Four types of ink were common before the
20th century, and are still in use today: carbon (Chinese
and Indian), iron-gall, bistre, and sepia. Now we also have acrylic
ranges in many colors. Inks can be lightfast or non-lightfast,
waterproof or non-waterproof, and most can be homemade.
- CARBON INK: Traditionally produced
from oil or resin soot (Lamp Black),
roasted wine sediment (Yeast Black).
charred bone (Ivory Black), or charcoal,
suspended in a binder and stored as a
solid block Blocks are imported today
from China. - INDIAN INK: Carbon ink sold today
in liquid form. Waterproof types contain
shellac. It dries with a sheen and clogs
uncleaned pens. Non-waterproof Indian
inks can be reworked with a wet brush
after drying. Old stock turns solid and
bottles are not dated. - IRON-GALL INK: Abnormal spherical
growths caused by parasitic wasps can be
collected from some oak trees in fall.
Crushed, boiled, reduced, and sieved, they
produce a golden dye for drawing. The
complexities of traditional iron-gall ink
are explained on p.36. - SEPIA AND BISTRE INKS: Sepia,
an often misused term, is the ink of a
cuttlefish or squid extracted post-mortem.
Bistre is the more humane use of soot
scraped from the fireplace and ground
into wine. Beechwood soot is best. - ACRYLIC / CALLIGRAPHY INKS:
Available in black and a range of colors.
Excellent for drawing they are bright and
non-clogging, and can be mixed and
diluted to create subtler colors and
tones. They are the easiest inks to use.
PEN
AND
INK
INKS