by Crimethinc. Workers' Collective
Available in 284 free installments
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Ught falls evenly where the screen will be. You should lay the screen on a flat surface so
light will only shine on the top of the screen. For bigger screens, you may need to shift screenprmting
the hght every 5 minutes so that all areas will be evenly exposed. The lights should be 457
Exposing the Screen
16.5
Screenprinting 458
between 12" and 18" from the screen. Practice will help you know the best distance for each different exposure.
When the screen is totally dry, bring it out of the darkroom into a work area that is as dimly lit as possible, or turn on a dim Hght in the darkroom. Place the transparency on tibe top side of the screen. You need to put it on reversed, so if you were to look through the screen from the other side, the image would be facing the correct way Try to lay it as square as possible with the frame, so it will be easy to line up when you print. Lay your glass over the transparency, or tape the transparency flat to the screen exactly where you want it.
Place the screen under the lights (figure 16.5). You will need to expose it for 20 to 40 minutes, although if your image has many tiny details you should expose it for a bit less, as light can seep under and expose small Hnes in your design. Once again, practice will help you to determine the length of time for different designs. Try 30 minutes for your first screen. Make sure the comers of the screen get enough Hght, and that the center of the screen doesn't get too much. You can shift the lights around periodically to balance the exposure. During this part of the process, the light will "cook" the exposed emulsion onto the screen, so you will be able to wash off the parts that were hidden from the light by your transparency.
After exposure, turn the lights off. Try to prevent the bottom of the screen from being exposed to direct light. Bring the screen into the bathroom or to a hose and turn the water on cold. Remove the transparency and run the screen under the water. The water by itself should take off most of the unwanted emulsion; the rest you will have to rub off gently with your fingers. Do this on both sides. Hold the screen up to the light and check whether the emulsion has been totally removed in the areas that were blocked (figure 16.6). If any remains, repeat the washing and rubbing process. Dry the screen wdth the fan again. You should let it completely dry?this will take about an hour.
whenever you print, you should do two or three preliminary prints on scrap fabric or paper, to look for flaws?which can sometimes be fixed with tape on the top of the screen?and work the ink through the screen.
Lay the screen on the fabric, top side down. Take a spoon and put a generous amount of ink along the top of the design. It's best to have two people for this step too, one to hold the screen and one to squeegee. Take the squeegee and gently cover the design with a thick layer of ink?^you should not be able to see the design through the ink. Next, apply a good amount of pressure as you push the squeegee over it again. This time you are pushing the ink through thie screen (figure 1S.7). Swipe over the design two or three times with good pressure. You can go in different directions, too. Every design is different?^you will have to experiment to work out the right number of times to squeegee over it.
To remove the screen, hold the fabric down with one hand and gently lifl: the screen with the other. You will be able to determine if you are using too much or too litde ink by looking at the prints. If the prints start to become distorted, you vrill need to wipe off the top of the screen with a rag; if you're using oil-based ink, use a bit of turpentine or thinner to do this. Also, afl:er a lot of prints, say thirty or so, the ink may start to harden, so you might want to take a break to wash and dry the screen.
Printing
16.7
Clean off acrylic ink with the cold spray of the shower or hose. It is important that you clean the screen and tools immediately when using acrylic, as it dries swdftly.
Clean up oil ink with paint thinner or turpentine and a bunch of rags. You can take your time with most oil ink, as it will take quite a while to dry on its own. Be aware, though, that there are air-drying oil inks that dry as quickly as acrylic.
Cleanup
Screenprinting 459
Drying
Heat-Setting
Multi-Color Printing
