Focus on Technique: Sugar Lift Aquatint
Sugar lift etching involves painting an image onto a plate with a sugar solution. The plate is then covered with acid-resistant ground. Once the ground has dried, the plate is submerged in a warm water bath, which dissolves the sugar solution and lifts away the ground only in those areas. The artist then coats these portions of the plate with aquatint. When inked and printed, sugar lift creates crisp lines and textures evocative of brush strokes.
-Pilar Saavedra-Weis ’25