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Atlantis Editions
Limited Edition Lithography Publishing
Atlantis Arts Editions was created by Jonathan Shimony with his acquisition of a lithography press studio in 2003. Atlantis Arts Editions is located in the painting and sculpture studio of Jonathan in Gentilly, just on the southern city limits of Paris. Jonathan is now the director of the residency program, working with Alain Neuveux, the master printer of the lithography press. [This page can also be downloaded as a PDF].
About Atlantis Arts
Atlantis Arts, Inc., specializing in the international sale of fine prints, was founded by Nigel Freeman and Jonathan Shimony in 1999. The artists met while in residence of the Fondation des Etats-Unis, Cite Universitaire in Paris in the mid-1990s. Atlantisarts.net was launched in 2001. Atlantis Arts Editions was created by Jonathan Shimony with his acquisition of a lithography press studio in 2003. Atlantis Arts Editions is located in the painting and sculpture studio of Jonathan in Gentilly, just on the southern city limits of Paris. Jonathan is now the director of the residency program, working with Alain Neuveux, the master printer of the lithography press.
The Inaugural 2005/2006 Residency Program
Artists will be selected by application & an interview process to participate in the 2005/2006 Residency Program. Each artist will receive lodging, all materials and professional assistance during a fourteen-day collaboration at the studio of Atlantis Arts Editions to create the matrix for an agreed upon limited edition of prints. The director and the printer will the consult with each artist in order to arrive at an approach to realize the proposed work. During the residency period, the artist will work to produce a “bon à tirer” (good to pull) proof for each print that will later be produced as part of the edition under the direction of the printer.
The following printing parameters are to be followed:
- During the residency, the artist will work with the technical supervision of the director and/or the printer to produce a “bon à tirer” proof for each desired print.
- Each print will require an agreed upon “bon à tirer” impression between the artist, director and the printer. The matrix will be the finished stones that are necessary to produce each “bon à tirer” impression.
- The printer of Atlantis Arts Editions will produce the limited edition after the artist’s residency. Once the “bon à tirer” impression is selected no further changes will be made to the matrix. Once the edition is produced, the stones will be effaced and re-grained for future use.
- A total edition of 30 impressions are to be printed, with 10 proofs to be set aside as follows: 7 artist’s proofs, 2 printer’s proofs and a “hors-commerce” (not for sale) proof. The artist’s proofs will be retained and owned by the artist. The “bon à tirer” and the printer’s proofs will be retained Atlantis Arts. The edition of 20 will be owned and published by Atlantis Arts Editions for sale. The hors-commerce proof will be retained for the editions’ archives.
- Up to three prints can be printed, therefore, a maximum total of 90 impressions will be produced.
- Up to 5 colors can be used in each print, the format can be up to a maximum of 65x75 cm.
- Though efforts will be made to accommodate the artist, the final choice of which type of inks and papers to be used will be determined by Atlantis Arts Editions.All the prints will be signed and numbered by the artist. The final edition and proofs will be made available for the artist to sign in New York City by the Atlantis Arts Editions.
The following description of lithography, and the lithographic printing process, courtesy and copyrighted by The Tamarind Institute, University of New Mexico, answers FAQ.
lithography: the process
The following is an introduction to the process of making original, fine art lithographs and the methods used to care for them. Standards may vary at different workshops.
what is a lithograph?
Basically, it is a print made by using a press to transfer an image that was created initially on stone or metal plate to paper. Aloys Senefelder, who invented lithography in 1798, preferred to call it "chemical printing", since the process depends on the chemical interaction of grease, nitric acid, gum arabic, and water, rather than the stone from which the name lithography is derived.
Although the term can refer to commercially reproduced images, such as those on posters or in magazines, at Tamarind a lithograph is an image made by an artist who works closely with an artisan printer.
what is the difference between a "print" and a fine art print?
"Print" is the generic tem for an image produced in multiple. There are many different kinds of prints, including reproductions made from an image that already exists.
A truly "original" print, however, directly involves the artist, who uses the special qualities of the printmaking process--whether it is etching, engraving, serigraphy (or silk screen), woodcut, mezzotint, or lithography--to express his or her ideas.
Some artists print their images themselves. Others work collaboratively with a skilled printer, who discusses ideas and materials with the artist, and carries out all the technical requirements such as processing and printing.
In each case, what distinguishes the print as original is that the artist participated directly in the creation of the image and approves all impressions.
how does a lithograph differ from other fine art prints?
Lithographs differ from etchings, engravings, serigraphs, and woodcuts in materials and process. As opposed to many other print processes which depend upon incised or carved lines, lithography is a planographic process that depends upon the mutual repulsion of grease and water.
For example, etchings and engravings are printed from a metal plate with incised lines while a lithograph is made from a chemically treated, flat surface. A serigraph is a silkscreen print, and woodcuts are printed from blocks of wood carved in relief.
how is a lithograph made?
To make a lithograph, the artist first draws an image, in reverse, on a fine-grained limestone or aluminum plate. For a one-color lithograph, this will be the only drawing. Each additional color will generally require a separate stone or plate.
Artists use the same kinds of tools they would for images on paper or canvas. However, since the basic principle of hand lithographic printing is the natural repulsion of grease and water, the crayons, pencils, and washes used in lithography have a high grease content.
Once the artist has finished drawing with the greasy black pigments, an artisan printer takes over and chemically treats the stones and/or plates to stabilize the image for printing.
why don't the artists do the printing themselves?
In general, although some artists print their own lithographs, many have neither the time nor inclination to learn about the complex chemistry of the medium. Artists-in-residence work with highly skilled printers who have been trained in the technical and collaborative aspects of printing for artists. Often, artists rely on the printers' expertise to achieve their aesthetic goals.
how does the printing process work?
After the artist has finished drawing on the plates or stones, the printer sprinkles rosin on the surface to protect the drawing. Then he or she powders the surface with talc which helps the chemical etch lie more closely to the tiny grease dots which compose the drawing.
The etch, which is a solution of gum arabic and nitric acid, is then applied to the stone and left for about an hour to combine with the greasy particles and the calcium carbonate of the stone.
The printer then removes the original drawing materials with a solvent, leaving the greasy image barely visible on the stone. The printing inks, which are also greasy, will adhere to the image area. The stone's surface is kept wet, which prevents the ink from adhering to non-image areas.
At the press, the printer sponges the stone or plate with water, rolls it with ink, and prints a series of trial proofs": the same image with different color and paper combinations. When the artist is completely satisfied with the result, the final proof is signed by the artist as the bon à tirer ("good to pull"). With this as a standard, the printer is ready to pull the edition.
Once the edition has been printed, the stone or plate is destroyed or erased, ensuring that no more impressions can be printed. The director checks each impression against the bon à tirer, and the prints are embossed with the press’ chop (identifying symbol) and the collaborating printer's chop. Then the artist signs and numbers the impression.
what does "pull an impression" mean, and why do you refer to prints as "impressions"?
To pull a print simply means to print an impression, and impression refers to any one of a number of nearly identical images pulled from the same printing elements.
in a multicolor print, how does the printer get the colors in exactly the right places?
Generally the same piece of paper must pass through the press as many times as there are different colors. This process requires exact registration with each run, or pass, through the press.
Registration ensures that each color or component of an image is printed in exactly the right area. The printer makes tiny pencil marks on each sheet of paper to be printed and lines them up to correspond with marks on each stone or plate. This way, each impression in the edition is consistent.
what is an "edition" of prints?
Edition refers to all impressions of a particular image that are printed after the artist has given an approval to print. The edition includes all numbered prints, the artist's proofs, “bon à tirer” proofs, the printer’s proofs, and the hors-commerce impressions, which are for the press’ archives. All impressions, including the trial proofs, color trial proofs, and artist's impressions, are documented.
what are artist's proofs?
Artist's proofs (sometimes designated A.P.) are impressions just like those in the numbered edition. They are set aside for the artist's personal use.
who determines how many prints will be made?
Generally the artist and a print shop representative decide together before the edition is printed.
if all the prints in the edition are sold, do you print more?
Never. After the artist signs and numbers each impression in the edition, all stones and plates are effaced. Stones are then resurfaced for future use.
Applications and Residencies Restrictions
Applications will be accepted year round. Examples of the artist’s works must be mailed or emailed with a brief artist’s proposal - the examples must be representations of graphic work that the artist desires to create in lithography.
Residencies’ dates are to be determined – a typical residency will be no more than two weeks in duration. No stipends or travel, eating, entertainment or any other out-of-pocket expenses are provided for. Additional visiting persons or parties, including spouses, partners or other companions, must be authorized and approved by Atlantis Arts Editions. [This page can also be downloaded as a PDF].
How to Contact Us
Director
Jonathan Shimony
83, Rue Charles Frerot
94250 Gentilly
FRANCE
President
Nigel Freeman
|534 Academy Street
Maplewood, NJ
07040
USA
© Copyright 2001-2005 Atlantis Arts, Inc.
All Rights Reserved.