printmaking

This week, I’d like to share one of my own relief prints for Print of the Week. For those not familiar with this technique, to create a relief print, you carve away at the printing surface (usually a block of wood or rubber linoleum) to create your image, and the areas left behind are coated in ink and printed onto paper. It’s a labor intensive process, but I love the bold, graphic lines you can achieve using the carving tools.

I created this print to symbolize the ways we stay connected to the ones we love, even if we are faraway. Something I’ve been thinking about more often as the holidays approach…

I’ve been featuring traditional prints here on the blog every week since May, I hope you’ve enjoyed seeing so many modern examples of what you can achieve with printmaking techniques. I’m planning to continue this series in 2013, do you have any favorite printmakers you’d like me to feature?

If you’d like to purchase this print, you can find it in my second Etsy shop. Edit 5/1/14: my print shop has closed, but send me an email if you want to inquire about my printmaking work.

After a couple weeks of featuring artists I’ve been fans of for years, I thought I’d share a print from an artist I only became familiar with recently: Glenn Goldberg. The monoprint with with woodcut and relief details above is titled, “Wish #9,” and is part of a series of wildly detailed abstract prints. Goldberg’s work reminds me of needlepoint or richly detailed floral motifs from Indian art, and the way he seems to stitch together these pieces makes me wonder if he might have an interest in textiles like I do. I’d love to get a chance to see some of his work in person, I’d bet that the textures in his pieces are even more impressive in person.

While my favorite Wayne Thiebaud works remain his crazy cityscapes, with their bizarre angles and warped perspectives, I am growing ever-fonder of his series of works involving desserts. When I spotted these prints, which he created in 2006 at Crown Point Press, I knew I had to share them here for Print of the Week.

The first image is titled, “Cupcakes and Donuts,” the second, “Dark Cakes and Pies.”

Note to all my Los Angeles local readers: Don’t forget to swing by Renegade Holiday Market this weekend to see Cotton & Flax in person. Also, if this post made you hungry for sweet treats, stop by Matchbox Kitchen‘s table at another great holiday market, Work/Shop, which is also happening on Saturday. Her baked goods are my favorite!

I know we’re deep into a week of gift wrap related posts (there’s one more later today!), but I didn’t want to skip Print of the Week – it’s one of my favorite weekly traditions here on the blog!

I’ve been a fan of Kiki Smith’s work for a long time, but I am always surprised by how prolific an artist she is. The two etchings above, from a series of handcolored etchings she made called “Touch,” are new to me. I love the fine detail in Smith’s work, it’s easy to imagine her laboring over prints such as these.

Her drawings are similarly detailed and lush, like this one titled, “Deer Things.” I love how magical and delicate her work feels, and the contrast between that softness, and her strong feminist views that are often on display in her work.

As we enter the holiday season, I think it’s a fitting time to share the work of one of my favorite artists and printmakers, Corita Kent. Kent was a key figure in establishing screenprinting, or serigraphy, as a fine art medium during the 60’s and 70’s. Kent’s work is filled with messages of peace and love, and reflects her commitment to social justice. I find her work to be very moving, and the messages behind her work are as relevant today as they were 50 years ago.

One of my favorite prints of hers is the above left image, which features the quote: “But there is only one thing that has power completely, and that is love.”

In case you’re curious, Printeresting talked about Corita Kent in 2008, and it’s still worth the read.

I’m currently loving David Hockney’s “Portrait of Mother III,” the simplicity of line and color fascinates me. This print is a lithograph; keep in mind that each color is printed from a separate drawing, and has to be meticulously lined up on the press to make sure it overlaps in all the right places.  I’ve featured Hockney’s work for Print of the Week before, in case you want to see another excellent print of his.