A Sharpening Guide for Printmakers

Welcome back my printmaking nerds. Before we get started, I wanted to let you know that a few days ago the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline changed its number to 988. Remember: you are never alone! 🤝

In this week's issue:

• Keeping Your Tools Sharp

• We talk to Emmanuel Tanus

• Yosemite’s Obata Art Weekend!

Let's dive in…

Cartoon of the Week

Grinding & Honing

We all have had experiences of a gouge just not cutting like it used to and having to resort to applying so much pressure that the gouge slips or jams to our finger. The reasoning is often a dull tool. Gouges and knives require constant maintenance to ensure they last you a lifetime.

Despite taking all careful precautions, your tools will eventually need to be brought back to their original razor edge. The majority of the time, honing can bring your gouges back to life. In more rare occasions, you will need to grind your tools back into their original shape.

Honing

If you are not honing your tools at least once a week then you need to get started! Once you start carving a block, it is a good idea to have a strop near you and give the gouges a few strokes on the leather every hour or so. Using a strop is easy and if you are using the Flexcut Slip Strop, then it is almost foolproof.

In order to hone your tools, simply apply some polishing compound on your strop. You can either rub the stick of compounds or break it down to dust and sprinkle it on top. This compound provides an abrasive element that does most of the actual sharpening. Be sure to run your tool through the leather a few times. You will eventually begin to notice the polishing compound turning black. Do not freak out, this is totally normal. It means small pieces of metal are getting stuck on it as you pull the gouge. Make sure that you also hone the inside of the gouge. After a while, you will notice that your gouge will have a mirror finish. When it is, you will know you are ready to go.

Grinding

There will be a time when you have chipped or over-honed your gouge to the point the original shape has been lost. At this point, your options include reshaping your gouge or buying a new one. It is a good idea to invest in a couple stones or sharpening slabs. If you are more comfortable with power tools, you could buy an electric polish wheel or sharpening systems such as the Tormek. These systems offer more speed and convenience but if you don't know how to use them, you will only succeed in severely damaging your gouges.

Grinding requires patience and some skill.

Start with a coarse stone to reshape and repair the most noticeable damages. Then, move on to a medium-grit stone to start creating a sharp bevel. Finish with a fine or extra fine stone to complete the job.

Stones & Plates

As mentioned, in order to grind and reshape, you will need a whetstone or a sharpening plate. Today, there are several options available on the market. They all do the same thing but some require a different approach.

• A whetstone: is a natural stone or ceramic stone used to sharpen. Typically, water is used as a lubricant

• Oil Stones are similar to traditional whetstones but they require oil as lubricant

• Diamond Plates: are steel plates covered in industrial diamond grit. Diamond plates do not require oil or water to be used

• Slip Stones/Arkansas Stone: This is a fine grit stone used to give a final polish. It is often used to remove burr from the inside of tools

I sharpen my tools with diamond plates and slip strop. My diamond plates are coarse (45 micron /325 mesh), fine (25 micron/ 600 mesh), and extra fine (9 micron/ 1200 mesh).

How to Actually Sharpen Your Tools

Starting with the coarse stone, you want to grind the gouge in a way that will maintain the original and angle of your bevel. Press your tool on the stone so that the bevel is flat against the stone, before you start grinding take a look and make sure you have the correct angle. Start sliding your tools on the stone, maintaining the optimal angle until the nick or chip is no longer there. Make sure to always have the same angle as you sharpen or you will damage your gouge.

Once the initial damage has been removed, switch over to a fine grit to start building an edge, finish with an extra fine grit to bring back the razor edge finish. While you sharpen, you will create a tiny ridge, or burr on the inside of your gouge. You can simply remove this with a slipstone or run it through your slip strop several times.

Sharpening a Knife or Chisel

Flat tools are the easiest to sharpen as they are the perfect tool to practice sharpening before venturing into V and U gouges. To sharpen, simply move the blade back and forth in one direction. Always keep the same angle.

Sharpening a V-Gouge

A V-gouge is just like sharpening a flat tool except that both sides of the tools meet at one point. Like a flat tool, find the correct angle and be careful not to create a hook by moving the blade unevenly on your stone. You have to make sure you sharpen each side of the v-gouge evenly. I tend to count 15 strokes on each side before switching.

Sharpening a U-Gouge

U-gouges are really on a league of their own when it comes to sharpening. After you have removed any nicks, you need to move your gouge on the stone side to side, instead of up and down. You rock it, like a sleeping baby. Because U-gouges are curved, you need to make sure you keep rotating the tools as you grind.

It helps if you start with your tool centered with the bevel flat on the stone. Move your gouge sideways and rotate your wrist at the same time to help with the curvature. It will not be easy at first as it does take some practice. Remember to be patient with yourself.

If you need a visual on who to get the job done, then check out this video where I go over the entire process.

Artist Highlight: Emmanuel Tanus

This week on ‘The Inkplate,’ we talk to Emmanuel Tanus, a printmaker based in Puebla, Mexico. He talks to us about how he made his own printing press after a devastating earthquake shut down his studio. We also speak on the plans he has for the future and his advice for beginners.

Read the full English interview here, and Spanish here.

Daniel: What would you recommend to a beginner, to someone who has never done printmaking. Where should they start?

Emmanuel: I think that the most important thing to become a printmaker is to be able to draw. Draw first. In fact I say it because I have a son, and he comes and tells me he wants to make a print. The first thing I ask is that he show me his sketches. If you don't have an idea sketched out, you can't make a print. I always tell him that to make any kind of print you have to know what you are going to do, and for that you have to have drawn it. Preferably several times, make a study of your piece before wasting any material.

In case the person already knows how to draw, the most immediate way would be to start with the linoleum. Take a gouge and just do it. This is the most accessible technique that you can practice, plus you can get some awesome results with very little.

You can find Emmanuel on Instagram & YouTube

Emmanuel also plays in a rock band known as Té de Brujas(Witches’ Tea) . They have this cool song about printmaking which you should most definitely check out!

Obata Art Weekend

Between August 26 – 28, 2022, I will be one of three (3) artists invited to participate in the second annual Obata Art Weekend at Yosemite National Park! I am so honored to have been invited and am excited that I will be the first printmaker participating in the event.

The weekend is a celebration of Japanese-American printmaker, Chihura Obata, and his love of Yosemite. This event is full of art lessons, demos, guided naturalist walks and campsite speakers.

I will be having a live printing demonstration under the watchful eyes of Yosemite’s granite cliffs. It is surreal! During this demo, I will print one linocut and one woodcut all while thoroughly explaining my process and answering any questions.

This event is free to the general public, so check out the Yosemite Conservancy Calendar in the next couple days for the full list and schedule of events!

If you would like to attend, please be aware of the following:

• Reservations are required to enter the park from 6am-4pm. Please plan accordingly. Make your reservations here

• Camping or lodging reservations inside the park count for a peak hours reservation; you do not need an extra reservation to enter.

• Anyone coming to events after 4 pm will not need a peak hours reservation

• More information about reservations can be found on Yosemite National Park’s website.

Other things to consider:

• Parking during the day in Yosemite Valley can be a challenge. Give yourself extra time to make it to events

• Yosemite has a lot of projects, construction and closures this summer. It is good to check the park website before arrival and allow extra time for travel

• August is fire season. Smoky conditions are possible 

• Lodging and camping outside the park can also fill quickly. Plan accordingly.

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Thanks for reading. See ya next week.

-Daniel