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44:, is produced by deliberately or accidentally not wiping all the ink off the surface of the printing plate, so that parts of the image have a light tone from the film of ink left. Tone in printmaking meaning areas of continuous colour, as opposed to the linear marks made by an engraved or drawn line. The technique can be used with all the
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Especially if heavy, it also tends to reproduce badly in book illustrations, smothering detail, and is often avoided for that reason. A note at the start of the most widely available book reproducing all
Rembrandt's prints explains that, where possible, impressions without surface tone were selected for this reason.
206:, they made the "disastrous" choice to make considerable use of surface tone, which is not seen in the few early impressions made by Goya himself. Instead of the "luminosity and delicacy" of these, the later editions "provide a dulled and distorted reflection of the artist's intentions", according to
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was a highly experimental printmaker in many respects. He was not very famous in his lifetime, but was keenly collected by
Rembrandt, who was "probably inspired" to use surface tone by his example. Rembrandt used it in his late prints, from about 1647 onwards, and only in some impressions. It was
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all print images from ink held in the lines or other recesses made by the artist in the printing plate. For each impression, ink is spread over the whole plate, worked well in, and then the flat surface is normally wiped carefully clean to remove all ink except that in the recesses, using a form of
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caused by slight imperfections or scratches in a new copper printing plate, which hold the ink and show in the print. These generally disappear after a few impressions are printed, and are taken as a sign that an impression is a very early one. However some scholars use the terms as synonyms.
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To create surface tone, parts of the image are selectively not fully cleaned, leaving a thin film of ink on the surface of the plate, which prints as a "pale and attractive bloom". In practice the plate was perhaps often fully cleaned, and then a cloth dirty with ink used to re-add the film.
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Especially in the case of
Rembrandt, the degree of surface tone used can vary greatly between impressions, and it is often only discussed in works such as catalogues which cover specific impressions, and ignored in those discussing a print in a general way, as other impressions may lack it.
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than began around 1850, the "most visible characteristic of ... was an obsession with surface tone". This was perhaps under the influence of
Rembrandt, whose reputation had by this point reached its full height.
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196:, in which he became very skilled in producing dramatic contrasts, fully satisfying his needs for tonal effects. Reflecting the mid-19th century taste for a "rich overall tone", when his series
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to pull out a little of the ink, so giving a softer or blurry effect to the sides of the line. The effect could be similar to the short-lived "burr" on a drypoint.
137:. The print is then run through a high-pressure press with a piece of slightly damp paper, forcing the soft paper down into the recesses to collect the ink there.
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surface tone was really the only way to add tonal effects, but the technique sometimes continued to be used with the new tonal techniques, especially in the
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Sources often distinguish degrees of tone, as "heavy" or "light". Surface tone could also occur by accident, "due to the incompetence of the printer".
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was heavily influenced as a printmaker by
Rembrandt, and in his "middle period" made great use of surface tone, before reducing it in his later work.
68:. It requires individual attention on the press before each impression is printed, and is mostly used by artists who print their own plates, such as
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Orenstein, Nadine. “Rembrandt van Rijn (1606–1669): Prints.”, 2004, In
Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art,
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Rembrandt/not
Rembrandt in the Metropolitan Museum of Art: Paintings, drawings, and prints: art-historical perspectives
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The technique became very widely used, but a few important artists who made heavy use of it should be mentioned.
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How to
Identify Prints: A Complete Guide to Manual and Mechanical Processes from Woodcut to Inkjet
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online catalogue uses the latter, perhaps not exclusively, as does
Gascoigne and most sources.
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Griffiths has "surface-tone on p. 34, but "surface tone" in his glossary (p. 154). The
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one of a number of ways, notably including printing on different papers, and
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Detail of a
Rembrandt etched portrait, 1636, with tone over much of the hat (
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Rembrandt, etchings & drawings in the Rembrandt House: A catalogue
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of 1841 with surface tone on the structure at right, and its shadow (
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and others, the technique should be distinguished from accidental
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White, eg cat. #37, #79; Von Sonnenburg, 204, 219; Orenstein
72:, "the first master of this art", who made great use of it.
202:(1810–20) was given its first real edition in 1863 by the
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Before the invention of tonal intaglio techniques such as
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Hinterding, Eric, Luijten, Ger, Royalton-Kisch, Martin,
192:'s mature prints were mostly in the tonal technique of
537:, 2000, British Museum Press/Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam,
354:(B, 202) #140–147; this is also Filedt Kok, 120
186:(B. 53) surface tone covers most of the plate.
513:, British Museum Press (in UK), 2nd edn, 1996
275:Un jour de fête au quartier St. André à Anvers
107:Detail of a satirical etching in brown ink by
592:, 1969, British Museum/Lund Humphries, London
204:Real Academia de Bellas Artes de San Fernando
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571:, Volumes 1–2, 219 (see also p. 204), 1995,
606:, 1981, British Museum Publications, ISBN
527:1921, The Print Collectors Club (London),
479:, 1972, Rembrandt House / Gary Schwartz,
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555:The Complete Etchings of Rembrandt
48:, of which the most important are
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604:Collection in the British Museum
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184:Flight into Egypt: A Night Piece
462:Hardie, 20; Von Sonnenburg, 213
426:White, 6–7, 10, (#10); 11 (#12)
372:Griffiths, 31–34; Gascoigne, 1b
326:Griffiths, 148; Gascoigne, 107
130:intaglio printmaking techniques
46:intaglio printmaking techniques
590:The Late Etchings of Rembrandt
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525:The British School of Etching
317:Griffiths, 35; Gascoigne, 10d
308:Griffiths, 34 (quoted), 154
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567:Von Sonnenburg, Hubertus,
535:Rembrandt the Printmaker
511:Prints and Printmaking
475:Filedt Kok, Jan Piet,
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596:Wilson Bareau, Juliet
444:Wilson Bareau, 12, 32
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208:Juliet Wilson Bareau
199:The Disasters of War
600:Goya's Prints, The
352:Woman with an Arrow
273:Edgar Alfred Baes,
237:, the smaller plate
586:White, Christopher
507:Griffiths, Anthony
408:Griffiths, 25, 152
239:, etching, c. 1631
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490:Gascoigne, Bamber
453:Wilson Bareau, 49
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169:Leading exponents
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627:Printmaking
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363:Schwartz, 6
158:Retroussage
34:printmaking
621:Categories
612:0714107891
577:0870997548
563:0486281817
543:071412625X
519:071412608X
502:050023454X
485:9061790034
470:References
256:La Lac du
97:plate tone
632:Rembrandt
435:White, 13
390:White, 18
229:Rembrandt
124:Technique
77:mezzotint
70:Rembrandt
62:mezzotint
50:engraving
417:White, 6
194:aquatint
135:squeegee
111:, 1770 (
81:aquatint
66:aquatint
58:drypoint
235:Antiope
54:etching
22:etching
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261:, 1858
180:vellum
163:muslin
283:Notes
40:, or
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481:ISBN
128:The
79:and
64:and
32:In
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