Artwork description:

I was inspired to record the plant's stripy and undulating leaves against the dark shadows. This provided a contrast with the delicate flower heads.

The hostas were drawn from life in the botanic garden and redrawn onto a copper plate which is covered in an acid resistant coating. The plate is then placed in an acid bath and is carefully timed during which the acid bites away the design leaving an incision in which to hold the ink. The copper plate is reworked many times to achieve the right tones often going through ten or more stages before the plate is ready for printing.

The plate is then painstakingly inked up by hand and excess ink is meticulously wiped off with cloths until the design is clear before printing on a traditional printing press. Each print is unique as they are individually printed by hand and in a limited edition of only 25, each one being numbered and signed by the artist.

Materials used:

Etching ink on Somerset Satin paper

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