"Landscape of Imagination"

Collagraph monoprint, 11 x 15". I made this print in April 2010, using this plate for the first time. I experimented with the initial inking of the plate as well as with the composition of the print as a whole. As I worked on these prints, I was faced with numerous decisions. I especially needed to decide what to do for the next step, or whether to do nothing. In this case, I was tempted to add more to this print but decided that I liked the image as it is. I worked quite a bit with leaving voids on the paper, and this white "void" taking up the bottom half of the print worked for me. It gave me the impression of a hill, perhaps (but not necessarily) snow-covered. I see many things in this image, and I leave you to see what you will. Allow your experiences and imagination to do their thing.

"Oracle Bone #3"

Collagraph monoprint, 7 7/8 x 3 1/4". As I played around with colors and imagery I worked on several scales. I'm not one to let perfectly good paper get tossed in the trash or recycling bins, not when there's potential for cool small prints. In this case, I decided to play around with the shape of the plate and with the way I inked the plate up. I printed off a series with this plate, inking it in a variety of ways. Three of the prints reminded me of ancient Shang Dynasty Chinese oracle bones, many of which happen to have early examples of Chinese writing. The bones were cow scapula or turtle shells (the bottom shells) which were heated in order to reveal a message to the diviner who could decipher the cracks that formed. Many of the oracle bones have a question that was asked of the diviner; many of those have the answer that was divined written as well; and a few of those even have the eventual outcome recorded. I'll let you decipher this print however you will.

"The Moment Fades"

Collagraph monoprint, 30 1/8 x 11 1/4". This was a time-consuming but enjoyable print that I made in April, 2010. I used eleven stencils, numerous plates and a couple of different printing techniques. This was a key part of a series I did leading up to my largest print, "Perseverance." Although this print is also aesthetically pleasing to me turned 90º counterclockwise, I prefer showing it this way.

"The Tipping Point"

Collagraph monoprint, 8 x 22 1/8". I made this print at the beginning of May, 2010. I came up with the idea for this print as I was finishing a couple of others using these plates. I looked at this piece of paper, which I had already torn to this size, and I decided I wanted to create a composition that played around with the ideas of gravity and movement. I used these two plates to give the impression of movement from right to left; the empty space on the left side gives me the feeling of future potential movement in that direction. I decided, however, to place the gear-shaped plate in such a place where you might think it's actually rolling into the circular depression on the right. I love playing with potential and with multiple possibilities, and this turned out to be one of my favorite prints. It is now hanging in the home of two long-time friends.

"Red"

Collagraph monoprint, 8 x 22". I worked a great deal with color as I made most of these collagraph prints. In some cases I focused so much on color that the prints were as much color studies as they were finished prints. I sold one print that I titled "Orange" at a print sale before I photographed it, so I won't be able to share that image with you. I posted earlier (below) a print I titled "Violet." Here is one I titled "Red." In each case, I focused on one color. As I did, however, I brought in other colors in profound and subtle ways which I felt enhanced the main color. In the case of "Orange," I used various shades of red, burgundy and violet to help the orange pop forward visually. In the case of "Violet," I played around with value changes and with small amounts of ink residue (especially green) to make the print more interesting and to play with the idea of "pure" color. In the case of "Red," I used one plate inked in red with subtle orange and blue hues. As you look closer at any of these prints you can see that they are polychromatic, even if subtly. I made this print in May, 2010.

"Fractured"

Collagraph monoprint, 22 x 30". I made this print in March, 2010, using three plates and two stencils along with a technique I first used to make some monotype prints in November, 2009. This was the last in a series of five large prints. I really wanted to push myself with this series, working with the idea of the void and trying new imagery. I sat on the initial inking of this print for about a week before I decided what I was going to add in order to finish it. I was not sure about it as I completed the piece; when I went back to look at it about a week later, I decided I really liked it. It captured some of my feelings as I pushed my creative envelope; I often felt fractured as I made this series of prints, as though I were somehow destroying my preconceptions of my own art. I really feel like this print was a great culminating piece in a crucial series for me as an artist.

"Multiple Perspectives"

Collagraph monoprint, 20 x 22". I made this one in April, 2010, using two stencils and several plates. I played around with the gear shape again, this time seeing it as a window. You might feel like your looking forward or downward (if you see it the way I do). I also wanted to play around with the negative space in the middle and around the outside, allowing the plates and press to not only transfer ink to the paper but to emboss the paper (like a copperplate would do). The more I worked with the materials, the more I saw countless possibilities to create different imagery. I felt this piece especially emphasized the variety of perspectives viewers could take as they look at and think about the work. This piece was displayed in a show at the Rotunda Gallery on the University of Nebraska-Lincoln's city campus in November, 2010.