Floating Ink

Set color afloat and shape it into something that can exist only once. Floating Ink recreates the craft of paper marbling on a working digital tray. Every new drop pushes the colors already on the surface outward. Pull a comb through the bath and the nearest tooth determines how the paint moves, creating the delicate differences between lines, feathers, curls and fans. FOLLOW HISTORIC RECIPES Learn 30 marbling patterns inspired by workshops in Istanbul, Kyoto, Amsterdam and London’s traditional bookbinderies. Each recipe breaks the design into a sequence of drops, comb passes and movements across the tray. Create nonpareil, peacock, feathered and curled patterns while discovering how a small change in spacing can transform the entire print. WORK WITH REAL MATERIALS Choose from 16 traditional pigments and six paper surfaces. Colors spread, compress and shift as new paint enters the bath. The comb responds differently beneath its teeth and through the spaces between them, producing patterns that feel structured without becoming mechanical. LIFT THE PRINT Place a sheet over the finished design and lift it from the tray. The floating paint transfers to the paper, leaving the water clear for your next piece. Every print is stored as its complete sequence of actions rather than a frozen image. Open it again and Floating Ink reconstructs the artwork exactly as it was made. REFINE YOUR TECHNIQUE Completed recipes are rendered onto a detailed comparison grid and checked against the target pattern. Improve the placement of your drops, the direction of each pass and the spacing of the comb until the structure falls into place. Study a traditional recipe, follow the movement of the color, then return to the tray and make the pattern your own