New ~ Old Gum Prints

To be fair, the gum print for which I  speak was a test print, begun to find out if the gelatin sizing could be reduced just a smidgen without having the image fall into the paper enough to begin falling apart. Turns out, it can be done with sufficient viscosity and number of layers to build up enough thickness for detail. That was a success. The print is proof, in spite of the error of touching it before it was fully dry. The gum I'm posting is probably the second gum print I ever made, now thirty five years ago. At the time I was making the gum prints from paper negatives.

Being I didn't keep detailed printing records of each print I made back when I was first printing, I am unable to say just how many print layers there are for certain. Most likely this print is made from four print layers, using the standard CYMK colors, although, again, I can't say in which order. Making gum prints is so different from any other kind of printing, for me, it's like painting an image on canvas. It's unique. Not something that will every be copied, although truth be told I had contemplated perhaps editions of 5 in the beginning. After several prints, however, unique printing was the standard.

Gum Dichromate Print
"View from Studio Window" ~ 6"x9" ~ Unique

I was able to get some detail in the image. The lighting comes from outside, so the interior is dark and hanging plant is silhouetted due to the back lighting. The image was meant to give the dark, rainy day in Oregon that it was when I took the shot.