Relief Print with Laser Cutter
Heading back to the print room, I vectorised a digital drawing of some trees in Illustrator, which was then exported and sent to a lasercut machine. It then got engraved into a MDF plate, and was ready for printing.This approach would also be interesting to expand further for pattern printmaking. I tried my hand at this with only one plate at my disposition, but it could be more efficient or experimental through the ability to make multiple copies for testing and colour variation.
This method also works with photographs, if they are bitmapped before vectorisation. For comparison’s sake, I used to same image my drypoint plate was made with. As the laser cutter is faster, the image could be more detailed, whereas the time limitaion of the TerraPen made for a more abstract outcome. The prints show evidence of both methods and materials; the drypoint lines are slightly smudged, but also smoother, in comparison to the relief plate’s wooden texture. The combination of new technology and traditional methods has developed new techniques and tools that present new and interesting outcomes, and ways of approaching what is possible through printmaking.