Unexpected opportunity

This magic handmade box holds the prints of 41 artists.  Last September I received an email inviting me to participate in a print exchange in May 2020 to celebrate Pat Clark's 85th birthday.  Pat has mentored many of us in her retirement, but during her working years she was dean of the art department at Long Beach State, also executive director at the Idlywild School of Music and the Arts, and graduate of the Cranbrook Academy of Art.  I give that background to make it clear how fortunate I am to have stumbled into printmaking with Pat the year after we moved to Bend. 

The invitation said we would be probably be making and edition of 30. I have never editioned!!   Pat said, I am inviting you to participate in an artist call.  After examining the environment of water for the past five years with my water table project, I am ready to transition.  In the spirit of exploring water, I would like to investigate the theme of FLOW with an invitational print exchange.  This exchange invites you to focus on the word "flow" using your own unique visual interpretation.  "Flow" has a myriad of meanings in addition to water flow.  Air flow, ice flow, electrical flow, flow state, the flow of time, blood flow, going with the flow and so many other terms can be utilized to inspire your personal vision.

Kelly Salber, a Paper and Book artist in Sisters made the handmade paper boxes for each one of us.  She also wrote a touching and embracing poem to accompany each box.

In the end there were 41 prints, 25% more than anticipated.  I was terrified to participate but I kept pecking away, figuring that I could always quict if I really couldn't do it.  I made a deal with myself that I wouldn't quit until I was truly in over my head.  I don't have a press so had to hand pull every print and I learned so much!!


In addition to the exquisite box we all received a magnetic board to display the prints on.  This is a photograph done by Alyson Belcher and its moody lighting reminds me of summer camp.


One of the very special things is that many of the printmakers are people I know and some of them are friends.  It's a treat to look at the piece and think of that person.  Barbara Kennedy did this one.

Alexia and I are very fond of this print done by Denise Rich.  She printed the leaves then embellished a single leaf, quite a process, times 41!

Before the studio closed 18 months ago Jane Quale came upon a technique of inking distressed cloth and running it through the press, an image that she has made distinctively hers.

This is Pat Clark's and as in everything I've ever seen of hers, I am blown away.  I have no idea how she embossed the paper or created the image on separate blocks so that when printed, it all goes together.


This is mine.  There are only a half dozen relief prints in the collection.  I got the beginning of the idea when washing my favorite vase and putting it away after the flowers had expired.  I realized that because it's clear you could see that there's no water in and I started thinking of "no flow" for my theme.  But wait, if we're in a drought there won't be flowers anyway, so what could one decorate with and I came up with recycled twizzlers.  I can't spread my inky stuff out in my work area just now but I'm anxious to get back to work.  I learned relief printing before I learned photography and I think that's why I am attached to it; it's an old friend.