KING 5

Analog art is the future for Seattle artist practicing a 15th century technique

Kim Van Someren is a University of Washington instructor who specializes in copper printmaking, an art form made famous by Rembrandt.

“…The technique involves etching images onto copper plates and transferring them onto paper via ink and a printing press.

Van Someren's work has been shown around the country, and she also teaches copper printmaking at the University of Washington. It’s a multi-step, complicated process that begins with preparing a sheet of copper (known as a “plate") with acid-resistant material.

In Rembrandt’s time, artists used actual black asphalt to coat the plates, allowing them to draw into the surface with sharp needle-like tools.

Van Someren said the etching exercise is meditative, and she can work on a single plate for weeks.

"When I'm in my art making mode, it's a time for me to be quiet,” she said. "It's never rushed. I'm never thinking about grocery lists, I'm never thinking about what I'm going to do the next day. This is the one time when I get to really focus on the meaning of making…”

READ THE WHOLE ARTICLE HERE