U of S | Mailing List Archive | alt-photo-process-l | Re: Artistico Unsized?

Re: Artistico Unsized?



Thanks Judy (and Temi).

Believe me drying space is a real problem to me. I only have one room to do this -> that's my darkroom. My darkroom is small and also includes my computer and printer (which I use on a daily basis) + many sheets sized with gelatin / formalin mixture makes a problem in a such small room - I don't like formalin much -> makes me feel strange even in minute amounts. I don't opt to dry outside too since dust and whatever sticks to paper. Anyway I'm sure that I could find a solution if I'd really want that - the problem is that I don't want to size.

So back to the original question:
- Do you think unsized Artistico is fine for 3 - 4 coats?
- When shrinking, should I definitely use hot water or does room temperature water is fine? (I don't want to use hot water since it will harm the original sizing + I develop only in room temperature water, so what's the point of using hot water?)

Regards,
Loris.

Quoting Judy Seigel <jseigel@panix.com>:

On Fri, 24 Aug 2007, Loris Medici wrote:

Do you think it's enough to pre-shrink the paper (using cold - I mean
room temperature - water, not hot) for making 3-4 layers of gum? (5
layers at max.) Or, should I definitely size it? I hate the idea of
sizing paper, it's messy and slow (I don't have enough drying room for
sizing in batches).

Loris, for "drying room," either stack stretcher frames covered with
screening and separated horizontally (by wood blocks, nails, whatever)
that you can pile up to the ceiling (8 or 12 or however many you want),
or line up parallel clotheslines, say or 4 front to back, separated by
inches so you get room to clip on, say, 20 sheets in a very small
space... in both cases you insure air circulation, hence drying. with a
small electric fan to stir the air (no heating, just wind). Drying
space is the least of the problems.

J.

I always try to use transparent / semi-transparent and non-staining /
semi-staining colors. (Schmincke brand - it's the only artist quality
watercolour paint I can find in tubes here in Istanbul.) I never got
staining on unsized Masa paper - unless few cases where I used an
overpigmented emulsion. Is it a good indicator that they won't stain
with Artistico too?

Yes, I know I should try and see for myself -> but I really want to have
a nice gum print by the end of the week (I don't have Sunday for
printing -> will be at Istanbul Park for the F1 race) and have little
time. So, hearing some experiences would be good.

BTW, I use digital negatives calibrated for 2A+1B traditional cyanotype
(on Masa Paper) and they work fantastically. I decided to never, never
try to calibrate for different colors, dichromate and pigment strengths
with gum because:
a) I don't have neither time nor patience to achieve this.
b) More than one negative per image is too costly to me. (I had to
switch to Pictorico since I use HP 9180 for making my negatives and I'm
short of Pictorico. Plus, it's bloody expensive compared to Ultrafine.)

Thanks in advance,
Loris.