Letterprints
Papermaking:
It all started with an urge to purge!
I wanted to clean out the test papers, blotting papers, experiments and failed prints that hadn’t made it into the collage pile and were starting to clutter my studio. I began shredding paper and found it to be very satisfying. Soon, I had bags and bags of confetti piling up and only an inkling for what to do with them.
I took an introductory papermaking workshop at Kala in Berkeley, CA and another online class with artist Sophia Hotzler of Flaxen Press. I learned that while there is equipment and a certain amount of space needed for making paper, it’s a relatively simple process. After seeing my shredded prints transformed into new fresh sheets of paper, I was hooked!
Watching Paper Dry….
As I waited impatiently for the paper to dry, I started to work back into it with wooden type. This sparked nostalgia for the two broadsides I purchased from the Poetry Center of Chicago over twenty years ago. These affordable artist collaborations were some of my first art purchases. The combination of letterpress and art and paper was irresistible to me. I can’t say I understood fully the relationship between the text and art, but there was a mystery and depth that drew me in. Other artists whose text-based art I admire include Corita Kent, Amos Kennedy Jr. of Kennedy Prints, Lisa Congdon, Susan O’Malley, Ed Ruscha.
Why These Words?
Blah, Blah, Blah:
This one probably doesn’t need any explanation. There’s a lot of noise in the world and a lot of noise in my head. Maybe you can relate? I’d really like to see this phrase on a giant billboard next to the freeway, reminding us not to take ourselves too seriously.
Onward:
”Onward” is the word one of my college English professors wrote at the bottom of my essays after she covered them with red ink. No matter how many comma splices I used (and there were a lot!) she buoyed me with this simple phrase and it has stayed with me ever since.
Stop, Drop and Look Up:
If you’re a child of the 70’s or even earlier, you may recall the public education around fire safety and the phrase, “Stop, drop and roll”. When Onward doesn’t feel like the right choice, and what I really need to do is pause, sit, stare, breath and zone out, this phrase often enters my mind.
Yes/No:
As a seeker, I’ve read my share of self-help books. It seems there was a time when we were being told we needed to say, “Yes!” more. And then we were told we needed to say, “No!” more. Yes, no, yes, no, yes, yes, yes, no, no, no, yes and no, only you get to decide.
