Final Print

After many proofs and re-etching to improve the image, the plate is inked with coloured inks. Making sure the colours do not overlap is the painstaking process of registration. Where each colour is separately applied to the paper, the plate must sit in exactly the same position relative to the paper as all the other colours.

Any mis-step now leads to a mis-print, and the plate must be cleaned and started again before the final proof can be added to the edition. Marie-Louise limits her editions to just 45 prints; all are numbered and signed with the title in the traditional pencil. There may also be up to four Artist’s Proofs, or ten per cent of the edition (identified by the letters AP where the edition number would be).