0NJ4MYFf1

[@BillRitchie]

That song by Lightfoot always gets me, and as you know it's a true story. Mine is not, but it's my mystery ship, a long (like thirty years and going on) story I wrote a ballad for and in unending variations mostly around my etching presses, the Halfwoods. If you care to read the ballad, it's www.amazon.com/Vladimirs-Song-Sketchbook-voyage-Emeralda/dp/B0DHVH224J. Thanks for catching this detail, fOxygem. - Bill

[@KpxUrz5745]

As an experienced stone lithographer, I do not like what I see here about this process on glass. I will stick with stone.

[@BillRitchie]

It's not for you. I loved stone litho, too, but can't afford it. Do us a favor and try it. It's easy, and see if there's any value in teaching it to kids. Who knows, it may help keep hand-drawn lithography - whether on lithograph limestone, marble, onyz, aluminum or zinc. My goal is to teach young kids and hobbyists appreciation for stone lithography by any means. I'd appreciate your help and suggestions. - Bill

[@NOLAART]

Good grief I don't think so.

[@BillRitchie]

I know.

[@environmentaldataexchange3906]

What an utter waste of time.