Alernative Printmaking Report #2

Using InkAID Transfer Film And Transferiez Medium

In my last post, I described how coating papers with InkAID coatings was a ‘no go’ with my Canon printer (though I spoke with the company and I may have a solution, so there may well be a follow up post about this issue). I have higher hopes for their transfer sheets and medium, and this is the first of two reports on their use.

First of all, what is image transfer? Image transfer is when you print an image on something and then paint another substrate with a coating that will accept ink or toner. The original print is then placed on the coated substrate in an attempt to transfer the image to the new medium, which is typically something that you would not ordinarily run through a printer.

The process of image transfer with the InkAID product consists of 3 steps:

• printing the image you would like to transfer on a special clear film and letting it dry (preferably overnight)

• Preparing the transfer gel medium

• Performing the actual transfer

I have done the first and second steps and this report covers that process, while the next report will cover the actual transfer (which I haven’t done yet).

I. Printing On The Transfer Sheet

I purchased a sample pack that contains enough material for six 8.5x11 inch transfers (and extra solution should I want to continue beyond that). The material comes in larger size sheets as well as wide-format rolls. The transfer sheet is clear plastic with a clear inkjet receptive coating on one side (for use with pigment inks only - not dye-based inks), which is the side that you print on. The side to be printed on is clearly marked on the container and, like inkjet paper, you can always check by moistening a finger and touching it to the sheet. The side that feels sticky is the side to print on.

The sheets are perfectly flat so, this time, I had no concern about head strikes or putting it through the printer. My main concern was would, since the sheet is clear, the printer recognize that it was loaded and be able to detect its edges for printing?

The sheet seemed to load into the printer with no problem at all. I held my breath as I clicked the print button in Photoshop, but my fears were apparently unfounded. Printing was smooth and easy. I printed on all six sheets without a hitch. The directions state that you can experiment with matte and luster printer media settings, which I did. I then set the sheets aside to dry overnight. This is what one of them looked like as it came out of the printer.

The transfer sheet fresh off the printer.

Note to self: I forgot to flip the image horizontally before printing to preserve its appearance. Since the sheet gets flipped with the printed side down when doing the transfer, left becomes right on the final piece.

I also decided to get a little fancy. Apparently, you can take a damp cloth and wipe the ink away a bit around the periphery of the image to give it an organic brush-stroked appearance at the edges. I wasn’t sure how difficult this would be but liked the idea of removing the straight photographic edge and doing it by hand as opposed to using a digital eraser in Photoshop. It was VERY easy to do.

Here is a photo of a mural I took in Ashville recently. It was painted on wood slats and I thought it would be interesting to transfer it to a small piece of raw wood. You can transfer to almost anything: paper, canvas, fabric, tile, wood, plastic, metals etc. Note that I erased portions of the edges with a moist rag to give it a more painted and rough appearance. Again, I was surprised by how easy this was to do and the the nice effect that it gives. The photo is of the clear sheet sitting on top of the wood. The transfer has not yet been done.

The transfer sheet sitting on a piece of wood prior to attempting the transfer.

II. Preparing The Transfer Gel Medium

This part was easy. You need a wide mouth jar so a brush can fit in it. Pour in 4 ounces of 91% isopropyl alcohol (not the usual 70%, but 91% can be purchased at any drug store here in the US; it’s on the shelf right next to the 70%). Then pour a tablespoon of the InkAID medium on top of the alcohol and cover. Over the next few hours agitate a few times. The instructions seem to indicate it will turn clear like water, but it remained cloudy for me. A call to the company confirmed that cloudy is OK and that they just meant that there is no longer any particulate matter in the solution as there is when you first combine the product and the alcohol. Good to go!

In my next report, I will have done the transfers. I am sure there is a learning curve, but I should have a sense of how easy or difficult this is going to be.