Scratchboard vs Woodcut
スクラッチボード / 木版画
Scratchboard comes from Hand-drawn and Woodcut from Relief Printing. They are reached for with some of the same intent, which is where they get confused.
Scratchboard
Scratchboard removes black ink from a white clay-coated board, drawing light and contour out of darkness; blade width, crossing and retained black create fur, metal and nocturnal contrast.
Woodcut
Prints the surface left after carving, raising an image through line direction and the pressure of black and white.
| Scratchboard | Woodcut | |
|---|---|---|
| Era | 19th century– | 8th century– |
| Family | Hand-drawn | Relief Printing |
| Kind | Technique | Technique |
| Cues | Sharp white lines cut from a black ground / Contour and highlight joined by the same blade marks / Crossed lines and dots producing middle values / Broad retained black with concentrated white detail | Direction of the cut / Hard black-white contrast / Density of line / The block's materiality |
| Best used for | High-contrast illustration of animals, machines and figures · Giving dark packaging and posters a hard engraved light | Carving a strong story or symbol in one color · Handwork resistance and reproducibility at once |
| Type | Use bold reversed headlines and keep fine copy in uninterrupted black fields. | Contrast a heavy headline with the print's fine lines |
| Composition | Begin with black and cut only lit contours and focal detail into white. | Place the black masses first; open focal points with white cuts |
| Material | Ink a white clay board and scratch varied lines and dots with needles, blades and scrapers. | Ink black and paper; run the line direction along the form |
| Caution | Inverting a black-and-white photograph is not scratchboard. Direction and width of cuts must describe surface and light. | Not a digital scuff texture. Design where the black stays and which way you carve. |