Elizabeth Shepherd at an etching Press in the Dundee Comtemporary Print Studio Dundee
Etchings are created by rolling hot wax onto a plate of steel, copper or zinc, scratching into it, then putting it into acid which etches the lines you have exposed. Then you rub ink onto the plate, and rub it off carefully. The ink stays in the etched lines and is transferred to damp paper when you put it through the press (above) like a mangle. This is how you make a simple line etching.After that you can use various methods to add tone and texture.There are now safer ways to use aquatint etc with less toxic materials.
