Plant Based

Plants, specifically trees, are at the heart of the earliest form of printing – the woodcut. Originally developed in China, the technique spread to Europe around the 13th century and was first used in textile designs before eventually being used for printing on paper.

The technique uses a wooden block made from soft wood, such as pear, cut along the grain. An image can be drawn directly onto the block, or on a sheet of paper that is then adhered to the block. The woodcutter uses a knife to carve away the wood around the image, creating a raised surface of lines that form the text or image. The block is inked and paper is pressed upon the inked surface, producing the image on the surface of the paper.

During the 18th century, a derivation of the woodcut called wood engraving evolved. Wood engraving utilizes a burin, a small steel rod with a pointed end, instead of a knife. The blocks for wood engraving come from hard wood, such as boxwood, which is cut across the grain, leaving a smoother surface that allows for finer lines and details.