My earliest memory of scratch art was in 1952. Our second grade teacher had us make blocks of color with our crayons on a piece of paper and then cover the blocks with a thick coat of black crayon. She gave no indication what the end result would be. When the class was done she handed out Popsicle sticks and told us to scratch lines through the black crayon. I still remember the wonder of watching the colors magically appear as I scratched. I still experience that awe every time I work on scratchboard.

- D. Lee

About Scratchboard

My works are not photographs, they are scratchboard art. Scratchboard art is a form of direct etching using a sharp, pointed tool to scratch out an image. Traditional scratchboard is a three-layer medium made up of a support surface coated with a layer of smooth white kaolin clay (porcelain) and then sprayed with a layer of thin black ink. I scratch through the layer of ink, often using the tip of a surgical scalpel, to expose the white clay below, producing a black and white image. When light strikes the exposed porcelain it gives an iridescent glow. I sometimes add color to the exposed white areas of the work with inks or paint. Most scratchboard artwork can take well over 100 hours of scratching to be completed.

Scratchboard is unique and produces dramatic imagery unlike any other medium. It gives the ability to create amazing detail.

About the Artist

In March of 2009 Diana Lee joined a select group of featured artists, including Claybord inventor Charles Ewing, in an international show of scratchboard art in Indianapolis. Sponsored by Ampersand, the company that manufactures scratchboard, the show in Indianapolis was one of the first ever to focus specifically on the medium scratchboard.

Diana is featured in The Artist’s Magazine, March 2010 issue.

Diana has just finished a one year showing of some of her scratchboards at the San Francisco City Hall.

She has produced commissioned illustrations for a California women’s magazine and books by a fellow artist. She has exhibited, and is exhibiting, her scratchboards in a number of galleries in Northern California. She is currently finishing up a "how to" book on scratchboard including tutorials on using scratchboard with different color mediums.

Diana is currently offering workshops and demonstrations with scratchboard. Ampersand uses her artwork to illustrate the potential of their product and for their new signage.

Diana has designed posters for local theater productions as well as logos for various businesses. She has produced commissioned illustrations for a California women’s magazine and a book by a fellow artist. Diana has exhibited her scratchboards in a number of galleries in Northern California.