Artwork description:

5 plate drypoint etching

Edition of 10

Handprinted, signed and numbered

Printed on Hahnemuhle Etching natural 300gms paper

Paper size 78 × 106 cm

'Quiet Spaces' is about finding a moment of stillness—whether in the world or within the mind. For the artist, trees have long offered this kind of refuge: quiet places to sit, walk, and think, where the noise of the world recedes.
The etching reflects this experience. The deliberate white spaces between the five plates create physical pauses in the composition—“quiet spaces” that mirror the emotional intent of the work. These gaps invite viewers to reflect not only on what is shown, but also on what is left open to interpretation.
This piece encourages slow looking and introspection. The viewer’s eye drifts between etched detail and empty space, allowing the imagination to fill in what isn’t explicitly drawn. In this way, Quiet Spaces becomes a meditation on absence, presence, and the spaces in between.

Process
Quiet Spaces is a 5 plate drypoint etching. The technique involves drawing directly onto the surface of a plate with a sharp needle. Wet etching, such as on a copper plate uses acid or other chemicals to etc the surface. This artwork is drypoint, i.e. no use of wet chemical to produce the etch.
The piece consists of five separate plates that were designed to be printed together as one composition. Creating the five plates took approximately eight weeks, working on and off—an intensive and highly detailed process requiring patience and precision. Each mark is made by hand, scratched into the plate surface to hold ink during printing.
The printing process is the same for any intaglio print, wet or dry etch. Once the plates are completed, each one must be inked individually using oil-based intaglio ink. The ink is pushed into the incised lines, and the surface is then carefully wiped, leaving the ink for the most part in the grooves. For a multi-plate print like this, consistency in inking and wiping is essential—variations can affect the visual harmony of the final print. The inking and wiping alone takes around 2–3 hours for each print.
All five plates are then aligned meticulously on a large etching press. They must be evenly spaced and registered perfectly along the top and bottom edges. The paper used is Hahnemuhle Natural Etching paper, which has a beautiful texture and responds well to drypoint. It almost feels as if the paper and the trees in the image are one.
Before printing, the paper is soaked in a large water bath for about 40–45 minutes, then blotted until just damp. It must be laid onto the inked plates in a single careful motion; it cannot be repositioned without smudging the image or disrupting the plate alignment. With such a large sheet, the artist often asks for assistance to ensure perfect placement.
Once in place, the paper is covered with tissue and blankets and run through the press under high pressure. The combined high pressure and damp paper draws the ink from the plates onto the paper. The work is then dried flat between boards for one to two weeks before being signed and numbered.
Each impression takes approximately 3–4 hours to print. Over time, the pressure of the press wears down the plates, softening their lines. After about 10 prints, the plates begin to lose the sharpness and detail necessary for the edition, bringing it to a natural close. Because each print is hand-inked, hand-wiped, and individually pressed, every one is slightly different—one of the great beauties of intaglio printmaking.

Materials used:

Hahnemuhle natural etching paper

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