The term “matrix” often refers to the original mold used to produce a final product in manufacturing such as the matrix to press vinyl records, or the matrix die to stamp out coins, or the matrix used to cast letterpress letters. The matrix is a means to an end. It is an intermediary rather than the final result. It is the inverse of the desired form yet carries all of the information necessary to produce the desired form.

In printmaking it is common to refer to anything that holds the ink as a matrix. Once transferred from the original image to the plate and then to the pulled print the image is transformed in the reproduction.