Making a 'Dance of Death' Linocut Print, by Freerk Wieringa on YouTube. 8 min 50 s.
- Video length
- 8 min 50 s
- Time to do it
- 2 hours
- Difficulty
- Medium
- Steps
- 8
What you need
Steps
Draw your design in solid black and white, with no grey tones. Black areas will print and white areas stay blank. Keep fine lines at least 1 mm thick so they survive the burn.
Mirror the artwork horizontally before cutting. The block prints in reverse, so any text or asymmetric shapes must be flipped first.
Cut a piece of laser-safe linoleum to size and lay it flat in the laser bed. Focus the laser on the surface of the lino.
Set the speed and power for linoleum and run a small test patch on an offcut. Start with low power and repeat passes rather than one heavy pass.
Burn the full design. Stay with the machine and keep the extraction running, because lino gives off smoke and fumes while it cuts.
Brush or vacuum the soot out of the carved lines. Loose dust prints as grey smudges across the white areas.
Roll a thin, even layer of block printing ink onto the block with a brayer. Work in several directions until the ink stops looking streaky.
Lay paper on the block and press it by hand with a baren or the back of a spoon, working from the centre out. Peel the paper off and dry the print flat.
Tips and common mistakes
Avoid lino with a PVC backing, which releases chlorine gas when lasered. Use lino sold as laser-safe or mount plain lino on wood.
Too much laser power melts the edges and closes up fine detail, so test on an offcut before committing to the full block.
Over-inking fills the carved lines and loses detail. Aim for a thin, tacky layer that just coats the surface.
Pull two or three prints, since the first one often comes out lighter than the rest.
Questions
Can I make this print without a laser cutter?
Yes. Carve the same design with a gouge or linoleum knife, and the inking and pressing steps stay the same. Carving takes longer but needs no machine.
Do I need a printing press?
No. A baren or the back of a spoon presses the paper by hand. A press gives a more even result, especially on thicker paper.
What paper works best for a linocut?
Use smooth, slightly absorbent paper such as cartridge paper or Japanese ho-sho. Heavy watercolour paper can need dampening before printing.
This guide was drafted from the video's details and general task knowledge. It has not been checked against the full video. Check the video and relevant product instructions before following a procedure. Report a correction.
