Paper Pyrography
with Adrian Timmins
Following an introduction into the world of Pyrography, courtesy of artist Adrian Timmins, we thought that we'd ask him to give us, and you, an insight into his practises. We'd like to thank Adrian immensely for writing this article for us!
Pyrography Term:
'Pyrography or pyrogravure is the art of decorating wood or other materials with burn marks resulting from the controlled application of a heated object such as a poker. It is also known as pokerwork or wood burning.' https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pyrography
Adrian Timmins:
“After
sharing some of my artwork with one of the representatives at St Cuthberts
Mill, I was asked to write an article concerning pyrography (burned art) and my
work on paper.
Pyrography
has a reasonable following worldwide, but is extremely popular in the USA. I
run a facebook group where advice concerning pyrography machines, techniques,
and materials are discussed on a frequent basis. For the most part there is a
tendency to use wood for pyrography and this is also how I got started. Burning
wood has the benefit of being quite cheap, and forgiving, if you make a
mistake, simply grab the sander and remove the offensive area.
 |
| Two different pyrography pens |
The
tools used by pyrography artists range from the very low end soldering type
tools with no temperature controls, (these are known as solid point pens, and
some do have temperature controls) up to specialist machines made by various
companies where there are a plethora of different shaped tips available. Much
as an artist will have various brushes / pencils or pens, I will add we have
some artists who produce incredible work with any of the above tools So start
up costs can be as low as £15.00, up to approximately £115.00 for something
like a Peter Child's machine (Made in the UK and the most popular machine here in the USA.)
 |
| A Peter Childs pyrography machine |
It
was just over a year into my wood pyrography I saw a few paper pyrography
works. I was instantly attracted to the beauty of paper burning, and decided
there was no time like the present. I headed straight to a local craft store
purchased some cheap art paper, got home, and was somewhat dissuaded after
burning many holes in it. Frustrated, I sought advice on the papers currently
being used by the few artists’ who do paper pyrography. At this point I had
very little knowledge of paper in general, and had previously done most of my
charcoal work on very cheap papers.
The
next piece of work I produced on slightly better paper, looked reasonable and I was
pleased with the overall effort. I continued on accepting that a lot of
practice would be needed in order to avoid burning through the paper, and
getting nice dark shades in certain areas.
 |
| Adrian Timmins - pyrography on Bockingford paper |
I
started adding some Sepia and Black inks to certain pieces to achieve the
desired effect, not realizing that to a great degree it was the paper I was
using that was holding my pyrography shading back. My work was being noticed
and commented on by a lot more people, but I still wanted to achieve everything
using solely pyrography and not use inks to get those lovely dark tones.
During
recent months, I had started wondering whether there could possibly be a paper
made specifically for pyrography, or at least a more suitable paper than I was
currently using. I browsed and contacted a few paper mills receiving a few
raised eyebrows along the way when asking, "How does your paper burn, as I
am a pyrography artist", Most of the comments were "What's
pyrography?”
I
received samples from some of the mills and most of these were simply not
suitable. One of the things you instantly look for when doing paper pyrography
is the "Burn through" point. This is the depth you can achieve with
Brown or Black before you are risking burning a hole through the paper.
Eliminating,
or at least severely minimizing this risk, leaves a pyrography artist
concentrating more on their work than fearing how long it will be before the
work is possibly ruined.
 |
| Adrian Timmins - pyrography on Saunders Waterford CP(NOT) paper |
I
eventually came to work on some CP (Cold Press) Saunders (Waterford) 100 %
cotton samples, which were stunning for pyrography in every respect. I could
finally achieve great contrast without even coming close to burning through the
paper. I could also correct mistakes, and much to my delight no buckling to
deal with. My first piece on CP Saunders paper was burned and went straight to
the frame without problem. Since this time I have used many of the St
Cuthbert’s papers, even their printmaking paper, which gave lovely results.
Each paper requires a different temperature, and a slightly different approach
to be successfully burned.
 |
| Adrian Timmins - pyrography on Somerset paper |
If
you have any interest in pyrography, please feel free to contact me, or join my
group. Advice within the group is completely free, and myself or another
experienced pyrography artist is usually available to help with any questions
concerning Pyrography, or supplies. We have artists of all levels worldwide,
and we keep a friendly open environment.”
(It
is a closed group so please answer the questions is you apply)
