n the traditional engraving skills a counterfoil is realized, preferably page and of a rigid material, where the artist - engraver carves or records of direct form (dry top) or innuendo (to the acid, etching, aquatint...), the motive that will appear in the final picture, usually on role, and that allows to realize a series of printings in which the engraved motive recurs. This is what one is known like edition or throw, limited and original, that it is signed and numbers individually for the artist.

As soon as the edition was realized, the iron or counterfoil is destroyed or is marked obviously to prevent more originals from being realized. Sometimes, it does to itself a picture that gathers the motive with the above mentioned mark, as soon as the edition was finished, and this is what is known as a cross-check test, since it guarantees that the edition has been closed definitely, that will not be realized more original. In other occasions, he is a notary the one that gives faith of the closing of the edition and of the destruction of the counterfoils.

In the engraving calcográfico a tórculo is used for the printing of the counterfoil. The tórculo is a machine with rollers of steel and a deck that slides under these, in which there are placed a few blankets of woolen felt, which allow uniformity to exist in the pressure. Under the blankets, on the deck, the inked counterfoil and the role settle humectado. A wheel prints movement on the roller that does that the deck slides exercising 25.000 kg pressure for square centimeter. We obtain with this procedure an image to speculate (reflected) of the counterfoil printed on the role. The ink that had stayed in the incisions and ruts now shapes the image on the role. This process recurs for every ink. Namely an engraving to color can be constructed by the superposition of several different irons (as there happens in cuatricomía offset, where there exist four counterfoils, one for every color (magenta, cian, yellow and black) that overlap to achieve the definitive image.

THE MONOTYPE

The monotype or monotipía (or monotype) is the only result (not serial) of a graphic printing.

When the resources of the skills of engraving devote themselves, not to the achievement of a series, but of only one it stamps, we are before a change of the final premeditation (a quantitative and qualitative difference exists with regard to the serial edition). All the efforts head towards this monocentral target that, nevertheless, allows to extend the frame of performance inherent in the skills of graphic printing. The author can increase the stylistic capacity of his work, opens in front of him a vast and unknown area to him for the experimentation.

It is not a question already of consolidating an iron of copper, iron or zinc, of which a certain number of original tests has of being obtaining, but of realizing all the effort to obtain only one it tries, original only one. This way it can be said that the monotype is located on the border between the engraving and the painting, since it is realized making use so much of engraving skills as pictorial for the attainment of original only one, the monotype or monotype. In this creative, fiduciary process so much of the skills of graphic printing as of the plastic arts in general, the final score is vital and the only, therefore, exclusively, unrepeatable, not serially.

There is the one who thinks that the monotype is an aberration derived from a skill of printing (some purists do not admit the engraving to color, opinion that I respect and do not share). Nevertheless, there exist so many different skills as practitioners of this applied art. Here that thing about fulfills literally that every maestrillo has his small book. We will not bring in in this type of treatises existing account that the engraving to color already realized in China it does three milleniums, although it is true that, in Occident, it has predominated over the engraving calcográfico black and white, at least until the XXth century.

In the monotype, we face the work just as the painter before a linen in target. Without the corset of the counterfoil, without the responsibility of the edition in series, although with less certainties, with major risk.

The author penetrates this way into a territory in which the lightest change, it can ruin the initial aspirations or compensate fully the realized effort, due to the multitude of factors that intervene in the final score and his complex interrelation.

NOMENCLATURE

If we adhere to a logical nomenclature, the picture signed by the author can be numbered like 1 / 1; that is to say, the picture number one of an entire edition of an original picture, literally. Also there is the one who prefers to nominate with the word monotype.

Sometimes, the picture is a test of an engraving that finally turns into edition. Perhaps it is a question of a chromatic change, or of the state in the evolution of the counterfoil. These pictures are considered to be usually tests of the state or of author, and this way it is indicated in the base of the engraving (P.A., P.E., P/A, P/E). Definitely speaking, these pictures are tests, there are not considered to be monotypes; they are valuable from different perspectives; more important, perhaps, the fact is that they show clearly the evolution of the engraving up to his definitive version. This contributes valuable information about the creative process of the author, and of the metamorphosis of the iron.

The skills of printing that are used for the making of a monotype are very varied. At first any traditional, both direct and indirect skill, it is valid (etching, aquatint, dry top, xylography, additive, serigraphy, skills of colage, new technologies...), although now it is not already chased that the engraved motive is repeated certain number of times, with which it is not necessary that the counterfoil is especially resistant to the wear of an edition; circunstancialmente, the use of counterfoil is not also essential, but the making to be the sufficient one for the achievement of the original and only picture.

COLLAGRAPH OR COLAGRAFIA

The colage (collage), like skill aglutinadora of procedures and materials, it includes a vast territory of stylistic intentions.

When the colage is not but a way for the attainment of a counterfoil to record, this is the collagraph (or colagrafía): one of the current additive skills of engraving, which incorporate the colage in the making of the counterfoils, they enrich the pictures with magnificent and sugerentes reliefs. The collagraph or colagrafía, is an additive skill of engraving (that is to say, it is constructed adding grilled material), which makes use of the possibility of integrating multiple elements in the making of the counterfoils. In the same way that the collage integrates different elements and materials, to provide to a work of his character, in the collagraph, these elements are those who shape the counterfoil and need a special treatment, since now they must support an extreme pressure and a wear. On the collagraph we must concentrate, fundamentally, in providing grilled and to all his integrally elements of a cohesion and specially rigidity (in addition to bearing in mind the relief limitations), which the seriación allows avoiding the excessive wear of the counterfoil.

In general (drawing, cake, watercolor, calcográfico engraving, serigraphy, xylography, etc.) usually protects the graphic work with wooden frame and crystal, since normally the support is a role. The role is an organic material, it is possible to think matter living and as such, he needs care. It has powerful enemies as there are the moisture, the insects, etc. A to weigh of it his special characteristics they turn it into the ideal support for this type of skills, and his longevity is indisputable. Today there survive the first engravings known in Occident, in the quite good state, four hundred or five hundred years after having being realized.

This interest of the plastic artists in the engraving does that the panorama of the production of original graphic work enjoys an enviable health, being increasingly the authors who approach and enjoy these skills. The active participation of the artists in the graphic investigation that is realized in the workshops, its own multidisciplinary formation, the coexistence of multiple systems of impression, the use of the new information technologies, the current possibilities of diffusion, there are key factors in the current development of the engraving.

The profile of the current engraver is usually much tied to that of plastic artist, since the ambience in which all the activity of the engraving develops is, almost exclusively, that of the artistic production (inside what it is known commonly as a graphic work, that is to say, it acts on role).

ENGRAVING OF APPLICATION

There exist occasions in which the engraving is used like integral part of a functional object (Christmas card, ex-libris, illustration in a book, editions of bibliofília, etc.), this is what is known as an application engraving. It is the final premeditation or the value of use what determines the destination of an engraving. Also it is frequent to be recorded illustrating the books fronts

ENGRAVING IN THE XXIST CENTURY

It would be convenient to consider other of the factors that, to my judgment, does that the engraving is one of the most important expressive plastic means at present: his closeness to the people. One of the characteristics diferenciadoras of the serial work opposite to the only work is, precisely, his biggest accessibility. To realize a certain number of originals of an engraving, properly signed and numbered, allows the achievement cost to split between the number of originals of the edition. This influences decisively the final cost of every original, diminishing it and, therefore, bringing it over to the pockets of the lovers of the art: practically any person can acquire an engraving. In my modest opinion, this supposes a certain democratization of culture.

To highlight the role that the mass realize comes up in this area, but especially, what stays for doing: because we can affirm that the graphic work keeps on being, in some cases, unjustly cornered, forgotten, when not despised (fundamentally due to the ignorance). There is outstanding also the cultural and economic interest that causes at present the engraving, existing fairs, contests, and samples in diverse places of the planet dedicated exclusively to the graphic work. Even, lately, the economic investors have realized this potential, appearing diverse articles about the topic in magazines or magacines economic.

One of the factors that influence this novel interest is the immediate revaluation of the engraving. And precisely, in its own idiosyncrasy the key is, since in the same way that the seriación of the work brings it over to any consumer, it does not stop being a limited number of originals; the edition closes, the iron is destroyed, there is eliminated the possibility of reprint (like exclusive and original work). The originals are signed and numbered by the artist, and his only ones quality provokes a reaction the rise on the markets.

We can conclude that the engraving in the century that we release enjoys very good health, being increasingly the persons who are interested by this one average, and more authors who develop his graphic work, not like something auxiliary, but like a different way provided with big expressiveness, where the limits fade away and the stylistic possibilities they expand.