the beautiful art of block printing employs wooden or metal blocks to print designs and patterns on...

8/8/2019 The Beautiful Art of Block Printing Employs Wooden or Metal Blocks to Print Designs and Patterns on Fabric

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The beautiful art of block Printing employs wooden or metal blocks to print designs and patterns onfabric, by hand. What makes block Printing unique is that the design has to be created by the artistbefore the Printing begins. It is carved onto the block by hand. The colors used are normallyvegetable dyes. Mineral and non-toxic chemical dyes are also used. The carved block is dipped intothe required color, and then it is used to design the fabric.

The Origin of Block Printing

Excavations of dyed and printed fabric, have traced the origin of block Printing to

seventeenth century Gujarat. Today, block Printing is practiced in numerous centers all aroundIndia. Techniques of Block Printing

There are a number of processes of block Printing:

Direct Block Printing

In this technique, the cotton or silk cloth is first bleached. Then the fabric is dyed, unless a lightbackground is desired. Thereafter, the fabric is printed using carved blocks, first the outline blocks,then the ones to fill color.

In the resist technique, areas that are to be protected from the dye are covered with a mixture of clay

and resin. The dyed fabric is then washed. The dye spreads into the protected areas through cracks,producing a rippled effect. Block prints are then used to create further designs.

Discharge Printing

In this technique, the fabric is dyed. Then, a chemical is used to remove the dye from the portions thatare to have designs in a different color. These portions are then treated, so they may be re-colored.

For urgent assistance :[email protected] Block Printing in Gujarat

In Gujarat, this form of hand Printing has been practiced and perpetuated by the Paithapur families.They make intricate blocks, and print their textiles using the mud resist-Printing method. These printsare called Sodagiri(trader) prints.

In Kutch, the popular patterns are black and red designs of birds, animals, and dancing girls. Thesaris of Ahmedabad and Baroda have large mango patterns against a red or blue background.

The other well known centers for block Printing in Gujarat are Bhavnagar, Vasna, Rajkot, Jamnagar,

Jetpur and Porbandar.

Block Printing in Rajasthan

From Gujarat, the art of block Printing spread to Rajasthan. Here colorful prints of birds, animals,human figures, gods and goddesses are popular. The important centers for this form of hand Printingare Jaipur, Bangru, Sanganer, Pali and Barmer.

Sanganer is famous for its Calico printed bed covers, quilts and saris. In Calico Printing, the outlinesare first printed, and then the color is filled in. Bold patterns and colors are popular. They are printedrepeatedly in diagonal rows.Doo RookhiPrinting is also famous here. In this technique, artists printon both sides of the cloth.

Bagru is famous for its Syahi-Begarprints and Dabu prints. The former are designs in a combinationof black and yellow ochre or cream. The latter are prints in which portions are hidden from the dye by


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applying a resist paste.

Barmer is known for its prints of red chilies with blue-black outlines, surrounded by flower-laden trees.The other famous prints are of horses, camels, peacocks and lions,called Sikarand Shekahawatprints.

Block Printing in Punjab

The block Printing from Punjab is not as famous as its Rajasthani counterpart, but is still merit worthy.It was the art of a group of textile workers called Chhimba . The designs were usually floral and

geometrical. Today, traditional designs have been displaced, and vegetable dyes have been replacedby chemical ones. The colors are light and pastel. The motifs are usually mangoes, peacocks andnets.

Block Printings of Andhra Pradesh

In Andhra Pradesh, the block Printing method is applied in the creation of the exquisite KalamkariPrinting . The two major centers of Kalamkari art are Sri Kalahasti and Masulipatnam.

Block Printing is also practiced in Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Maharashtra.

Block printing is a form of dying and coloring a fabric using wooden blocks. India is one of the

largest manufacturers and exporters of block printed fabric in the world. Block printing craftsmen

use wooden or metal blocks to create beautiful designs; sometimes, linoleumblocks are alsoused.

Techniques of Block Printing in India

Direct Printing : In this technique, the cotton or silk cloth is first bleached. Then the fabric isdyed, unless a light background is desired. Thereafter, the fabric is printed using carved blocks,first the outline blocks, then the ones to fill color.

Resist Printing : In the resist technique, areas that are to be protected from the dye are

covered with a mixture of clay and resin. The dyed fabric is then washed. The dye spreads into theprotected areas through cracks, producing a rippled effect. Block prints are then used to createfurther designs.

Discharge Printing : In this technique, the fabric is dyed. Then, a chemical is used to removethe dye from the portions that are to have designs in a different color. These portions are thentreated, so they may be re-colored.

A Close Look at the Process of Block Printing in India

The fabric to be printed is first washed free of starch.

If tie-dyeing is required, this is done before the printing process. Incase fabric is dyed, it iswashed thereafter, to remove excess color. It is dried in the sun.

The fabric is then stretched over the printing table and secured with pins.

Color is mixed separately and kept ready. So are the blocks. The blocks are made of teak wood

and hand-carved. They are soaked in oil for 10-15 days to soften the timber.

The color is kept in a tray which rests on another tray that contains a liquid made of glue andpigment binder. This gives the color a soft base and permits even spreading of color on the block.


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When printing begins, the color is first evened out in the tray. Then the block is dipped in theoutline color.

The block is pressed down hard on the fabric, to make a clear impression. Thereafter, other

blocks are used to fill in color.

Once the fabric is printed, it is dried in the sun. It is then rolled in newspaper to prevent the

fabric layers from sticking to each other.

The fabric is then steamed.

Thereafter, it is washed in water and dried in the sun.

Ironing is the last stage.

A block print is a piece of printed material made using the block printing technique. In block printing,the printer carves the design to be printed into a solid block, much like a stamp. The design caninclude text or be purely visual, and theblock can be applied to paper or textiles. Block printing is anancient printing technique, and numerous examples of historical block prints can be found in the

historical records of Europe and Asia.

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The origins of the block print can be found in the round cylinder seals used by the Mesopotamians.These seals are the first known examples of a fixed design on an element which is designed to berolled over another element, thus transferring the design. Cylinder seals were made from carvedstone or clay, but printers started to switch to wood because it was easy to handle and carve.

Woodblock prints, also called woodcuts, dominated the nascent publishing industry for hundreds ofyears. The engraving is a descendant of the block print, although the technique for creating

theblock with which to print is different.

Many famous artists, such as Hiroshige, worked in the block print medium. Block prints were alsoused to produce books and other printed material. Printers quickly learned how to create multi-colored block prints, using blocks with different designs on them which could be used to overlay color.A complex block for printing could take weeks to carve to perfection, and if there was an error, theentire block would need to be scrapped. Carvers needed to have an excellent design sense, asthe block prints in reverse, meaning that the image needs to be carved in reserve so that it will printthe right way. A well-made block print is a stunning work of art, representing hours of labor and asuperb visual sense.

Several techniques can be used to create a block print. First, the block is inked with the assistance of

a roller. The carved areas will show up as white in the final product, while the raised portions leftbehind will print. The block can be used to stamp paper, the printer can place paper on the block andrub it, or the block can be mounted in a printing press. Each technique will produce a block print of aslightly different style, and if the block is well cared for, it can be used again and again.

Screen-printingFrom Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia


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Part of the series on the

History of printing

Woodblock printing 200

Movable type 1040

Printing press 1454

Lithography 1796

Laser printing 1969

Thermal printing circa 1990

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host images tend to faintly

outline theopenareasofpreviousstencils, hence thename. Theyare theresult of inkresidue

trapped in themesh, often in theknucklesof themesh, thosepointswhere threadscross.[16]

ihile thepublic thinksofgarments inconjunctionwithscreenprinting, the techni

eue isusedon tens

of thousandsof items, decals, clockandwatch faces, balloonsandmanymoreproducts. The

technieuehasevenbeenadapted formoreadvanceduses,suchas layingdownconductorsand

resistors inmulti-layercircuitsusing thinceramic layersas thesubstrate.

[edit]Stenciling techni ues

A macrophotoofascreenprint withaphotographicallyproducedstencil. The inkwill beprintedwhere thestencil does

not cover thesubstrate.

Thereareseveral ways tocreateastencil forscreenprinting. Anearlymethodwas tocreate it by

hand in thedesiredshape, eitherbycutting thedesign fromanon-porousmaterial andattaching it to

thebottomof thescreen, orbypaintinganegative imagedirectlyon thescreenwitha fillermaterial

whichbecame impermeablewhen it dried.poramorepainterly techni

eue, theartist wouldchoose to

paint the imagewithdrawing fluid, wait forthe image todry, and thencoattheentirescreenwith

screen filler. Afterthe fillerhaddried, waterwasused tosprayout thescreen, andonly theareas that

werepaintedby thedrawing fluidwouldwashaway, leavingastencil around it. Thisprocessenabled

theartist to incorporate theirhand into theprocess, tostay true to theirdrawing.


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A method that has increased in popularity over the past 70 years is thephoto emulsiontechnique:

q. The original image is created on a transparent overlay such as acetate or tracing paper. The

image may be drawn or painted directly on the overlay,photocopied, or printed with an inkjet

or laser printer, as long as the areas to be inked are opaque. A black-and-white positive may

also be used (projected on to the screen). However, unlike traditional platemaking, these

screens are normally exposed by using film positives.

2. A screen must then be selected. There are several different mesh counts that can be used

depending on the detail of the design being printed.r

nce a screen is selected, the screen

must be coated with emulsion and let to dry in the dark.r

nce dry, the screen is ready to be

burned/exposed.

3. The overlay is placed over the emulsion-coated screen, and then exposed with a light source

containing ultraviolet light in the 350-420 nanometer spectrum. The UV light passes through

the clear areas and create a polymeris

ation (hardening) of the emulsion.

4. The screen is washed off thoroughly. The areas of emulsion that were not exposed to light

dissolve and wash away, leaving a negative stencil of the image on the mesh.

Photographic screens can reproduce images with a high level of detail, and can be reused for tens of

thousands of copies. The ease of producing transparent overlays from any black-and-white image

makes this the most convenient method for artists who are not familiar with other printmaking

techniques. Artists can obtain screens, frames, emulsion, and lights separately; there are also

preassembled kits, which are especially popular for printing small items such as greeting cards.

Another advantage of screenprinting is that large quantities can be produced rapidly with new

automatic presses, up to q 800 shirts in q hour.[t

7]The current speed loading record is q 805 shirts

printed in one hour, documented onq8 February 2005. Maddie Sikorski of the New Buffalo Shirt

Factory in Clarence, New York (USA) set this record at the Image Wear Expo inr

rlando, Florida,

USA, using aq2-colour M&R Formula Press and an M&R Passport Automatic Textile Unloader. The

world speed record represents a speed that is over four times the typical average speed for manual

loading of shirts for automated screen printing.[

t

5]

A flatbed screen printer is a type of printing press.

"Flatbed" because the pice that presses on to the paper is flat, as opposed to a "rotary" press

which is a revolving cylinder where the paper passes over at high speed.

the beautiful art of block printing employs wooden or metal blocks to print designs and patterns on...

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