Women Printmakers of the East Bay - Masters of the Matrix
As we move towards Thanksgiving, we tend to slow down a bit to soak in the fall colors and hints of El Niño in the air – so perhaps slowing down a bit could also include viewing artwork from the California Society of Printmakers (CSP). It fills the entire Art Gallery at the Orinda Library with both cutting-edge and traditional art through Nov. 28.
Meet these talented printmakers at their opening reception on Nov. 7 from 2:30 to 4:30 p.m. while enjoying the harvest colors in the trees viewed from the outdoor patio. Exhibitors include Shari Arai DeBoer, Donna W. Brown, Beth Fein, Bushra Gill, Marian Harris, Karen Gallagher Iverson, Rita Danguole Kuolas, Carol Brent Levin, Mary Marsh, Arline Reimann, Karen Baden Thapa, Donna Day Westerman, Linda Yoshizawa and Dana Zed.
Printmaking is the process of transferring ink from one surface to another. One of the earliest forms of printmaking is the woodcut, which originated in China in about the second century CE. An image is cut into a wood block (matrix) by gouging with a knife-like instrument.
The surface is then inked and printed on paper or another surface by the application of pressure. In etching or intaglio printmaking, the image is etched into a copper, zinc or steel plate using acid. Ink is then applied to the surface and wiped. The incised lines hold the ink which is then printed onto the paper under the pressure of the printing press. You will view many types of prints fitting these descriptions in the show.
The three components involved in printmaking and producing hand-pulled prints on display are: the matrix, the ink and the dispersal of ink. The matrix can be a wooden block, a copper plate etched with acid, a plexiglass plane in monoprint, a stone in lithography, or a screen in screenprinting. Ink can be oil-based or water-based; the latter is used more widely today because it is less environmentally toxic and easier to work with.
Wax provides an especially challenging material for working with printmaking. Printmaker Iverson rose to this challenge because she has worked with this luminous material for two decades.
Now she produces highly detailed pochoir (meaning: to stencil, poh-SHWAHR) screens in plastic, and uses them to build up monoprints in soft pastel on wax. Carefully viewing her “Gilded Dunes in Crimson,” a 24-inch by 54-inch three-panel monoprint, reveals that it is an example of a highly refined hand-stenciling printmaking technique, or “pochoir-printed.”
All 14 artists are members of the CSP, caprintmakers.org, live in the East Bay and share a common love of printmaking and the process itself. As the oldest printmaking organization in the country, CSP is celebrating 112 years.
This talented group has exhibited extensively and has artwork in numerous collections, including the Smithsonian Institute, the Achenbach Foundation for Graphic Arts and the Bancroft Library. They became connected by meeting in various workshops and studios, including the Kala Art Institute in Berkeley.
“We all share a passion for printmaking and the many processes and approaches the discipline offers,” said Brown, curator of the show.
Visit the Gallery to view artwork from Oct. 31 to Nov. 28 at 26 Orinda Way. Hours are Mon. – Thu., 10 a.m. to 8 p.m., Fri. – Sat., 10 a.m. – 6 p.m., closed Sundays and Nov. 11, 25 and 26. Call 925.254.2184 for more Library information or visit ccclib.org/. Questions about the exhibit or need more information? Email gallery@LamorindaArts.org, visit LamorindaArts.org/galleries-2 or call 925.359.4490.
Westerman The branches and leaves of “El Toyonal Oak” seem to reach out and surround you the longer you gaze at it. If you have ever walked the El Toyonal trail, Donna Day Westerman’s 14” x 16” woodblock print will make perfect sense to you. A woodblock print is created using the oldest form of relief printmaking. This is a process where text, images or patterns are hand-carved into a block of wood. Ink is then applied to the raised areas and then transferred onto paper, fabric or textiles by pressing the medium firmly against the block. It is on display in the Art Gallery at the Orinda Library through Nov. 28 as part of the Women Printmakers of the East Bay exhibit.
Art to Take Your Breath Away
Saint Mary’s College Museum of Art presents a Malcom W. Kenter solo show, “Synecdoche,” comprising 21 works which capture a sense of San Francisco architectural history and enables us to see the ordinary in a new way. It ends Dec. 13 with student-led gallery tours Nov. 7 and 14, Communal Threads reciprocal weaving Nov. 4 and 21, and William Keith Week, daily artful choices Nov. 16-21, stmarys-ca.edu/museum-art.
“Maren Hassinger: Living Moving Growing,” the largest retrospective yet of the artist’s multidisciplinary career, explores the dancer-turned-artist’s interest in how we perceive our environment and ourselve, through movement, material and shared experience. It ends Nov. 29 at the Berkeley Art Museum and Pacific Film Archive, bampfa.org/
“Celebration” is the theme throughout November at Main Street Arts in Martinez. The gallery is celebrating 10 years in business, Martinez is celebrating 150 years, and each of the 12 artist members are celebrating their art, especially at the First Friday Downtown Stroll Nov. 6, 6 – 9 p.m. including music, art and dining, MainStreetArts.net/.