Hi Zoe! 

my sincerest thanks for the kind words on my etchings. 

ok, let’s see… I started working with etching and printmaking relatively recently. a couple years ago I began working in the medium. There were a couple main reasons for going this direction:

- I have been illustrating in pen and ink for quite some time. It is my favorite way to draw and illustrate and create. I discovered that many of the aesthetic qualities I was trying to achieve were based on etching and engraving. The delicate way layers of line can be manipulated and defined. There are so many doors and tools that are opened by working on copper instead of paper. 

- I really prefer working completely with my hands. In the past I have had to process and work my illustrations for print prep digitally. ANd it is frustrating to lose something in the process - add to that the fact that in order to make screen prints or digital prints I hand off my work to someone else, which inevitably ended up driving me crazy. 

So I do this. And it suits me perfectly. I enjoy the process so much. I love the completely analog story involved in every piece. 

As far as artists and advice goes, I would definitely look into E.S. Lumsden’s book on etching. It is quite old. And it references works that are far older. But for me it gave more information than all the “modern" etching/intaglio books combined. 

I am happy to answer any technical / process questions too. 

Joe