AQUATINT. - An engraving technique which, on its own or combined with etching (v.) or drypoint (v.), produces various gradations of chiaroscuro very similar to those of watercolor (v.) and of drawings in pencil and charcoal, uniformly biting the desired areas of the copper plate through the action of sulfur powder. A good grain is today commonly obtained by blowing very fine resin powder onto the plate before immersion in the acid; but some instead varnish the plate, spray it with fine salt, and then wash it so that the varnish remains full of tiny holes.The steeling of the engraved plate guarantees it a longer life, but spoils its softness.

This system, much cultivated in Ireland and England in the 18th century, lends itself very well to the reproduction of paintings, whose every softness it can render. It has not had frequent applications in the field of sacred art.

Bibliography2 works

BIBL.: Modern Etchings, Mezzotints and Dry-Points (special issue of The Studio), London 1913; O. Schmitt, Acquatinta blätter nach Caspar David Friedrich, in Zeitschrift des deutschen Vereins für Kunstwissenschaft, 3 (1936), pp. 421-33.

Corrado Mezzana

@incollection{ec1_acquatinta, author = {Mezzana, Corrado}, title = {Acquatinta}, booktitle = {Enciclopedia Cattolica}, volume = {I}, pages = {241--242}, note = {Cited by column}, publisher = {Ente per l’Enciclopedia Cattolica e per il Libro Cattolico}, address = {Città del Vaticano}, year = {1948}, url = {https://azioneromana.com/article/acquatinta} }

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Aquatint

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