The term intaglio (from the Italian intagliare, meaning ‘to carve or cut into’) covers a multitude of processes using metal plates for traditional techniques, such as engraving, etching, collograph and many other additive techniques, among them Carborundum and epoxy prints. The latter usually use unconventional materials for their plates, such as Aeroply and Plexiglas and are printed as intaglios, as in this instance.
These intaglio monoprints incorporate contour patterns seen from the air captured by LiDAR, an optical remote sensing technology that can measure the change in elevation of the landscape using pulses from laser. The contour patterns are printed from an etched steel plate.
To achieve the intaglio surface (texture) of these prints I produce low relief elements to make the impressions. I do this by applying tile cement to Aeroply, which I expose to a high-powered butane torch to create a surface texture. I also laser cut a three-dimensional low relief wood block of a fossil to create the impression of a fossil within the print. I also employ scraps of textured metal plates found in scrapyards. These fragments enable me to lay down the areas of mottled colour tones that appear in the print and give a sense of atmosphere, weather and season. Sometimes the textures from these found plates also refer to the rocks that I have encountered on my surveys.
Jeremy Gardiner
