This digital object has been developed in “Properties and new uses of materials for design” subject from the Design degree from EINA, University School of Design and Art (attached to the Autonomous University of Barcelona). The aim of the subject has been research about one material and then design a project in the Graphic Design and Visual Creation area where this material present a new use.
http://residualinks.wix.com/residualinks
This is the website about our project of residual inks. Currently, there are many different types of inks, the most used are chemicals but increasingly there are more vegetable-based inks. We have wanted to go further, experimenting and creating vegetable inks from residual food. In this field, there is no one who has tried to create this kind of inks, thus as a research base, we only have had the information of the vegetable based inks experiments.
The idea of residual inks emerged after making a research on vegetable-based inks and its environmental impact, one of the latest trends within the print. Already increasingly more because, both, designers and printers try to be more sustainable.
So, following the line of the already marketed vegetable inks we wanted to take further and try to bring sustainable design to anyone that makes small projects. And it was at this point where we came with the idea of making natural and vegetable inks not from food, but from the waste that we generate at home when we cook. We didn’t want to waste food. We wanted to try to generate less waste.
So that while we create an ink that is non-toxic and which is at the same time edible, so for example you could stamp on edible paper, we reuse all waste that would go away.
To achieve these inks, we have followed a process of trial and error. As the first ink which worked with silkscreen was the orange peel, we have focused that all other
inks can work into the printing system. All these inks, to get a good result, have been printed with screen printing using a 43 threads textile screen, as it leaves pass
more amount of ink. Moreover, the best paper to use is an highweight paper because the inks are so watery.
By: Clara Casanovas, Laia Closas, Júlia Sala and Maria Viladomiu