Pensive Art - Homage to Zincography
"Disintegration" April 2023 Publication In Global Journal of Spirituality and the Arts
Zincography refers to a printing process that utilized plates of zinc. In 1801, Alois Senefelder noted that zinc could be used as a substitute for limestone in lithographic processes.
Federico Lacelli patented a zincographic printing process in 1834 and by 1842, Eugène-Florent Kaeppelin had perfected methods used to create large polychrome geologic maps.
Disintegration (2022), pays homage to the skilled creators of these etched plates. Raw, exposed edges and a muted palette. In the zincography process, plates were bathed in acid which resulted in the dissolution of salts and an asphalt varnish coat protected the remaining surfaces. A printer would coat the plate with a colored lacquer varnish dipped in benzene.
This would dissolve the varnishes, leaving only a fuchsine varnish in the areas associated with drawn lines, and hygroscopic salts in other places. At that point, the printer would wet the plate. Water localized on the salts. Similar to the practice of lithography, inks applied to these plates would be repelled by the hygroscopic areas, but attracted to fuchsine areas.
See plate example here:
Heraldic Zincography of the Valle du Lac
“Disintegration,” can be seen in the upcoming sixth issue of Pensive. Pensive is a journal dedicated to spirituality and the arts, published by Northeastern University.
To experience Pensive for yourself, simply follow the link below:
https://pensivejournal.com/