gallery update

Head-Study-III (web)

Head Study III (1989) – monotype on Arches Cover paper, 34 x 28 cm. (13″ x 11″)

I am thrilled to announce that my gallery aka website is at last updated and online!

Longtime readers may recall that this blog was transferred from the Movable Type platform to WordPress back in the fall of 2013. Meanwhile my Gallery sat dormant as I did not wish to continue adding more images of my work as it too would be switched. At last my super designer daughter Erika found some time from her own business to custom design my site within WordPress. Still based on the previous ‘look’ which I liked so much, this is easier for me to use. Also, it is now viewable on today’s popular smaller devices. Thanks, Erika!

More printworks, especially some of my older pieces, will continue to appear on the site as I slowly go through my files, so please do visit from time to time by going to the Gallery link on the left top of this page. Of course many of you readers may have seen most of my work on the blog under Printworks, though the images are very small compared to my now larger images. The blog has notes about processes and the ideas behind certain works which may still be of interest.

creative play

TornCollagraph6

TornCollagraph7

TornCollagraph1

A few weeks ago I was doing a bit of a tidy-up of my stacks of print proofs in my studio. I tried to be ruthless and throw out what I was sure I could not reuse in some fashion, such as in mixed media collage work. What I did save, I sometimes tore or cut into pieces, selecting favourite sections with interesting textures, colours or that certain ‘something’. Today I felt inspired to have a look at one small pile which came from a very large collagraph trial print. At some point years ago I had painted and made marks over it. I scanned them and chose my favourites to post here. I love the torn irregular edges which make them look like cloth, more so here than in real life, which is interesting.

And it is already February! Yesterday was the 11th anniversary of this blog. I cannot believe how the years have flown, a sign of getting older I know. I still enjoy having this place for my work, scribblings, and wonderful conversations with so many friends around the world. Thank you all!

Big Print Project

BigPrintProject

Peter Braune of New Leaf Editions, here in Vancouver, was one of the brains behind the idea of several artists making very large prints using 4×8 foot woodblocks which were inked and steamrolled right on the street across from his shop on Granville Island last summer. Now there is a great video of the event – do watch it and enjoy!

I had heard about this fun project developing last summer but did not make it out to watch it happen. Great to see a few familiar faces as well as others I have heard of but not met personally. Wonderful work by all of them.

As a side note, New Leaf Editions is well known in the printmaking community for running the popular BIMPE biennial of mini-prints. I participated in BIMPE VI in 2010. You may be interested in looking through some of the exhibition catalogues featured on the site.

paper leaves

PaperLeaf

2PaperLeaves

inspired by the season
a little play with scissors and a print proof on paper

three art exhibitions

running right now which I dearly wish I could visit:

1. Anselm Kiefer at the Royal Academy in London. I have long loved his work and follow it online. I was so very lucky to see one of his shows in Munich in yr. 2000 – wow! Be sure to also visit the link to Kiefer’s astonishing 200-acre art studio! I always appreciate Jonathan Jones’ comprehensive reviews.

2. The late and great Canadian artist Alex Colville at the Art Gallery of Ontario. There is even a link to a wonderful website in his name that seems to show most of his long life’s work.

3. Hokusai at the Grand Palais in Paris, thanks to a post by Charles T. Downey of Ionarts. You know how I love printmaking and the Japanese masters.

Because I don’t travel far these days, the internet does compensate a bit. I’d love to see photos and reports from any readers that do visit any or all of these shows.

Added November 3rd, 2014: My good blog friend, artist Olga Norris went to see the Anselm Kiefer exhibition and found it monumentally visceral.

And the very next day, artist and friend Natalie d’Arbeloff wrote a superb review of Kiefer’s work along with some excellent links!

I am sooo envious.

Added November 26th, 2014: In a comment at a later post, Olga Norris mentioned an excellent and powerful review of the Kiefer exhibition, the best I’ve read about this artist. It’s by a blogger new to me and whose blog That’s How the Light Gets In looks rich in material so I have bookmarked it for further reading.

Ukiyoe art works

UkiyoeExh

There is an exciting exhibition in town: Ukiyoe Spectacular – Japanese Woodblock Prints from the 1800s

Over one hundred woodblock prints from a private collection in Japan are on display at the West Vancouver Museum and at the Nikkei National Museum in Burnaby. There are works by such masters as Kuniyoshi, Yosifuji and Hiroshige and more, with images of supernatural and epic myths, samurai, historical and theatrical events and even humour. Read more and view the slide shows at each museum’s site.

Ukiyo-e means “pictures of floating world”, referring to the lifestyles of the period, as well as becoming the name for the method of woodblock printing. This art came to influence European artists in the late 19th century and even today’s popular manga art in Japan.

We visited the West Vancouver Museum’s installation a while ago and found all the work quite fascinating and absorbing to view the amazing workmanship and fine details. Some amusing work even made me think of ‘Where’s Waldo?’, heh. We hope to visit the Nikkei Museum soon to see more.

More reading: about Ukiyo-e in Wikipedia, and about
a demonstration of this technique as adapted to contemporary work.

last print sale

CAP-U_-PRINT-SALE

Capilano University’s Studio Art printmaking department is presenting The Last Ever Print Sale!

Monday, December 2nd, 10 am to 4 pm.


Studio Art Building, Room 104


Capilano University

2055 Purcell Way, North Vancouver, BC

Directions and maps

Why is it the ‘last ever’ sale? The Print Sale has been a longtime (25 years?) annual event which we are all very sad to see coming to an end. As some readers know, Capilano University has cut numerous programs including Studio Art and the Art Institute. The second-year Studio Art program is running just this school year to allow the current students to complete their diploma requirements.

So, it is wonderful that they are hosting this event and also including the Ceramics class this time (they used to have their own sale). The Art Institute Printmaking alumni, such as yours truly, have been invited to participate as part of that long tradition.

If you live in the Vancouver area, please come and support the students and get some original artworks for some lucky people on your gift list, including yourself. We hope to see many friends there that special day!

More background:
– About the Art Institute Printmaking program, written in 2004
– About the protest against the program cuts

Poster image: etching by Liam Johnstone

toying with ideas

untitledProof

Being a long-time printmaker and one who does not like to throw away anything that might be useful, I have a huge number of proofs even after throwing away the worst of them over the years for lack of space. I wish I could organize them in some way in my small home studio.

I have long been toying with ideas for recycling these printmaking elements. Sure, I have made some cards from small collages now and then. I once even took inspiration from artist Clive Hicks-Jenkins to make an owl-woman maquette from cut out pieces of proofs. Larger mixed media works with some new-to-me techniques like encaustics might be exciting to try.

And of course this is the time of year to make Christmas cards.

I need motivation.

Dutch Art in Burnaby

RembrandtWindmill

Image Credit: Rembrandt van Rijn,The Windmill, 1641,
Etching on cream laid paper, 14.7 x 20.7 cm, National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa

This afternoon we visited the Burnaby Art Gallery and its two exhibitions of Dutch art, Storms and Bright Skies: Three Centuries of Dutch Landscapes and Inner Realms: Dutch Portraits.

These were mostly small drawings and etchings with some watercolours and a couple of oil paintings from the Golden Age, 1600’s to 1800’s. Very fine detailed work (magnifying glasses were on loan), really quite lovely and romantic images of the countryside and people of the day. One image of skaters on a frozen pond had husband wondering if the sticks being used were precursors to today’s hockey sticks? A few Brueghels and several Rembrandts were the highlights. Naturally all the printworks were my favourites and those of Rembrandt most superb, both landscapes and portraits including a self-portrait.

With the dim lighting calling for flash, I did not try to take photos, even were it allowed. It was surprisingly busy, as if it was an opening event, with many families taking advantage of the Sunday afternoon children’s art activities in another room. I think this kind of exhibition of traditional and historic work probably appeals to a greater number of the public than some contemporary work, do you suppose?

Here’s more about the exhibitions in the Burnaby Newsleader, with an image of Rembrandt’s Self-Portrait.

As always when we visit the BAG, afterwards we went for a walk in the lovely garden around the gallery and down to Deer Lake – photos to come tomorrow!

Michiko Suzuki: A Feeler

MichikoSuzuki_Feeler.jpg

Michiko has a solo exhibition of her latest prints coming up at the Bellevue Gallery in West Vancouver. The opening is on Valentine’s Day, Feb 14th, 6 to 8 pm. and the exhibition continues to March 16th, 2013.

Read about Michiko’s current theme and view some of her older works on Bellevue’s pages.
Michiko’s name and numerous exhibitions have appeared often on these pages — here are links to the most recent:
~ A four person exhibition in the Embassy of Canada in Tokyo
~ Our Institute group’s exhibition in Tokyo
~ Michiko’s previous solo exhibition at the Bellevue
Hope to see you on the 14th!