About Our Artwork

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The difference between a reproduction and a fine art lithograph is the difference between a picture and art.

Modern fine art lithography originated in Paris, when the Golden Age of Poster Art made the works of Toulouse-Lautrec, Mucha, Steinlen, Cheret and others available to mass audiences. These artists brought stunning handmade lithographs to cafes, shops and street corners, and today S2 Art Group and Jack Gallery exist under the same principle that high-quality fine art can be for everyone.

Voirin presses, originally used in Paris ateliers by Lautrec, Mucha and others

S2's fine art lithographs are crafted on the same flatbed presses used in the legendary ateliers of Paris. To our knowledge, only seven of these presses remain in the world. We are the proud owners of five of them. Unlike contemporary computer-generated reproductions, lithographs crafted on these presses contain pure color and subtle variations in texture that rival the nuances of painting.

PRINTING A LITHOGRAPH
Fine art lithography is a time-consuming process with many involved steps. While a digitally-generated reproduction can take 15 minutes to print, fine art lithographs can require several months from the beginning to the end of the process.

STEP 1: CHOOSING THE IMAGE
An image is chosen, a painting or other unique work—or an entirely new image is created on press. Size is determined and often a color print is made to the size of the final lithograph. The press to be used is determined by overall size of the final lithograph and the number of colors the lithograph will require.

STEP 2: PRELIMINARY SET-UP
The Artist, Chromist, and Master Printer estimate the number of different colors that will be used to create the final image. Each part of the process is analyzed, from paper stock to the number of times the image will pass through the presses. The paper is handmade, generally in Paris.

Inks in a spectrum of colors, Ink on the mixing table, Layers of acetate with hand-drawn images

STEP 3: FROSTED ACETATE OVER PLATES AND LIMESTONE
The Artist could draw directly onto limestone, aluminum or zinc plates, but most prefer acetate because it is lightweight, easy to transport and ideal for hand drawing. Frosted acetates are chosen, cut to size and aligned for registration.

STEP 4: THE ARTIST BEGINS
The Artist hand draws the image on a series of acetate layers using pencils, crayon, tusche, and brushes. The materials which may be used in lithography are limited only by the artist’s imagination. The original art or concept image is kept in front of the Artist and Printers at all times so as to achieve the most accurate rendering.

Artist Matt Rinard working on the presses

STEP 5: TRANSFERRING THE IMAGE FOR PROOFING
Each hand drawn layer of acetate is transferred to an aluminum plate, etched and prepared for press. Proofing is a preliminary printing process in which a small quantity of printing paper is used to develop the lithograph before creating the full edition. The proofing process allows any changes to be made before printing the final edition.

STEP 6: PEPARING THE PAPER
The paper to be used for the edition is first run through the presses without color. This allows the paper to “breathe” and acclimates it to the presses. The paper is hung and left to cure for 2 to 3 days, which allows for better registration and color acceptance.

STEP 7: COLOR MIXING
Colors are mixed by hand. Fine art lithography is not a four color process. There is no limit to the number of colors that can be printed on each sheet of paper. We use specially developed paints—several different types of yellows, blues, reds, violets, purples, and blacks. The Artist or Chromist chooses the value, intensity and hue of the color to be printed. The Master Printer mixes the color to these specifications and adjusts the “body” of the color for printing. Color swatches are made on the paper stock used for the lithograph, in the same light in which they will be printed, ensuring that the color chosen matches perfectly.

STEP 8: PRESS REGISTRATION
The plate or stone is registered on the press. Color is applied by hand onto the rollers and the ink fountain is adjusted by hand to allow the desired amount of ink to be transferred onto the paper. The rollers are adjusted by hand and a print is “pulled.” When the image is registered and the ink is the correct consistency, the Artist and Chromist will examine the print. If they approve of the color, a Bon à Tirer which means “good to pull” will be approved and the proofing/editioning process will begin.

Each color is printed, one color at a time, on the antique presses.

STEP 9: EDITIONING/PROOFING
A crew of 3 people print together on the antique presses. A feeder places each sheet into the registration guide one at a time, a catcher pulls each sheet off the press one at a time, and a Master Printer oversees the consistency of color and textures. Each person goes through a training process, from apprentice to journeyman to Master Printer. The knowledge and experience of many generations is carried on to ensure the highest quality of fine art printing. These antique presses are flat bed presses, which means that the ink is printed directly onto the paper. Because of this, the ink can be applied much thicker than any modern printing press or giclee machine. The process places more pigment onto the paper, giving the print a greater saturation of rich color, and ensuring more color permanency. These steps are repeated for each color, one at a time, until the edition is complete. Each color dries before another is applied, and at the completion of all the colors the print dries for several days.

STEP 10: CURATING
When the prints are dry, they are hand torn one at a time. This creates a “deckled” edge. Each sheet is examined for imperfections and destroyed if registration is not perfect. Then the Atelier chop mark is embossed onto the paper, authenticating the location of the printing. If the edition is to be signed by the artist, each lithograph is hand numbered, signed, framed and sent to art galleries.

STEP 11: DESTROYING THE PLATES
After the edition is signed, the plates are destroyed and sent for recycling. This ensures that each limited edition lithograph retains its value, and the plates cannot be used again, making certain that no additional lithographs can be produced and the number the artist signed is the total number in the “tirage.”