Intaglio is probably the most admired of printmaking traditions because of the intricacies of mark that can be achieved through this complex process.In contrast to relief, Intaglio prints are created by linking the recessed worked sections of the plate, and wiping the surface clean so that it prints white. Sometimes lines and positive areas are physically cut away or engraved. One of the simplest Intaglio processes is drypoint where lines are scratched into the surface of the plate with a needle, leaving a burr of metal which creates a soft line when printed.An interesting variant of Intaglio is mezzotint where the printmaker works from black to white, rather than white to black. The metal plate is punctured with a mezzotint rocker or scored with numerous lines so that it would print black, then areas of the plate surface are smoothed by burnishing so that they will print white.