silkscreen

silkscreen

 or serigraphy

Sophisticated stenciling technique for surface printing, in which a design is cut out of paper or another thin, strong material and then printed by rubbing, rolling, or spraying paint or ink through the cutout areas. It was developed c. 1900 and originally used in advertising and display work. In the 1950s fine artists began to use the process. It got its name from the fine-mesh silk that, when tacked to a wooden frame, serves as a support for the cut-paper stencil, which is glued to it. To make a silkscreen print, the wooden frame holding the screen is hinged to a slightly larger wooden board, the printing paper is placed on the board under the screen, and the paint is pressed through the screen with a squeegee (rubber blade) the same width as the screen. Many colours can be used, with a separate screen for each colour.