Motoring Art Etchings

An etching is no ordinary print. It is a time consuming and skilled art. Very few motoring artists work in this medium, the examples here are by Peter Hearsey - well known to Goodwood goers as the artist behind all of the Festival of Speed posters since the first event.

To produce each etching, a metal (usually copper) plate is covered with a waxy ground which is acid-resistant. The artist then scratches off the ground with a pointed etching needle where he wants a line to appear in the finished piece, so exposing the bare metal. The plate is then dipped in a bath of acid, technically called the mordant (French for "biting") or etchant. The acid "bites" into the metal, where it is exposed, leaving behind lines in the plate. The remaining ground is then cleaned off the plate. The plate is inked all over, and then the ink wiped off the surface, leaving only the ink in the etched lines.
The plate is then put through a high-pressure printing press together with a sheet of paper and the paper picks up the ink from the etched lines, making a print.

As it is a hand process each inking and passing through the press will produce a slightly different print. So, within an edition each print will be unique. Eventually the plate wears so can no longer be used, or is scored through to preserve the edition.

A wide range of Peter's etchings, paintings and prints are available from our gallery.