Photopolymer plates are used in the commercial printing industry, particularly for printing directly on to non-flat surfaces, such as plastic bottles and cartons.

Over the last two decades, artists in America and Australia have begun using this material for fine art purposes. Some of the pioneers call their technique solar plate (the derivation of the term becomes obvious from a description of the technique).

The photopolymer material is attached to a flexible backing of thin metal or plastic. This coating is sensitive to ultra-violet light, e.g. daylight, but not to artificial lighting. The artist may thus work on the plate indoors, away from daylight, without the complications of a photographic darkroom.

The artist prepares a transparency, either by simply drawing in opaque ink on an acetate sheet or by printing an image on to a special photocopier or computer printer transparency. The image may thus be either "autographic" (drawn by the artist) or derived from photographic, commercial or digitally manipulated imagery.

This transparency is then put in direct contact with the unexposed solar plate, in a "contact frame" and taken into the daylight. Exposure times vary according to the intensity of ultra-violet light. In winter, 20 minutes or longer may be required; in summer, much less. After exposure, the photopolymer plate is rinsed in running tapwater. The areas under the opaque drawing remain un-exposed and dissolve in water. The areas exposed to ultra-violet light harden and remain intact.

The technique can produce plates for both relief and intaglio printmaking. 

Solar plate has been slow to catch on in the UK and the Sidney Nolan Trust is one of relatively few studios exploring this new and exciting technique. It can produce plates every bit as detailed and durable as traditional acid etching on copper plates but without the health & safety risks associated with acid, resin dusts and solvents. As printmaking workshops respond to statutory and user pressure to adopt "safe" printmaking techniques, solar plate is likely to be used increasingly as an alternative. The Sidney Nolan Trust aims to be in the forefront of these developments and is running a major project in 2004 to spread knowledge and use of solar plates in fine art printmaking in the Border Marches area around its base near Presteigne.

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