Figurative Nude Collagraph Print

This is a post from Belinda Del Pesco’s Art Blog Belinda Del Pesco.

Nude Figurative Collagraph Print

This nude figurative collagraph print was part of a series of carborundum tests I experimented with over the summer. More on the carborundum test results in a later post. [Subscribe to this blog here.]

Adding Carborundum Grit to a Collagraph Plate

Adding loose sandpaper grit (carborundum) to acrylic varnish on a mat board collagraph plate will create areas of texture to hold intaglio ink, even after wiping the plate.

Carborundum can be sprinkled onto wet acrylic varnish (see photo above), or mixed with the varnish in advance and applied while still wet to the plate.

Ink stays embedded in the mini-crevices around the grit – so those sand-paper-textured hills and valleys will print concentrated, rich inks, even after wiping the plate intaglio style.

Carborundum Gel for Intaglio Printmaking

Instead of using loose carborundum powder mixed by hand in the studio with an acrylic varnish, you can purchase carborundum gel, made by Akua. (

A jar of carborundum gel is *super* convenient to use (I’ve tried so many carborundum methods, and this one is excellent) because there’s no mess with loose carborundum grit everywhere.

Also, the gel to carborundum ratio is consistent with each application, which gives you predictability in your values.

Plus, the gel is viscous enough to keep the grit suspended, and evenly distributed in the base for simple application with a dipped brush or scraper.

That means you can apply the grit to the plate in thin layers to control the darks on your collagraph print. A single layer gives a little grit. Multiple layers will accumulate enough grit to print in rich dark pigments. (I’ll share my test swatches on this process in a future post.)

https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLpicUVTRQqwc6wJz7WG_P9oIZ9CFpEHuh

Related Collagraph Posts

• How to Make a Mat Board Collagraph Plate using Carborundum
• Figurative Linocut Print – Nude Genre Scene
• Printing a Collagraph with Full Color Using a la Poupee
• Collagraph Prints from Mat Board – a Beach Portrait
• Collagraph Print Portraits of People and Pets

If you have any questions or comments about making a figurative collagraph print using carborundum gel, leave me a note in the comments, and I’ll get right back to you.

In the meantime, thanks for stopping by, and I’ll see you in the next post -

Belinda

P.S. Watch Susan Rostow demonstrate the use of carborundum gel to make a mezzotype in this tutorial video.

Art Quote

Talent is insignificant. I know a lot of talented ruins. Beyond talent lie all the usual words: discipline, love, luck, but, most of all, endurance.

~James Baldwin

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