Process for the Reproduction of Oil, Water, and Water Body Colour Paintings, and Means therefor.
Year: 1896

page_text: Date of Application (in United Kingdom), 2nd Jan., 1896
Complete Specification Left, 2nd Jan., 1896-Accepted, 23rd. May, 1896
COMPITE SPECIFICATION
A Process for the Reproduction of Oil, Water, and Water Body
Colour Paintings, and Means therefor.
I, GIUSEPPE MORA, of Via Stella No. 37, Milan, in the Kingdom of Italy,
Manufacturer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention and in what manner
the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and
by the following statement :-
This invention relates to the reproduction by mechanical means of oil or water
body colour paintings which may, at pleasure, deal with historical or religious
subjects, represent landscapes or other views, or be used for advertising purposes,
for the preparation of topographical plans or geographical maps, for imitating
carpets or tapestry, or for the reproduction of serial views (or copies thereof) also
of book-covers, frontispieces or the like; all of which reproductions or representations
it is proposed to obtain by the superposition of transparent colours upon the layers
of colours used in the original to be reproduced, no matter whether these are oil
colours, water-colours, body-colours, or honey colours, or whether they are coated
with varnish, size or gelatine; the various reproductions, upon cloth, paper, wood,
metal, ivory, or the like, being so carried out, that they present accurate copies of
the originals-no matter whether of old or recent creation-rendering every
detail of the model copied from, every stroke of the pencil or brush, and giving
even a notion of the relative thickness of the several layers of colour applied, so
that the appearance of the picture having actually been (hand) painted is fully
kept up.
This result is attained by the following method.
After a suitable support, such as paper, canvas, wood, metal or the like,-bas
been selected, that which may be called a "preparatory" coating is applied
thereto; for which purpose a layer of an insoluble mixture, damp-proof and
impervious to water, composed of salts of chromium, for instance, bichromate of
ammonia, bichromate of potassium, chromic acid, mixed with a watered solution of
fish jelly, gum, glue or the like, making such solution an insoluble one in water,
when smeared on a surface exposed to the light, is spread over the support by
means of a brush, preferably made of the tail of the hake or salt cod, or simply by
hand, or by a suitable mechanical contrivance, according to requirements, or to
the nature of the support or of the original to be reproduced. When this is done,
the back of the support to be printed upon is covered or lined with paper, or
with thin metal plates, as the case may be; such lining or covering being fixed
thereto by starch paste, so that a species of stiffening surface is formed for the
time being, though it is subsequently (upon the completion of the work) removed
by the aid of steam. Now a tracing is taken of the model to he reproduced--

page_text: which may be the original picture, or a copy or photograph of the same-the
operation being the same as that usual in chromo-lithography. This tracing (or
positive photographic impression) is then transferred to cardboard, rendered
insoluble or water-resisting, or to thin metal sheets, or, indeed, to sheets or veneers
of wood, also rendered impervious to water; and these sheets (whatever the
material they consist of may be) are converted either by hand, by a chemical
process, or by means of a cutter, used while the sheets are dry, into as many
open or perforated patterns as may be required to reproduce the several layers
or thicknesses of colour, with their different tones or shades; each of such patterns
corresponding to a portion of the original, painted a given colour. The support
employed (viz. the paper, canvas wood or the like), whereon the tracing (or
photographic impression taken on the preparatory coating) is applied, is then
mounted in a suitable frame.
Upon this support there is then adjusted by means of marking points or pins,
one after another in succession,-as many patterns as there are different colours in
the original, requiring to be reproduced, there being one pattern for each of the
main colours or shades; after which the corresponding colour is applied to the
copy (through the pattern or stencil) by means of suitable brushes, by hand, or by
means of special machines fitted with brushes. The colour or ink employed for
this purpose should be mixed with a sufficient quantity of a suitable siccative,
while in all other respects it should correspond to that of the original, no matter
whether such original was painted in oils or water colours or the like, and whether
or not, it was sized or varnished; and as in the case of the original, the colours to
be used for the copies may be prepared with honey, gelatine size, oil or the like.
When the principal shades of colouring have thus been reproduced and a
complete solid layer of colour formed; and after every stroke of the brush,
appearing in the original, has been rendered, with its relative size or thickness-
(which is seen to before the colour has become quite dry), the well-dryed copies
are coated with varnish containing alcohol; and then the reproduction of the
balf-tints is proceeded with.
In order to obtain the half-tints, it is necessary, first, to prepare a photo-
isochromatic copy of the picture to be reproduced, which should be transferable by
the ordinary means or methods now in use, such as photo-lithography, photo-typing,
photo-engraving, or the like, and such copy is then transferred to stone, metal or
gelatine.
These half-tints are then so displayed that, both, in design, and in value or
strength of tone, they are exactly in keeping with the corresponding half-tints of
the original; which result is accomplished by chemical processes such as helio-
typing, chromo-typing, and the like, and by touching up the picture with a pen,
pencil or graver.
To print the half-tints, impressions, previously obtained upon zinc, copper, stone
or gelatine, with ink such as has been above suggested, are resorted to; care
being taken to render the said ink transparent. Or such ink as is ordinarily
employed for lithography or printing generally may be used; plane or roller-
printing presses (preferably with india rubber rollers, such as are in use for
printing upon sheet metal) being adopted. Or printing presses or machines, as
used in ordinary topography or lithography, may answer the purpose; or machines,
suited to the special requirements of each case, may be specially constructed; the
choice of the machinery to be employed depending to a great extent upon the
nature of the "support" adopted for the reproduction of the copies.
When the semi-tints have thus been applied to the coloured ground work,
obtained by the aid of the patterns or stencils (which ground-work may, however,
have been produced through the medium of photography, or simply drawn or
painted by hand, if preferred), the copies are allowed to dry in a convenient
desiccating chamber. After this, the said copies are varnished, so as to raise the
tones of colouring into due prominence; whereupon the tracing of the original
is again printed, care being taken to sprinkle over it colour which is soluble either

page_text: in water, alcohol, or petroleum. This tracing serves as a reliable guide for the
ultimate touching-up, which should be performed by hand, i.e. with a brush, and
the object of which is to "finish" the copy, so as to carry the identity between
it and the original to perfection.
The last-tracing is then removed at the points where this has not been done
in the retouching operation, for which purpose a sponge, soaked in water, alcohol,
or petroleum, should be used; and the final coat of varnish is eventually applied
as is usually done in the case of oil paintings; while, where water body-colour
paintings are to be copied, albumen may be employed for the purpose of
varnishing.
In some cases, the preparatory operations may be performed simply with a
brush, by hand or machinery, and with patterns or stencils, upon a tracing to be
finished with a brush by hand; this would specially apply where a large number of
copies is not required. The final result obtained by this method will prove
positively astonishing in its realism, as it will in a most remarkable manner keep
up in the observer's mind the illusion of its being an original hand-painted image
or design.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is :-
Oil, water colour or body-colour paintings reproduced mechanically by the
Dated this 2nd day of January 1896.
HASELTINE, LAKE & Co.,
45 Southampton Buildings, London, W.C., Agents for the Applicant.
HASELTINE, LAKE & Co.,
45 Southampton Buildings, London, W.C., Agents for the Applicant.