Illustration Genres

Gutenberg Press (printmaking)

Sep 21, 1452

It is a device for applying pressure between an inked surface and a print medium to mass produce printed artworks. This started the period of modernity, revolutionising the way people viewed the world around them. The Gutenburg Press was invented in the Holy Roman Empire by the German Johannes Gutenburg around 1440, based on existing screw presses.

Etching (printmaking)

Sep 21, 1515

Originally used by Goldsmiths and other metal workers to add decorative details to guns, armour, cups and plates. In the end of the 15th century it began to be used as a printmaking technique.

Lithography (printmaking)

Sep 21, 1796

The printing is from a stone or a sheet of metal with a smooth surface onto paper or other suitable material. It was invented in 1796 by German author and actor Alois Senefelder as a cheap method of publishing works.

Rotary Printing Press (printmaking)

Sep 21, 1843

It is a printing press in which the images to be printed are fed around a cylinder, the process can be done on a large variety or materials such as, paper, cardboard and plastic. It is sometimes referred to as a 'webpress'. It is an evolution of the cylinder press which was invented by Freidrich Koenig.

offset printing (printmaking)

Sep 21, 1875

Offset printing is a commonly used printing technique in which the inked image is transferred (or “offset”) from a plate to a rubber blanket, then to the printing surface. In 1875 by Robert Barclay of England for printing on tin, and in 1904 by Ira Washington Rubel of the United States for printing on paper.

Typesetting (printmaking/typography)

Sep 21, 1884

Refers to technologies for typesetting text in letterpress printing. This method injects molten type metal into a mold that has the shape of one or more glyphs. The resulting sorts and slugs are later used to press ink onto paper.

Screen Printing (Printmaking)

Sep 21, 1910

Screen printing is a form of stencilling that first appeared in a recognizable form in China during the Song Dynasty (960–1279 AD). It was then adapted by other Asian countries like Japan, and was furthered by creating newer methods.
Screen printing was largely introduced to Western Europe from Asia sometime in the late 18th century.
Early in the 1910s Roy Beck, Charles Peter and Edward Owens studied and experimented with chromic acid salt sensitized emulsions for photo-reactive stencils.

Phototypesetting (Printmaking/Typography)

Sep 21, 1949

Phototypesetting is a method of setting type, rendered obsolete with the popularity of the personal computer and desktop publishing software, that uses a photographic process to generate columns of type on a scroll of photographic paper.

Digital Printing (printmaking)

Sep 21, 1991

Digital printing refers to methods of printing from a digital-based image directly to a variety of media. It usually refers to professional printing where small-run jobs from desktop publishing and other digital sources are printed using large-format and/or high-volume laser or inkjet printers. Digital printing has a higher cost per page than more traditional offset printing methods, but this price is usually offset by avoiding the cost of all the steps required to make printing plates.