Lithography guide: What is a lithograph print?

Lithography is a planographic process, which means the image is created on a flat surface as opposed to being carved or etched into the material.

Below are the key steps in making a lithograph print:

1. An artist draws their image directly onto a smooth stone or metal plate, using a greasy medium. This medium is usually an oily ink known as tusche, which can come in the form of a crayon, pastel or liquid
2. The stone is then treated with a chemical solution to secure the image, before being dampened with water
3. While the stone is still wet, oil-based printing ink is rolled onto it. The principle behind this process is that grease and water do not mix, so when the stone is dampened, the ink only sticks to the drawn image rather than the wet surface
4. Damp paper is then laid onto the stone and run through a press, transferring the inked image, which is printed in reverse

As the final image printed is a mirror of the original design, some artists draw in reverse so that the final print is the correct way round — though for more abstract artists, this precise mirroring isn’t as important.

A defining feature of a lithograph print is its immediacy. The artist works on a flat surface, which enables them to draw with more freedom than if they had to etch lines or marks into the surface.

The ink used in lithography produces the same fluidity of movement on a plate that it would on paper, which means artists can still convey a sense of spontaneity within their prints and capture the emotions and nuances of their work. The greasy materials used to make the design create the appearance of pencil and pastel-like lines, causing the print to look much closer to a drawing.

A tonal range can also be achieved through lithography, as well as printing in a variety of colours by using multiple stones or plates. This technique’s capacity for subtle shading and layering colours has drawn many artists to lithography over the years, such as David Hockney and Salvador Dalí.

As the process grew in popularity, other types of lithography beyond the traditional technique developed, such as photolithography and transfer lithography. Artists also began to use metal plates rather than stones as their design surface, as the plates allowed for greater flexibility.

Modern masters such as Henri Matisse and Joan Miró embraced lithography in the 20th century, valuing its versatility. Pablo Picasso liked how lithography allowed him to easily erase, rework and amend an image as he went along, once saying, ‘The movement of my thought interests me more than the thought itself.’

In the artist’s 11-lithograph series Bull (Le Taureau), produced between December 1945 and January 1946, Picasso made a succession of images of a bull, each one building on the one before. Lithographs also enabled artists to create reproductions of other works, with Edvard Munch producing a set of black-and-white lithographs of his famous The Scream in 1895.

The technique is still used today, with artist Julian Opie producing important lithographic editions during his career. David Hockney is also renowned for his lithographs, such as Afternoon Swimming (1979), with one edition selling at Christie’s in 2021 for US$500,000.

The accessibility and adaptability this printmaking technique offers means artists can produce many high-quality prints that are still rooted in the act and movement of drawing.