Re: Paper for Oil Painting

[Judy Seigel <jseigel@panix.com>]

I could swear someone asked about oil printing yesterday (I think the
above subject line is a typo)... Cleaning up the file (trying to delete
stuff, tho that's a sure jinx - the moment I do that I need it urgently) I
came across this from March '99. It may answer the question...

J.

 On Thu, 25 Mar 1999 arkins@banet.net wrote:

> Dave:
>
> I have been doing oil printing, and using Pollmeier's formula, which is
> excellent.   I add the starch (I use potato, but corn will do as well)n
> uncooked, by mixing it with a little water and adding it to the hot gelatin at
> the same time as I'm adding the alum/acetic acid solution.  The hardener
> really helps to avoid blistering and having the gelatin detach from the paper
> base.  Remember that the inking process involves a lot of abrasion of the
> gelatin by the brush, so a little hardening makes the gelatin sufficiently
> tough to resist tearing when being pounded by a bromoil brush.  The starch is
> essential because it adds "tooth" to the gelatine surface which allows the ink
> to adhere better.  (In my opinion, it is an essential additive. . .)
>
> With regard to coating, soak the  paper in hot water first and squeegee on to
> plexi and surface dry with a paper towel.  Use a narrow-spouted pouring
> implement (I use an olive oil dispenser)  with a long spout, which will allow
> you to pour the hot gelatin really near the paper surface.  (This avoids air
> bubbles, a real problem with coating gelatine emulsions.)  "Tease" the
> gelatine across the paper surface with a rubber hair comb, working quickly
> before the gelatine sets. After about 10 minutes, remove the coated paper from
> the plexi and hang up to dry, using clips on each corner to minimize curling
> as the coated paper dries.
>
>     Another anti-bubble aid is to strain the gelatin through a woman's nylon
> stocking as you pour it from the container on to the paper.   Also, using
> boiled (and subsequently cooled) water eliminates dissolved oxygen from the
> water used to prepare the gelatin emulsion, which is another desirable
> techinique to employ.
>
>     Oil printing is fabulous, if frustrating at times.   When you do your
> pre-inking soak, try 1/2 hour at 68 deg. Fahrenheit.  Temperatures much higher
> than 75 deg. F. are conducive to blistering.
>
> keep me advised on your progress!
>
>
>
> Regards
> Joe Arkins
> NY, NY
>
> FotoDave@aol.com wrote:
>
> > Hi, I am searching through my old files and found this formula (from Klaus
> > Pollmeier) for oil printing:
> >
> >      - Prepare 140 ml of a 15% gelatin (Bloom Index >200) solution
> >      - add 14 ml of a 15% potato starch (dextrine) solution
> >      - while stirring, slowly add 14 ml of a hardener, made by mixing 6 ml
> >         of a 6% sol. of acetic acid and 8 ml of a 1% sol. of chrome alum.
> >
> > I would like to try oil printing but have some questions:
> >
> > Will food gelatin work? How much should I use?
> >
> > Can corn starch be substituted in the above formula? Also, I assume it is
> > uncooked starch (rather than cooking into paste). Is this true?
> >
> > Why does the gelatin need to be hardened? How can hardened gelatin work?
> >
> > Thanks in advance for any suggestion / comment.
> >
> > Dave S
>
>
>