Etching engravings

Merops apiaster
Etching design, 17,5 x 21 cm

My good friend José Mª Bellido, Pepón, loved this work. I gave it to him and he put it at his house. Whenever I see the work, it reminds me of him.



Charadrius dubius
Etching design, 15,5 x 19,5 cm

Here I’ve tried to transmit the movement of this bird, so I used the repetition of lines.
My colleague and friend Mr. Luis Cuaresma liked it a lot.




Vanellus vanellus
Etching design, 11 x 14,5 cm

Here are a series of engravings I made by using the technique of line etching.
The making of moulds in this technique is relatively easy. First, you have to varnish the side of the plate to work with and protect the opposite side (better with hard ball ground varnish). Then you transfer the drawing, being careful not to scratch the varnish. You continue scratching the widest lines and putting it in etch. Then you scratch the thinnest ones; the more immersions in etch you do, the better the quality of the lines.

Felis silvestris (wild cat)

Felis silvestris
Mixed media on metal, 29,5 x 24,5 cm

To make this engraving I made an artist’s proof, too. Then I used the technique of `soft´ ball ground varnish to create vegetation, and aquatint for the textures at the back. Sometimes I have thought the artist’s proof would have been better if I had added some lines.

Cervus elaphus (Red deer)

Cervus elaphus
Mixed media on metal, 15,5 x 26 cm

Now I will show you the process of creation of this work. The first three images are artist’s proofs of the matrix and the one above this text is the end result. The lines are made using the etching technique. The different hues of the two figures were made with aquatint. And, finally, the texture at the back was made with an experimental technique: after applying a layer of protective varnish, I partially removed part of it by using adhesive tape.
With this work I want to thank to José Mª – Master of Engraving Workshop at the Fine Arts Faculty in Seville – doubtlessly a good teacher and a better person, and to Mª del Mar Bernal – Professor of the Introductory Course to Engraving Techniques – for encouraging me to learn this artistic technique.

Bufo bufo (European Common Toad)

Bufo bufo
Lithography, 35x49 cm.

I made the two works above as a project for the subject `Lithography´ in my fifth year at Fine Arts. The invaluable `help´ of Professor Manzorro served to discourage all students in the course. In his first lesson he said we all were `a shameful burden´ and that we did not deserve the time he devoted to us; fortunately, that was his last year before retiring.
Manzorro asked me why I had left so much space to the left of the turtle dove and why I had not finished the toad ... no comment.
The teacher assistant supervised us and I got the results you see.

Streptopelia decaocto (Eurasian Collared Dove)

Streptopelia decaocto
Lithography,30x44 cm.