Scratchboard

スクラッチボード / 19th century– / Technique / Hand-drawn

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.

Scratchboard — Jane S. Richardson, hand-drawn ribonuclease S ribbon diagram on scratchboard — image: Dcrjsr — Wikimedia Commons / CC BY 3.0 — Jane S. Richardson, hand-drawn ribonuclease S ribbon diagram on scratchboard — image: Dcrjsr — Wikimedia Commons / CC BY 3.0 · CC BY 3.0

Scratchboard — AI-generated interpretation 1 — AI-generated interpretation, not a reference work

Scratchboard — AI-generated interpretation 2 — AI-generated interpretation, not a reference work

At a glance

Visual 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

Best used for

High-contrast illustration of animals, machines and figures
Giving dark packaging and posters a hard engraved light

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Dictionary entry

Type: Use bold reversed headlines and keep fine copy in uninterrupted black fields.
Composition: Begin with black and cut only lit contours and focal detail into white.
Material: Ink a white clay board and scratch varied lines and dots with needles, blades and scrapers.
Caution: Inverting a black-and-white photograph is not scratchboard. Direction and width of cuts must describe surface and light.
Further study: Clay-coated board / Subtractive white line / Scratchboard engraving tools

Related entries

Woodcut (木版画)Shared effects: Rebellion.Compare Scratchboard and Woodcut
Linocut (リノカット)Editorially linked for a useful contrast.Compare Scratchboard and Linocut

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