Re: Masa findings
Wait a minute. You used gelatin to stick the paper to the aluminum?
Why? To prevent shrinkage?
Unless the gelatin got hardened from the dichromate in the gum, and
got enough exposure, I would expect it to dissolve in warm water. But
all this is separate from letting a developed print dry on the
aluminum in order to keep it flat.
Am I missing something?
Sam Wang
On May 7, 2008, at 5:16 PM, Keith Gerling wrote:
Thanks, Sam. I've done that, and it looks good for awhile. But then
the crinkly finish returns. I think it is more a matter of the
varying degree of gum warping the surface. The gelatin pulls
everything together and even things out.
I forgot to mention something regarding this: when I tried to adhere
the rough side to the aluminum with gelatin, it did NOT let loose.
Totally glued the paper to the surface.
On Wed, May 7, 2008 at 3:08 PM, sam wang <stwang@bellsouth.net> wrote:
Keith,
Instead of putting the print faced down on a piece of aluminum, try
laying
it on the aluminum or a piece of glass emulsion side up. Don't
squeegee,
just let it smooth itself on the support. When dry, you can easily
pop it
off.
I dry pt/pd prints made on the even thinner "rice paper" that way.
Don't
need to use the drymount press afterwards. Should work with gum on
Masa.
Sam Wang
On May 7, 2008, at 10:06 AM, Keith Gerling wrote:
I love printing gum on Masa paper, but I have to admit that the
final
result has something to be desired. The paper lacks "character" and
is so thin that the dried print is very warped and crinkly.
Dry-mounting works well, but I would really like to find an
alternative that doesn't have such a permanent effect on the print.
Besides, Masa is so thin and light that a stack of 10 prints weighs
about as much as one mount board.
I've played with a couple of flattening ideas that, while ultimately
unsuccessful, still are kind of interesting. One of them in
particular gives a finished print that is unlike any gum print I
have
ever seen - sort of like a ferrotyped silver gelatin print. I print
on the SMOOTH side, wet the finished dry print, brush on a layer of
gelatin, and squeegee this to a shiny piece of aluminum face
down. As
the gelatin dries, the print shrinks and it pulls itself off of the
aluminum. The result is a very shiny gum print. Unfortunately, it
does very little for the dmax. Still, it is a rather novel look
that
I can see might have some use.
Keith
|