Easy to refresh the gelatin plate

Yesterday I made a small gelatin and water printing plate. The plate was about 3/4″ inch thick and in a 5″ x 7″ acrylic box. That is kind of thick.

gelatin plate for monoprinting

When I pried it out of the box frame the underside cracked a bit. That is not the end of the plate. I could still print with it.

thread print made with gelatin plate

So I just cut up the plate, put it into a glass measuring cup and microwaved it for a couple of minutes.

cut up the gelatin plate to refresh

The glass measuring cup is great because it makes it very easy to pour the gelatin into the pan, no dribbly mess.

melt the gelatin in a glass measuring cup

Then to make the gelatin plate a bit thinner, I poured the melted mixture into a bigger pan. This will make it easier to get out of the pan. And then hopefully this simple gelatin and water plate will not crack.

strain the gelatin through cheesecloth as you pour it into the pan

If you would like to explore gelatin printmaking, then join us in Make Monotypes, the online printmaking course. Read the details on the workshop page.