The artist can do his real work only by recovering his original mind-of-play, which has nothing to gain and nothing to lose.
-Stephen Nachmanovitch
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| A monotype is a painting or drawing done on a smooth surface such as Plexiglas or metal etching plates and transferred to paper using a printmaking press (or pressing with hand tools). The residue image left on the plate, called a ghost, offers a unique opportunity to create variations of an idea and layered effects you would not be able to achieve in any other way and the metamorphosis from painting to print creates a quality of light very different from painting. Because of its freedom from exacting techniques and its spontaneous and experimental nature, artists have used monotypes for years to explore ideas. In the 1960's, monotypes became popular as an art form in its own right, with many artists actively working and exhibiting in the medium - Helen Frankenthaler, Jim Dine, Wayne Thiebaud, Jasper Johns, and Mary Frank, to name a few. (The term monoprint refers to a similar process but the plate may also be etched. I choose to use the term monoprint as it is broader and more descriptive.) | ||
Marian
Willmott, Hinesburg, VT • marianw@gmavt.net • 802
482-3131