Back in the Studio

After a busy and productive summer of printmaking and helping to organize and participate in the Duwamish Residency, I finally made it back to my studio in Ballard today. It was good to be back where much of the work I’ve generated during the prior five years took place. It was also very good to once again be among my Building C Studios colleagues and friends. There is much about this place that feels like home, in no small part because of the fair amount of history it holds. But just as vacation can provide us with a fresh perspective on life, working away from the studio has invigorated me. I came back with the knowledge that my practice is strong no matter where my feet land. That provides another coming home of sorts.

It was surprising to discover, once I had pulled out the stack of mono and drypoint prints generated in class at UW this summer and during extra print studio time over the past two and a half weeks, that a pile of over 100 prints needed to be evaluated and organized. The first sort resulted in three piles of three distinct series of work. I posted examples of the first two series earlier on my blog. The first of those was generated through a process of painting, drawing, and creating three-dimension maquettes before making the prints. The second series is a playful exploration of circular patterns yet to be named. The third series was generated after completing the Duwamish Residency and is distinctly abstract and architectural. No pictures yet of this last one have been posted but they will be in the near future. 

In the meantime, I’ll continue to cull through the prints to determine which ones are the keepers, and dust off the studio in preparation for September art walk on the second Saturday of the month. Oh, and prepare to settle back into a studio practice through the upcoming winter. It's good to be back home.

A Week of Endings

Yesterday was the final day of the Duwamish Residency. It will take some time to articulate what this experience has encompassed but the immediate one-word description that comes to mind is amazing. Eight days in this visual wonderland with nine talented studio artists and just "good people" was a real treat. Each willingly took on the challenge of working outside in an unfamiliar area of the city to see what would happen. Last night we had a closing dinner and shared our work. The volumn, variety and strength of work was humbling and inspiring.

The other ending this week is the 8-week class on monoprints and drypoint at the UW. This has been another experience that has shifted my perspective significantly, and solidified my love of the printmaking process. Today, my last day of printing before the final submission, was focused on creating a series based upon the Duwamish Residency, which succeeded in bringing these two experiences together. I will share a few of them here soon.

Now, it's time to get back to my studio. I believe I remember what it looks like.

Currents: Seattle Print Arts at Jacob Lawrence Gallery

If you've been following my blog then you know about my enchantment with mono and dry point printing this summer because of a class taught by Curt Labitzke and Claire Cowie at the University of Washington. One of the prints generated while in class, Surfacing, will be included in Current, an exhibition presented by Seattle Print Arts at Jacob Lawrence Gallery on campus and opening next Friday, August 10 from 4 to 7 pm. It is only up until the 18th so catch it quickly!

Prior to this summer my printing experience was minimal. While I had taken a couple of good week-end workshops at Pratt Fine Art Center, without sufficient time with a press it was impossible to get a handle on this whole thing called printing. Anyone who has printed knows about the overwhelming options, which can be both good and bad. Armed with an almost unlimited access to a print studio and two excellent instructors, I have managed to produce several prints that excite me. These all relate back to the continuing process I wrote about earlier this summer where I have moved from painting to 3-D, then to drawing and printing, all the while using the same imagery as my source. Once summer passes I'll return to my studio to paint and am excited to see where that takes me. As for the prints that didn't work out, they are material for some future collage. It's all fodder. It's all good.