If I have enough time/energy/desire/will-power I shall attempt some discussion of it based on the question marks I have written in the margin. He treats the plates with WD40 to keep them from rusting.I have been reading Hurtado's book The Earliest Christian Artifacts (despite not being an 'ideal' reader as envisaged by the 'implied' author). It also makes the colors more vibrant because of the greenish hue oxidized copper creates. This enables him to do multiple editions from the plates without losing quality. “It’s like a scientific experiment where every variable is constant to get predictable results,” he said.įor durability, Costin faces the plates with a thin layer of steel, which is harder than copper. For example, if it’s raining outside, Costin said the change in the humidity will affect the paper stretch and change the registration. There are also variables to contend with. He must always use the same type of paper for consistency. To compensate for the stretch, the plates get gradually larger with each pass. The paper stretches and expands as it goes through the press under 5,000 pounds of pressure per square inch. He said that he has to use engineering skills to get the registration right, for the images to match up. It’s real important that I calculate the stretch (of the paper) and it stops at the same precise location each pass through the press.” I pull the paper up and replace it with another plate and send it back through. I’ll leave the paper trapped underneath the roller so it won’t move. “I’ll have one plate, send it through the press with one color. This is where the aforementioned automatic stops on the press make the difference. (Costin likens the process to controlled finger painting.) They are then printed on top of each other. The plate then goes into an acid bath that etches the drawing where the copper has been exposed.įor each image, he repeats the process on two to five copper plates, which are then each hand-wiped with a different color. He also draws directly onto the plate with a variety of tools, like the ones that are on display in the exhibition. Then he attaches the vellum to the plate and draws on top of that, using a bridge to keep his hand from touching it, as it could even pick up a fingerprint. He applies soft ground, a kind of high-quality asphalt that is sensitive to pressure, to the copper plate. Then he blows up the scale and redraws it on vellum - a thin parchment paper - and uses that to transfer the drawing directly to the plate. Ĭostin starts with a small watercolor - a crucial step because he has to plot out exactly how he wants it to look given that the plates take so much time to render the final work. Local artist John Costin shows a printing plate of one of his art works at his art studio on March 23, 2023, in Tampa. He even has his own book, “Large Florida Birds,” that will likely serve as an educational and inspirational tool for generations to come. Naturally, the work of John James Audubon is an influence, but Costin has secured his spot in the lineage of the artistic tradition of documenting birds. It has a hand-painted etching of the Carolina parakeet, a bird that is now extinct but once was common in Florida. Those feature etchings of birds that employ similar printmaking techniques that Costin uses.Įxamples that stretch back centuries are on display, including an 1808 edition by Alexander Wilson, who is considered the father of American ornithology. However, because the center isn’t an art gallery, they decided to include some of Costin’s collection of manuscripts on ornithology (the study of birds). īrad Massey, the Saunders Foundation curator of public history, said that Costin had contributed to exhibits at the Tampa Bay History Center in the past, so they wanted to do a show with him. Local artist John Costin talks about his art work inside the "Etched Feathers: A History of the Printed Bird" exhibit at the Tampa Bay History Center on March 23, 2023, in Tampa.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |