Russborough.com: Printing Techniques: Double Tinted Lithograph

Double Tinted Lithograph

By the time Roberts returned from the Holy Land in 1839 lithographers had developed and perfected the tinted chalk-stone lithograph, an advanced technique for printing in colour that created a more realistic representation of a watercolour sketch, by giving the appearance of wash drawings made with individual brush strokes, thereby preserving the original artistic interpretation.

The tinted lithograph was the ideal medium for reproduction of Roberts Holy Land sketches, as Roberts sketching technique in fact followed much the same procedure as that of the tint lithographer.

Roberts invariably began with a line drawing in either graphite (pencil) or chalk sometimes strengthening the line for extra definition. The transparent washes were added to provide tone, finally saturated colour was added to highlight the figures or accessory details.

These steps corresponded to the lithographers chalk-stone line base and two or three monochrome tint stones (for the clouds, water, and earth rock tones), watercolour hand tinting being added to highlight the figures.

Shadows were created in the traditional manner by layering vertical or horizontal parallel strokes, which may be seen on the side of rocks as well as shadowed walls of the prints. The range of tonality being extremely accomplished, by the use of half tones distributed over the landscape and creating contrasts between water and sky and in some cases, accent colour in the clouds or figures.

The well-preserved colour tints evident in the original deluxe first edition suggest that these images have been well cared for and not unduly exposed to light and they remain as a close approximation to Roberts' original watercolours.

In order to achieve this high degree of sophistication of reproduction, Haghe used two levels of colouring in the creation of these lithographs. The first being painted tints to support the black chalk stone lines evident as the cream coloured ground in imitation of a tinted paper.

Lithographic inks tints in ochres, white, greens, blues, browns, purple where applied to a second stone to provide the shadows, tones and accent colours. Watercolour highlights were then added by hand in such areas as the oriental costumes and tent details. The bareness of the landscape created the necessity of adding bold colour to make the images more interesting or exotic.

In addition to colour, Haghe was able to coax out of the stone a wide variety of special effects that, once noticed, delight in their complexity and abstractness. The effect of a scared rock or light falling upon masonry was created by scraping away the sand or cream tint of the stone so that the white of the paper shows through. Other effects were achieved by gumming out certain areas prior to the application of the first tint.

Sky tones were result of overlapping of colours and gently rubbing flannel across the inks immediately prior to printing, but Haghe's tour-de-force was his ability to recreate Roberts' effect of making the distances or backgrounds dissolve, whilst the foregrounds remain crisp.

A litttle known, but interesting, fact about Haghe is that he had a deformed right hand and created these beautiful works with his left hand.

The double tinted chalk-stone lithograph, an advanced technique for printing in colour, developed about 1835, The ability to produce varying tones within a tint stone created a more realistic representation of a watercolour sketch, by giving the appearance of wash drawings made with individual brush strokes, thereby preserving the original artistic interpretation.

The addition of two or three monochrome tint stones for the clouds, water, and earth rock tones to the lithographer's chalk-stone line base, created in the hands of a master printer, images of exceptional quality; for the subtle range of tonality could be extremely accomplished, by the use of half tones distributed over the landscape and creating contrasts between water and sky.

Shadows, for instance, could be created by layering vertical or horizontal parallel strokes. Such prints were usually sold in different editions or formats to purchasers, the less expensive being as issued [SE], or the more expensive with watercolour hand tinting being added to highlight the figures [RSE].

CLOSE WINDOW



	Double Tinted Lithograph By the time Roberts returned from the Holy Land in 1839 lithographers had developed and perfected the tinted chalk-stone lithograph, an advanced technique for printing in colour that created a more realistic representation of a watercolour sketch, by giving the appearance of wash drawings made with individual brush strokes, thereby preserving the original artistic interpretation. The tinted lithograph was the ideal medium for reproduction of Roberts Holy Land sketches, as Roberts sketching technique in fact followed much the same procedure as that of the tint lithographer. Roberts invariably began with a line drawing in either graphite (pencil) or chalk sometimes strengthening the line for extra definition. The transparent washes were added to provide tone, finally saturated colour was added to highlight the figures or accessory details. These steps corresponded to the lithographers chalk-stone line base and two or three monochrome tint stones (for the clouds, water, and earth rock tones), watercolour hand tinting being added to highlight the figures. Shadows were created in the traditional manner by layering vertical or horizontal parallel strokes, which may be seen on the side of rocks as well as shadowed walls of the prints. The range of tonality being extremely accomplished, by the use of half tones distributed over the landscape and creating contrasts between water and sky and in some cases, accent colour in the clouds or figures. The well-preserved colour tints evident in the original deluxe first edition suggest that these images have been well cared for and not unduly exposed to light and they remain as a close approximation to Roberts' original watercolours. In order to achieve this high degree of sophistication of reproduction, Haghe used two levels of colouring in the creation of these lithographs. The first being painted tints to support the black chalk stone lines evident as the cream coloured ground in imitation of a tinted paper. Lithographic inks tints in ochres, white, greens, blues, browns, purple where applied to a second stone to provide the shadows, tones and accent colours. Watercolour highlights were then added by hand in such areas as the oriental costumes and tent details. The bareness of the landscape created the necessity of adding bold colour to make the images more interesting or exotic. In addition to colour, Haghe was able to coax out of the stone a wide variety of special effects that, once noticed, delight in their complexity and abstractness. The effect of a scared rock or light falling upon masonry was created by scraping away the sand or cream tint of the stone so that the white of the paper shows through. Other effects were achieved by gumming out certain areas prior to the application of the first tint. Sky tones were result of overlapping of colours and gently rubbing flannel across the inks immediately prior to printing, but Haghe's tour-de-force was his ability to recreate Roberts' effect of making the distances or backgrounds dissolve, whilst the foregrounds remain crisp. A litttle known, but interesting, fact about Haghe is that he had a deformed right hand and created these beautiful works with his left hand. The double tinted chalk-stone lithograph, an advanced technique for printing in colour, developed about 1835, The ability to produce varying tones within a tint stone created a more realistic representation of a watercolour sketch, by giving the appearance of wash drawings made with individual brush strokes, thereby preserving the original artistic interpretation. The addition of two or three monochrome tint stones for the clouds, water, and earth rock tones to the lithographer's chalk-stone line base, created in the hands of a master printer, images of exceptional quality; for the subtle range of tonality could be extremely accomplished, by the use of half tones distributed over the landscape and creating contrasts between water and sky. Shadows, for instance, could be created by layering vertical or horizontal parallel strokes. Such prints were usually sold in different editions or formats to purchasers, the less expensive being as issued [SE], or the more expensive with watercolour hand tinting being added to highlight the figures [RSE].