History of Lino Printing
Linoleum was invented and used as a floor covering in the late 1800s. As printmakers using wood blocks looked for easier and less expensive ways of block printing, they turned to the new product, according to the Printmaking Dictionary. The word "linoleum" dates to 1863 when Frederick Walton of England combined the Latin word for flax, "linum," with the Latin word for oil, "oleum," according to India Crafts.
In the late 1800s, linoleum was considered a poor engraver's wood and often used by amateurs or as a teaching product in schools, according to the Printmaking Dictionary. But when artists such as Henri Matisse and Pablo Picasso started using linoleum in the early 1900s, its popularity grew. |