This started out as three red dots. I know because the artist, Denise Kester, was doing a demo of her monoprint method at a two-day workshop I went to at her studio a couple months ago. Denise is a printmaker here in Ashland, Oregon. And she not only is an amazing artist, but an insightful teacher as well.
I am going to save my ravings about Denise and printmaking for another post. In the meantime I wanted to share her perspective of the class (and creativity and printmaking.) This is from her monthly email newsletter, Monthly Musings:
Last weekend I had a wonderful experience with my monoprinting workshop. It was a full class and they kept me very busy. I began the monoprint above as a demonstration in the class but put it in a drawer to work on later as I had no time during class to give it my full attention. It wasn't until the next day when I was ready to print that I remembered a dream that I had on January 13th.
work in progress on the light table before printing
In this dream I am in a crowd of people and I hear a telephone ringing. Someone answers the phone and hands it to me and says "Its for you". I say "hello" and the person on the other end is a woman and she says. "I am calling from the Hopi nation. The ember is in the canoe. The time is now."
work in progress without the light
I printed the monoprint by running it through my press. I then hung the print on my art wall. I began to dialog with the art to see what I could find out. This monoprint and the writing is still a work in progress but, this is what I have so far:
The canoe travels as the crow flies carrying the friends through flood high waters.
They are guided by helpers who send clues ahead.
It is a feeling of resonance that they follow.
The friends are guardians of the precious
ember that glows and is growing.
What is the ember?
It is the ember that will spark the imagination, allowing the slow burn of ideas to ignite and become clear harbingers of creative solutions.
It is part of my process with all of my work to sit down and dialog or write down what the art is has to say to me. This is how the titles and the stories come about in all my work.
work in progress just before printing
I am always fascinated by the connection between my dreams and my art. It is amazing to me that while attempting a demonstration in a class that the shape of a canoe will suddenly appear with a random stroke of an inked palette knife. I have enough experience with my process to trust the things that come through my art and my dreams. I know enough to pay attention.
Comments