How to Make a Color Collagraph Print from Mat Board

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How to make a collagraph print in full color: This video is a demonstration of the set up, carving, sealing, and printing of a mat board collagraph. The painterly inking technique (à la poupée) is shown step by step. You can get the supply lists here: bit.ly/CollagraphSupplyList
If you need help creating titles for your art, check out this effective, speedy online course I've assembled to share tips and tricks harvested from two decades of titling watercolor paintings and printmaking: bit.ly/titlemyart
If you're interested in printing it in both single and multicolor, have a look at this video to see how to make a collagraph in a single color too: kzbin.info/www/bejne/mWrdc2Chnrlrfrc
Visit my Etsy Shop to see work for sale from my studio:
bit.ly/bdelpescoetsy
Materials:
Matboard
amzn.to/WGhqoi
X-Acto knife
amzn.to/1hVnMcm
Liquitex Gloss Medium & Varnish
amzn.to/1cSBYOW
Paint Brushes
amzn.to/1fszmKa
Rubber Gloves
amzn.to/1bNmWvu
spatula for mixing/laying out ink
amzn.to/1sevJsW
Akua Ink starter set
amzn.to/1MXiA0J
Akua MagMix (modifier to thicken the ink)
amzn.to/1MXiQNm
Akua Transparent Base
amzn.to/1MXiLZR
storage jars for leftover ink
amzn.to/1MXiTst
BFK Rives paper
amzn.to/1lmHu0X
Tarlatan cloth
amzn.to/2iL4wBU
Pointed Q-tips
amzn.to/1caphku
Self Healing Cutting Mat
amzn.to/1bNu6j6
Colored Pencil (optional)
amzn.to/1eyaZod
Baren (or use a wooden spoon to hand print)
amzn.to/1hVyFef
Carborundum (#120)
bit.ly/Mwmztg
Takach etching press
www.takachpress.com
#collagraph #collograph #printmaking
You can find me here:
www.belindadelpesco.com
www.patreon.com/bdelpesco
www.etsy.com/shop/bdelpesco
belinda.delpesco/
bdelpesco
bdelpesco
www.pinterest.com/bdelpesco/
#printmaking #art #howto #tutorial
(Note: This video includes affiliate links, which costs nothing to you, but helps keep my art supplies stocked. Thanks for supporting my art studio so I can share my experiments here with you!)

[@TheMarkEH]

Great demonstration. Fabulous print. Thank you.

[@bdelpesco]

Hi Mark! Thanks for the feedback… I hope you have splendid printmaking adventures!

[@KayJohnsonArt]

Very helpful video. I love your press.

[@bdelpesco]

Hi ILT, thanks for the feedback. I love my press too. My most favorite art supply, ever. ☺️

[@carlsutton8591]

Thanks Belinda this is the best and clearest explanation of the technique I have seen and I can't wait to have a go.

[@bdelpesco]

Hi Carl, I'm so glad it was helpful! I really appreciate your feedback. Happy printmaking to you!

[@purity2706]

@@bdelpesco Your tutorials are great!! Please post some newer examples to show us how your process has developed and your art has grown!!

[@bdelpesco]

Hi Jamie! Thanks very much for your vote of confidence! I’m editing new footage now, so I’ll be back soonly! 🧑🏻‍🎨🎨👌🏽

[@williamcorbett7810]

wow this turned out great love the effects

[@bdelpesco]

Thanks, William! Happy printing!

[@DonBryantPhotography]

Lovely and fascinating.

[@bdelpesco]

Hi Don! Thanks for the feedback and the compliment. 🤓

[@acuregen]

Wow just loved that!!!! Fantastic video thank you

[@bdelpesco]

Hi Amanda Shayle ! Thanks for your feedback - I hope you’re inspired to give collagraph printing a go! 🤓

[@christinemacmacleod4880]

Your videos are excellent. Clear, easy to follow and I can hardly wait to try this. Your work is beautiful. Thank you.

[@bdelpesco]

Thanks so much 😊 I really appreciate your feedback, and I hope the material presented inspires a whole new adventure in printmaking!

[@susanbozarth1845]

Belinda, this is so fascinating that you can produce such a beautiful piece by using this seemingly simple process. You are truly talented and I admire that very much.

[@bdelpesco]

Wow, Susan, you are the bees knees! Thanks for this note. I've got a bear hug stored in my arms with your name on it. xoxo

[@rosemarysmith3059]

Thanks for the fabulous demos

[@bdelpesco]

Thanks, Rosemary! I hope they're helpful!

[@alexviera461]

😀

[@bdelpesco]

@@alexviera461 😉

[@alexviera461]

@@bdelpesco 😀

[@catherinezarrillo649]

Hello Belinda, I thoroughly enjoyed your tutorial on Collagraph. It was easy to follow, all important points covered, and you spoke clearly and slowly. You mentioned that a paper with a high cotton content is used for this process. Would you please let me know the correct paper and where to purchase it. Thank you again for your wonderful tutorials. I am now a follower! Thank you, Catherine Z

[@bdelpesco]

Hello Catherine! Thanks so much for your gracious feedback.... I really appreciate it. All supplies used in each of my videos are listed beneath the video window in the Show More section, with links, so you can see what they look like. For collagraphs, I like BFK Rives (amzn.to/3BpdlL8), Arches Cover (amzn.to/3DfuR5V) and Arnhem 1618 (amzn.to/3B5mO94).

[@stinar37]

Fabulous. I was under impression collographs are collages (different materials textures affixed to same board, while Linocuts consist of images carved into a board.

[@bdelpesco]

Hi Christina - you are right! Collagraph prints are often made from all sorts of textured layers adhered to a plate. But there are plenty of ways to make them, and the variations are full of creative adventure. Collagraphs can be printed relief style (from the raised area of the plate) or intaglio style (from the recessed areas on the plate) or both at the same time after strategic ink application and wiping/top rolling. Linocuts are relief prints: printed from the upper parts of a block - or the material that wasn’t carved away. Are you going to make one?

[@alejandravillarrealavila8861]

Beautiful piece. I love how calm you are and concise to explain everything. Thank you so much!

[@bdelpesco]

Thank you for the nice compliment, Alejandra! I hope your work continues to evolve in exactly the direction you're aiming for!

[@32farmer]

Thankyou for such informative videos. I recently bought a press and am exploring the medium. Its exciting to see how much variation one can explore.I have "rescued" one of my first prints by colouring over with watercolour pencils and goache due to your teaching.I now feel hope I can make some respectable artwork.Joan Hurtado

[@bdelpesco]

Hi Joan, I'm so glad you found the tutorial useful! I hope you have a wonderful experience with your new press - congratulations on that acquisition! Feel free to come back here with any questions. Happy printmaking to you.

[@noelsandino6907]

Thanks for sharing Belinda! I love your thorough explanations. Your work is beautiful too!!

[@bdelpesco]

Hi Noel, Thanks so much for stopping by. I appreciate your encouragement, and I'm glad my long-winded explanations appear thorough!! :)

[@lveenstra877]

Thanks so much Belinda for all your informative videos! I am new to printmaking and I am trying to find my way through all the information. Your videos are so helpful and inspiring! Thanks for taking the time to make them.

[@bdelpesco]

Hi +lo - Thank YOU for taking the time to leave a nice comment! :)

[@maryliztippin-moody6856]

Such a fun accessible process and I so admire your encouraging attitude! I cannot wait to try this - just have to get the right supplies. THANK YOU!

[@bdelpesco]

Hi Mary, Thanks for stopping by and leaving such nice feedback! I hope you have a superb experience when your art supplies arrive and you dive into collagraphs. They are addictively fun! Keep us posted!

[@AvahHam]

WOW…great job! Looks like fun.

[@bdelpesco]

Thanks, Avah! I hope we get to dine/hang-out soon! xoxoxoxo

[@beverlybauer3820]

Totally love your series of matboard collagraph videos, I am starting my own thanks to all of your great information. Thank you!!!

[@bdelpesco]

Thanks for the feedback - I really appreciate it! And lots if creative luck to you for an exciting and rewarding experience with your printmaking journey! Keep us posted... :)

[@bernadetteborcher739]

Very helpful!

[@bdelpesco]

Glad it was helpful! Happy printing!

[@SharonLynnWilliams]

Hi Belinda: I have been following your work for a long time, as I love mono printing and linocut. I learned how to do printmaking at a summer class I took and have done some hand mono printing, but mostly abstract patterning which I would go into afterwards with coloured pencil to develop the image - great fun and I love working on paper. Than you so much for shaing your process with us on your blog posts and now on these videos. Could you please do a slower one on the materials and how you chose which process you will use

[@bdelpesco]

Hi Sharon, Thanks so much for your compliments. Your watercolors are fabulous, and I'm flattered that you like my work. :) I'd be happy to go into more details on materials and matching the image & printmaking process. Each video has a list of all materials (with links) in the comments section, and if you're query is related to collagraphs in particular, this video is a little slower paced on description of the materials: bit.ly/1gcTNtX I've got a few hand-printed collagraph videos in the works, so they'll be up soon. Thanks again! Belnda

[@jennyhughes4474]

Thank you for this, you make it look so easy but I know I wouldn't be able to do what you do - your results are beautiful!

[@bdelpesco]

Thanks, Jenny! Your results will be lovely with just a bit of practice. Keep printing! 🤓

[@bixnash1]

Not the first time I've watched this. The print is stunningly beautiful. Something I really must experiment more with. Is there somewhere where we can see it in more detail? Bx

[@bdelpesco]

Hi Bixxy, Thank you for that very kind compliment. I hope you do experiment with it more... it's great fun, and loaded with opportunities for testing new materials and methods that result in surprise textures and impressions. You might be able to see more detail on the accompanying blog post: www.belindadelpesco.com/collagraph-sink-old-mill-inn.html/. Let me know if you have any questions!

[@lindsaykroonenberg6417]

Hi Belinda I want to be a artist like you so I think you're going to be my art teacher my name is Cecilia and my sister is going to join with you ❤️

[@bdelpesco]

Hello Lindsay (and Cecilia)! You can absolutely be an artist, and I’m happy to read that you picked such a rewarding goal! Make a lot of art!

[@janislf7584]

Hi Belinda, I've always enjoyed your instructional videos for collagraphs. I started using Akua inks a few years ago and although I love the colour range and consistency, I find the prints take forever to dry. What brand of inks do you use, if I may ask.

[@bdelpesco]

Hi Janis LF, I also use akua- and I’m happy with their pigment load and color options. Mine dry overnight, so I’ve never had issue, unless I use white ink. Are you mixing colors with white to lighten them?

[@bdelpesco]

Janis LF another thought: Akua inks require absorption in order to dry, so if you’re using a paper with a sizing barrier, or synthetic paper (vs cotton), that may explain the long drying time. Which paper did you print on?

[@fionamorris9634]

Gorgeous.❤️❤️❤️

[@bdelpesco]

Thanks, Fiona! I hope you make one soon!

[@MonaTurnbull]

love this print berlinda!!!!

[@bdelpesco]

Thank you, Mona! Happy art-making to you! :)

[@MelanieHam]

Love it!!

[@bdelpesco]

Thanks for the share, Melanie! :) xoxo

[@leslyschannel3915]

Hello Belinda, Another terrific video with beautiful painterly technique and your truly creative eye. I notice you use water-based inks, I normally use oil-based ink, as I prefer the long open time. Please can you say what is the advantage of the ink you use and how long the "open" time is? I am UK based and unfamiliar with these inks. Thank you.

[@bdelpesco]

Hi Lesly - this is one of the things I *love* about sharing this stuff online. Discovery! I'm using Akua Intaglio inks, and they're soy-based, richly pigmented and they clean up with water. I've left them out for DAYS with no trouble. I was once interrupted while working on a monotype - with the ink on a perspex plate for weeks, and they just thickened a little, but printed beautifully. (I was so amazed, I took photos and blogged about it here: bit.ly/1gVYEge) They dry once they're printed to paper, but other than a little thickening, I've not had any of their inks dry on the plate, the brayer or my desk after I mixed piles of colors. There's a link to them in the comments. I order them from amazon and from takachpress.com. If you give them a try, let us know what you think. I adore them!

[@suzalasuzala1135]

as a veteran artist that is new to printing, I am loving your videos. I recently did a collograph on a cereal box that I painted with LiquitexGloss medium. I inked it with speedball tube ink a credit card and a dauber and wiped most of it off with a tarlatan and newspaper. My paper was wet and I used a Fome press. The results were that the ink went on either side of the etching marks I had made making two thin lines with white in between. almost as if the ink had been repelled in the carved out areas. What am I doing wrong? I tried adjusting the press, using mushier blankets and thinner papers. Any thoughts? thank in advance. Keep these coming, I am "eating them up"!

[@bdelpesco]

Hi Suzala - I have a couple of questions before I can take a guess at the trouble. What Speedball tube ink are you using? Relief ink, or intaglio ink? And is it water based or oil? Also which paper (brand, weight). Are you laying the plate face up on the press bed, with your paper on top, then a layer of newsprint to protect your blankets, and then the traditional layers of three felt & wool blankets? Are you raising that thin cereal box plate up to meet the cylinder of the press with a sheet or two of same size mat board?

[@suzalasuzala1135]

@@bdelpesco Thank you so much for your generosity in taking the time to respond. While I have Akua inks, I wanted to finish this speedball tube up. It just says for Block Printing on it, and it is waterbased. I got the printer from a good friend, who now has big big presses and she said that the FOME blanket is very stiff and thick and when it ( with some newspaper) didn't work, she suggested trying something softer and squishier so I used two layers of polar fleece I had around, then one layer instead. The plate is face up. I did not raise it up, but I am getting plate marks. For paper I tried Reeves BFK, 60 lb sketch paper and rice paper. To no avail...

[@bdelpesco]

Hi Suzala, this is a best guess diagnosis. If your incised lines printed white (free of ink), and your flat, relief areas transferred some nice plate tone with darker hues near your edges, indicating good contact between plate and paper, there could be two issues. The first thing I’d examine is your ink. Speedball relief ink is okay to print from a linocut or a woodcut, but it dries super fast, and it isn’t meant to transfer from recessed wells on your plate. (It also re-wets, so if you wanted to paint your collagraph with watercolor, you might get a little muddy. But that’s a separate issue.). Do you have some Intaglio ink to try? The second possibility is that your inked channels are too deep and/or wide. In they’re cut deep, your paper will have to “hammock” and stretch deeeeeep down into that gully to touch the ink. Often, when the incised lines print clean, it means the paper never made contact with the ink. It’s also possible that the ink dried before your paper went in to make contact. If you can get your hands on some intaglio ink, and try that plate again, I bet you’ll get some contact between paper and ink, and you’ll see some line work.

[@suzalasuzala1135]

@@bdelpesco thanx so much for your thoughts on this! much appreciated.

[@olivedancer9111]

thank you for your generous sharing.

[@bdelpesco]

Thanks, Olive Dancer. If you give this process a go, and you have any questions, feel free to come back and leave them here. :)

[@daisy3690]

informative and lovely...a wonderful combo Thank you for sharing. bye

[@bdelpesco]

daisy3690 Thank you, kindly dear. I appreciate your feedback. :)

[@carolb3084]

Thanks, Belinda! I love your work, and am interested in trying the mat board collagraph technique, but with more of a combination of the painterly style with color as you've done here, but with more line work as you did in the house portrait. Is it possible to do both at the same time, or do they need to be inked separately and printed separately? Lastly, why do you use the thickener for your ink? Is it easier to skip the thickener if you're printing without a press? I'd think it'd be harder to get the ink out from the grooves if it's thicker, no? Thanks for your help!

[@bdelpesco]

Hi +Lucinda G - Thanks for the compliments. :) Linear parts of your print will be more visible by wiping ink off the surface of the plate on either side of your line work, so your incised areas would be the only ink reservoirs. A painterly passage simply leaves your inks - in various thin-to-thick application - anywhere on your plate for transfer to the paper. You have control over that - and it will make more sense once you get started. Without the thickener on this particular ink, the pigment would clear away from the grooves in the wiping process and leave very little behind.The ink sticks to paper very well, as long as the paper is flexible enough in the transfer process to dip down into the line work as you hand rub the back of it. Try it without the thickener and see what you think. Let us know what happens so we can cheer you on. :)

[@fortufor]

Hermosa obra. Lamentablemente no se inglés, pero verlo fue muy interesante. Gracias!!!

[@bdelpesco]

Monica, gracias por tomarse el tiempo para hacerme saber que disfrutó del video, incluso con las palabras. 🌷

[@rojodosh]

lovely. Very helpful.

[@bdelpesco]

Thanks for the feedback, rojodosh! :) Happy inking!

[@kdtoyou]

Wonderful instruction video and print! Will subscribe and see more on your channel. Thanks for sharing!

[@bdelpesco]

Thanks for the compliment, @kdtoyou! Let me know if there are specific topics you're looking for tutorials on.

[@bernadetteborcher739]

Thank you!

[@bdelpesco]

You’re welcome, Bernadette! Have fun experimenting!

[@samarendrabehera6880]

Superb madam

[@bdelpesco]

Thank you, Samarendra... :)

[@lesleytreloarart]

What exactly do you mean by 'medium' when mixing the grit for deeper tonal range is it the same substance you used for sealing the plate in the beginning? thanks

[@bdelpesco]

Hi Lesley - Yes, the medium is Liquitex GLOSS Medium and Varnish amzn.to/2Yq9wmt and you seal your plate, adhere other elements to the plate, and mix ratios of carborundum onto the plate with the same medium. Have a ton of fun with it!

[@meowmeower1467]

You're super awesome! :)

[@bdelpesco]

Wow, +meow meower - so are you! Thanks! :)

[@beckerabstracts]

What is the difference between an etching press and a lithograph press? I was looking at the ones on your links.

[@bdelpesco]

Hi Bridget Becker - a litho press is used to print from stones, and the pressure head is a scraper bar, like this: www.takachpress.com/lithtbl/index.htm#5 The etching press is used to print from intaglio & relief plates with a very heavy pressure drum (like a big rolling pin) like this: www.takachpress.com/etchtbl/index.htm. I have the Takach table-top etching press with the 7.5 inch pressure drum. And I *love* it.

[@colleen2211]

great instruction where can I buy Tarleton starched cheesecloth please thanks colleen c

[@bdelpesco]

Hello Colleen, you'll find links to all materials on every video in the 'show more' section under the video window. Happy printing! :)

[@randicommand2453]

The sound in the demonstration area is much lower than the intro and outro. I’ve noticed this in other of your videos. Turning it up in the middle part makes it awfully LOUD when the outro plays.....

[@bdelpesco]

I'm so sorry, Randi. I promise it's not deliberate, and I'm learning as I go. Audio particulars between camera, microphone and computer are strange and complex technologies to my artist's brain. There is indeed a learning curve. I'm sorry.

[@kingyo9783]

😍

[@bdelpesco]

🌻