Learning about Direct Carbon Sawdust Abrasion Printing

[Grafist@aol.com]

Hi  List Folk,
Lukas Werth wrote:
"John
I have just now visited your website, but the link "photographist" does not
seem to function. However, are you willing to share details about your
printing procedure? I have long been an admirer of what I know Ortiz
Echagüe's pictures, and if there is a chance about learning to make direct
carbon prints, I would go for it.
                                  Lukas"
Lukas and all,
                    "Photographist" is not meant to function on my webb site. 
"Photographist" is an ancient label for an artist working with photography 
and one which I prefer to use as opposed to "photographer" which over the 
past two hundred years has acquired many varied ideas of what a photographer 
does. Altho' I make "straight" prints from enlarged negs I have felt for many 
years that working with Direct Carbon as I wish to do also in conjunction 
with hand coloring with dry pigment pastels suggests a different label which 
I have adopted.  However, in my Encyclopaedia of Photography by Walter E. 
Woodbury published  in 1890 (eighteen ninety) on page 518 it gives 
"Photographist = photographer".......and I thought I had invented the word ! 
! !
       As for learning about Direct Carbon printing; many of this lists 
members have received  free original Direct Carbon prints from me over the 
past couple of years. I hope these prints were appreciated. Making Direct 
Carbon prints is very time consuming altho' the materials, with the exception 
of the good quality paper, are very cheap and easily obtained. The "secrets" 
which enable good results , and are not published anywhere, have cost me many 
hundreds of hours of trial and error and research. If anyone has general 
questions regarding my Direct Carbon abrasion process I would be only too 
pleased to answer  them ON LIST.
       If anyone is really serious about "sharing details"  OFF LIST then 
please contact me by private email. grafist@aol.com   
     Ortiz Echague was a very rich and successful man who, nevertheless, kept 
his methods clear of the public domain as have the Fresson family who are 
still making Direct Carbon prints, today.  Maybe it is regretable, and a loss 
to "Art", that such a process as  their Direct Carbon  process is not shared 
by the  artists of the world.  This book of work by Ortiz Echague will 
hopefully give an impetus to interest from entrepreneurs who are able to see 
opportunities on the horizon. The University of Navarra is selling prints 
from the original negs of Echague, but these are not produced by Direct 
Carbon methods. Many people love the images in Echaque's work. These they can 
buy. Some people love the original process by which they were made and its 
tactile quality. This they could not buy.
                          "Hey Ho. If love were all........."
                     Happy holiday times to everyone.
     http://hometown.aol.co.uk/grafist/myhomepage/artgallery.html
     John Grocott- Photographist and Direct Carbon Printer (London, England)