Saturday, October 29, 2011

Complex June




The two pieces you see here, June Morning and June Evening, are some of the most complex work I've done recently. As always, they started out as a monotype made on the etching press using some small weeds that grow in the spring out in Southold, where I spend my weekends. These delicate little plants held up surprisingly well in the printing process. It always amazes me that seemingly delicate and fragile bits of nature are at times the strongest.

After the prints were made, I began working with other materials such as watercolor, pastel and colored pencil. Since the small weeds had delicately but strongly embossed the paper, I was able to use the subtle differences in the physical heights of some parts of the image to accept color in differing ways. I then began using some small slivers of collage from a printed photograph of my own that was made in Wave Hill. (Wave Hill, in the Riverdale section of the Bronx, high above the Hudson River, is a magical place.) These slivers of color and light seemed to open small windows into another possible world.

As I worked, two different times of day became evident in the way each piece progressed in terms of color and light. I realized that I had both morning and evening of a warm, alive, filled to the brim June day.

Wednesday, July 27, 2011

"Leaf Peel" wins Best in Show

I am pleased to announce that a piece of mine has won Best in Show at a Print show going on now at East End Arts Council Gallery in Riverhead from now through most of August. www.eastendarts.org

The piece in question, “Leaf Peel” 2005, 20 X 16 inches, is composed of layered solar plate etchings using two separate printed images. The top layer is cut away in furled leaf like pieces to reveal the layer underneath. While this piece is a bit different from much of the work I’m doing now, the nature theme is still prominent. The layering of the etchings means that the piece is about 2 inches deep and it’s framed in a shadow box frame.

The juror for the show was Craig Zammiello, a master printer with 30 years of experience working with artists such as Jasper Johns, Robert Rauschenberg, Kiki Smith at Universal Limited Art Editions on Long Island. He is now master printer at Two Palms press in Manhattan working with artists such as Ellen Gallagher, Elizabeth Peyton and Chris Ofili. Mr. Zammiello has taught workshops and classes at NYU, Yale and the Flemish Government Center for the Graphic Arts. He is currently an adjunct professor at Columbia University. His own work has been exhibited in the US and abroad. His prints can be found at the Yale University Art Gallery and the Royal Museum of Fine Arts in Antwerp, Belgium.

Thursday, May 26, 2011

East End Arts Council

East End Arts Council

presents

the monotypes and mixed media work of

Dianne Martin

At the Rosalie Dimon Gallery

Jamesport Manor Inn

www.jamesportmanor.com

May 6 – August 4, 2011

The Jamesport Manor Inn, in a bucolic setting on the North Fork of Long Island, is located on Manor Road in Jamesport among horse farms and vineyards.

The pieces in this show were made mostly in the last year or two and include many of the Fables series, as well as the Jungle series and a few other older pieces.

Come out to the beautiful North Fork, visit some wineries, enjoy the bay and the sound beaches. When you’re here please do stop in to the Jamesport Manor Inn for a delicious meal and a chance to see some of my recent work.

www.diannemartinart.com