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By Matthew Digby Wyatt
Alois Senefelder invented lithography in 1798.
The process relies on the fact that water and grease repel one another.
Artists were able to draw directly onto a flat stone surface with a greasy
ink which was attracted to the dry stone surface and which, in turn, would
attracted the printing ink, while the background absorbed water. The area of
the surface that was damp repelled the printing ink. This is called a
planographic process. Senefelder used the process to print sheet music. It
was a process that could be used for book illustrations, artist's prints,
packaging, posters etc. Early examples of artists using lithography may be
found in the work of Delacroix and Gericault. Book and
magazine illustration, in the nineteenth century, was mainly remained areas
that continued to be dominated by wood engraving. There are some examples of
lithography being used to produce sumptuous colour illustrations. Among the
most famous of these is The Grammar of Ornament by Owen Jones (1856).
Digby Wyatt, who assisted Jones produced his own ornamental work in
the Art of Illuminating in 1860.
Of all the artists who used
lithography in the nineteenth century there were only a few who could really
exploit the process. Among these were Daumier and Toulouse Lautrec.
The introduction of metal plates, which gradually replaced the stones,
allowed the process to develop further particulary when combined with the
photographic process.
In the twentieth century lithography has
replaced most other printing processes for printing on paper.
Artists have continued to use both stones and
metal plates. In the UK the Curwen Press has been an important centre
for the development of lithography. Many artist, such as John and Paul
Nash and Henry Moore have had there work printed by Curwen.
The press has pioneered the use of the printing of continuous tone images.
Since the printmaking renaissance instigated by the Tamarind institute and
other print workshops many artists, such as Frank Stella, James
Rosenquist, Jasper Johns have used lithography. |