Recognizing specific elements will help you to easily identify drypoint etchings.
The art of drypointing is much like the other printmaking arts in that there is a matrix, or base material, that receives a mark, an inking process and a run through a printmaking press to transfer the image to the paper. Recognizing these forms of printmaking is very easy. The process for making a drypoint involves drawing with a sharp needle on metals like copper or zinc, or on plastics like polycarbonate or plexiglass. As the needle moves through the surface being marked, a burr, or the scraped part, is created on the material. This burr holds the ink until the printing is done. The end result is a very velvety line that reflects gestural marks rather than the deliberate and formal lines evident in engraving. Drypoints offer more subtle values that can be achieved with etching, and while engraving removes material from a plate to retain lines, a drypoint's burr will flatten the more it is printed. The more the burr flattens, the lighter and less velvety the lines become. Recognizing drypoint prints is an easy process.
Instructions
1. Look at the print and see if you can locate a label affixed to it. The label may tell you the process that was used to create the artwork. Labels can be unreliable, however, as sometimes the work may be confused with an engraving that has more precise line qualities..
2. Examine the lines themselves. Do they seem scratchy or slashed? Are there a lot of quick curves? These qualities indicate that the lines were made quickly and with ease by the artist's needle. Engraving, which is often confused with drypoint, will have a more deliberate and careful line quality..
3. Look for a white void in the center of the lines. This void will be present because the burr holds the majority of the ink during printing. If there are white areas or what appears to be double lines this is a certainty that the print is a drypoint.
