Aquatint

Aquatint means “like a water color”. The delicate tonal areas that are achieved with aquatint can resemble watercolor washes. Aquatint is an intaglio technique that was developed in England in the 1770’s. The medium is related to etching in that it is an acid based process, but concerned with areas of tone rather than line. The copper plate is first prepared with rosin, usually in a powdered form, which is dusted onto an area. The plate is heated from below to make the particles of rosin melt into tiny irregular acid resistant droplets that adhere to the copper. The plate is then immersed in acid that bites away the exposed copper. In order to produce varieties of tonal shades, areas of the rosin may be stopped out or painted over during the process to prevent the acid from further etching those areas. During successive immersions into the acid the areas of copper left exposed to the action of the acid get deeper and wider allowing them to carry more ink creating the desired range of values.