Making of polymer photogravures

After watching the polymer photogravures by Deborah Riley, Markus Andersson and David Lanner - and the quite unique expression you achieve using this process - here's a bit more.

I am fortunate to have a nephew, Peter Ragnarsson who is quite an expert in the field. He explains:

"The method was first developed in 1989 by Danish printmaker Eli Ponsaing. His main invention was to realise that polymer plates used for letterpress printing could successfully be used for intaglio printing. In polymer photogravure traditional pigment paper and copper is replaced by light sensitive photopolymer resin plates.

The polymer plates are printed in the same manner as traditional etching plates. The process requires a darkroom, an etching press, and a good UV vacuum frame. If darkroom facilities are not available, it is possible to make positive originals on plastic foils or on glass surfaces."

 polymer photogravure © Peter Ragnarsson

 polymer photogravure © Peter Ragnarsson

If you want to learn how to make polymer photogravures, here is an example of how a workshop could be designed - this is from Peter, but there are of course others out there. To mention one - have a look at the website of Kari Holopainen. - Mr Urbano

Workshop Nattugglan Gotland, Sweden - website : nattugglan.se

The workshop is designed for…
• Anybody who is curious about and want to practice handcrafted printing with old traditions
• Artists who work digitally and are seeking methods for computer to craft printing
• Graphic artists who know about intaglio printing but want to test polymer opportunities and get tips on how their own workshop can be developed to accommodate the technology
• Photographers looking for new opportunities to create images for exhibitions.