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Screen-printing is among the newest of the graphic techniques and has the shortest history as a medium for artists. Though long used in Asia, toward the end of the last century in France, a method utilizing silk as a support for the stencil was developed. In screen-printing, this fabric is stretched tightly over a strong wooden frame, which is hinged to a table. A squeegee is used to push the ink from the top of the screen through the open areas of the fabric (or mesh) onto the paper below. The term silkscreen is occasionally used because silk was the fabric traditionally used. Nylon and polyester are used today. The term serigraph is derived from the Latin sericum, "silk" and the Greek graph, "image." It is used to differentiate between artistic printing and commercial applications. One of the greatest advantages of the screen-printing technique is the strength of color and the relative ease of multicolor work and overprinting.Because water-based inks, like acrylic inks that I use, are becoming more popular it is possible for the artist to use these materials without having to conform to stringent health and safety practices. |
