AQUATINT

This technique is used to achieve chiaroscuro effects. This result is achieved by sprinkling a resinous powder (rosin) onto the plate free of bituminous paint, which is then made to adhere by heating the matrix. The powder melts with the heat, leaving a small space between each grain where the acid will bite. Here too, graduated bites, different gauges and types of powder can be used to obtain different grain sizes.

Marino Marini: Guerriero,1971 - acquaforte acquatinta

There are also other methods for making an aquatint based on the use of salt, sugar, and sulphur. Aquatint is used more often with etching than on its own. It is also used to obtain colour prints: in this case, each plate, suitably grained, prints a single colour. There is also another method for obtaining colour prints using a single plate: in this case, the various colours are distributed in different parts of the plate, and a single print run produces a multi-colour print. Obviously, the effects are very different from those obtained using multiple plates.