Aqua

Interested in purchasing “Aqua”? Contact the artist here.

Early on, I happened to see an exhibition of Picasso’s lino-cuts. I was struck by how “immediate” the medium was. the typical approach to linoleum-prints was the same as wood. One block for each color meticulously cut from a “key block”. Then the print is made by printing each block carefully registered, one at a time.

Picasso upended that process so that the development of the print was more on-going and fluid. The softness of the material and lack of grain allowed for a more gestural-drawing. “Aqua” is what I did with that process. It is actually a second print from the same block.

The first step is to print the first color after cutting for where any “white paper” will eventually show through. The second step is to cut for where that color will remain. The second color is printed from the single block re-registered. When one is done, the print is done and the block is destroyed.

This has been my method of lino-cut. The major decision at the beginning is how many prints do I want to end up with? For me it is a small sacrifice to be able to “draw with a knife” as the print develops.