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August 2018
Fine Art Prints Contreras Gallery by C.J. Shane |
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August is a great month in Tucson for admirers of the fine art print.
Last Saturday Contreras Gallery just opened a new exhibit of local artists that features prints. On display are the many varied ways of making a fine art print. The results are diverse and the works pull us in for a closer look. The exhibit will run through the month.
Last Saturday Contreras Gallery just opened a new exhibit of local artists that features prints. On display are the many varied ways of making a fine art print. The results are diverse and the works pull us in for a closer look. The exhibit will run through the month.
Ka Fisher
We’re perhaps most familiar with the relief print seen most often as a woodcut or linocut, thanks especially to the Japanese woodcut artists. This exhibit has several examples of linocuts. Martin Quintanilla does not disappoint with his large scale linocuts, notably “Rumbo a la Procesion.” Neda Contreras has a particularly charming linocut titled “Picasso Cat.” Travis Scott shares his well-done linocut “Rotten Fruit.” Michael Contreras has two beautiful landscapes that are Sintra board prints. Both Neda and Michael will be interviewed soon and we’ll ask them more about their printmaking processes then.
Monotypes are well-represented. This particular method of printmaking is especially appealing because there is an element of serendipity to the results. Cristina Cardenas has two especially beautiful monoprints on gold leaf titled “Joven” and “Jovencita.” The gold leaf does not photograph well. Go see the real thing and be charmed. Jack Remington presents two captivating monotypes, “Twilight of the Every Lands :and “Walk About Witness in a Giving Land.” Ka Fisher combines monoprint with etching with his colorful “La Ambrosia.”
Monotypes are well-represented. This particular method of printmaking is especially appealing because there is an element of serendipity to the results. Cristina Cardenas has two especially beautiful monoprints on gold leaf titled “Joven” and “Jovencita.” The gold leaf does not photograph well. Go see the real thing and be charmed. Jack Remington presents two captivating monotypes, “Twilight of the Every Lands :and “Walk About Witness in a Giving Land.” Ka Fisher combines monoprint with etching with his colorful “La Ambrosia.”
Etchings and intaglio are well represented in this exhibit. Robert Conine has a special relationship with birds in his two works titled “Wren” and “Wrens,” both etchings. Jo Andersen’s series, also birds, titled “Monsoon I, II, and III” are enhanced by display in antique frames. Travis Scott’s etching, referring to the once-active Black Panther Party, is compelling. It takes us back to an earlier era in which Black Panthers were, unfortunately, less known as the provider of breakfasts to school kids and more for their “self-defense” which eventually brought an end to their activities. And then there’s the abstract artist Glory Tacheenie-Campoy with her lyrical photopolymer etching series titled “A Collective Song Travels Through the Universe.” Her works always call for a closer contemplation.
Robert Conine
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Travis Scott
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Glory Tacheenie-Campoy
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David Andres brings a different printmaking technique to the exhibit. We see his lovely and rich tributes to sea urchins and other sea life in his polymer photogravure solar prints. Julia Andres, on the other hand, has focused on the beauty of fruits in her prints.
Two favorites in the exhibit are the intaglio by David Contreras titled “Coyote Tangled in Life’s Web,” and Christine Dawdy’s drypoint on plexiglass titled “The Little Sisters.” Both seem to tell a story without the benefit of words. The same could be said for David Midel’s screen print, “ Café Black Cat.” That last print asks for a bit of Coltrane playing in the café to go with the beautiful woman.
Two favorites in the exhibit are the intaglio by David Contreras titled “Coyote Tangled in Life’s Web,” and Christine Dawdy’s drypoint on plexiglass titled “The Little Sisters.” Both seem to tell a story without the benefit of words. The same could be said for David Midel’s screen print, “ Café Black Cat.” That last print asks for a bit of Coltrane playing in the café to go with the beautiful woman.
David Andres
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David Contreras
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Christine Dawdy
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David Midel
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This exhibit with up through August 25. Contreras Gallery keeps abbreviated hours in the summer so check with the website before you schedule a trip. http://www.contrerashousefineart.com/index.html
Also note that there is a large exhibit of fine art prints from the Arizona Print Group, a statewide group of printmakers. Learn more about the Arizona Print Group here> http://arizonaprintgroup.com/all/exhibitions/
Also note that there is a large exhibit of fine art prints from the Arizona Print Group, a statewide group of printmakers. Learn more about the Arizona Print Group here> http://arizonaprintgroup.com/all/exhibitions/