Friday Inspiration: Printmakers (Women in Art History)

Corita Kent (American, 1918-1986)

Louise Bourgeois (French/American, 1911-2010)

Zarina Hashmi (Indian-born American, b. 1937)

Kiki Smith (West German born American, b. 1954)

Sybil Andrews (British, 1898-1992)

Lygia Pape (Brazilian, 1927-2004)

Sister Corita Kent (1918-1986)

The Heavens are Yours | 1962 | serigraph

word picture: Gift of Tongues | 1955 | serigraph

welcome o life | 1973 | serigraph

tree you are | 1962 | serigraph

SOLW | 1967 | serigraph

In Touch (commission) | 1969 | serigraph

Seasons (4 of 4) | 1978 | serigraph

And Valleys (2 of 4) | 1978 | serigraph

Sister Corita Kent was a Catholic nun, prolific printmaker, arts educator and social activist. She is an artistic hero of mine and I'm currently feeling very inspired by the graphic vibrancy of her work. In particular I'm loving the color palette of red, blue, magenta, and purple.

Postcards from London

Inspiration + Color Palette from the London Underground and Tower Bridge

Process + Printing using wood type from the late 19th and early 20th century (at the fabulous London Centre for Book Arts)

Posting:  I sent the finished postcards back to myself in the United States, they came in one by one a week later...

Postcards (series 1): Three color letterpress monoprints on 2mm book board | 5.875 x 4.125" each

Postcards (series 2): Three color letterpress monoprints on cream | 6 x 4.25" each

A State of Mind: 2016 Boston Printmakers Show

Excited to have my "Ode to Pluto" prints included in the 2016 Boston Printmakers Show!

From the archives...

I recently rediscovered this print from 2013-- it's a variation on some prints ("The Hard Way" and "The Known Universe") that were included in my MFA thesis show. But this particular one has never seen the light of day. Reminds me of a venn diagram, and there is something intriguing about the overlapping of the circles.

Untitled
woodblocks on Japanese paper
16x12" edition of 4
2013

The End

The final prints...Ode to Pluto (Part I & II).
Two 10" diameter four color reduction woodblocks. Printed in mauve, magenta, cyan, and indigo. Final edition of 10 on 12x16" handmade paper with 2 artist's proofs.

copyright Kate Castelli 2015

Purple Process

I've been feeling like my circle prints were reaching an end, and that I needed to go out with an ambitious final series. I very rarely print in color, and I very rarely make editions. However reduction prints are so uniquely time consuming (and self destructive) that I felt I needed to do an edition.

The woodblocks are 10" in diameter and are printed in 4 colors. I printed the first layer and then cut away each successive layer to reveal the color underneath. The layers cannot be reprinted, as each new series of marks changes the surface. At first I thought of the marks as gathering clouds or a storm front, but the layers of color now remind me of a small galaxy or the city lights at night.

Purple on the press and purple on my feet...my studio shoes matched the very vibrant layer 2.

Razzle Dazzle

A wandering accordion book inspired by "dazzle" camouflage used by the Royal Navy during World War I. The dizzying paintjob on warships was developed by Norman Wilkinson and British artist, Edward Wadsworth.

Two prints by Edward Wadsworth depicting the Liverpool Shipyards where the ships were painted (1918)

It is also sometimes called "razzle dazzle," it consisted of complex patterns of geometric shapes in contrasting colors, interrupting and intersecting each other. It was not meant to conceal the vessel, but rather make it much more difficult to estimate a target's range, speed and heading.


Razzle Dazzle
30 page wandering accordion structure with hardcovers
woodblocks on handmade paper, unique edition
3x3" page size

copyright Kate Castelli 2014 

Process/progress

I just installed a cool little show of process work including sketchbook pages, prints and woodblocks...

Check it out through the end of October at Lesley College of Art and Design, 700 Beacon Street, Boston.

All of the circles...

(actually not all of the circles...just some of the circles)

Tiny Little (series)

Pairs of circles in conversation with each other. From the on-going series of Tiny Little circles (the woodblocks are only 3-4" in diameter). Printed on vintage navigational charts from the 1920s

Unique impressions, 8.75 x 11" each

Printing

The printing gods were smiling on me...so I spent the entire day in the studio. I'm excited about this new series of tiny little circles (they are between 3-4" in diameter). Stay tuned for finished prints...

Tiny Little

I finally printed some of the woodblocks I've been working on these past few months. I spent several hours up to my elbows in ink and circles, listening to bootleg Rolling Stones albums from the 1970s. Not a bad way to spend a Sunday...

Tiny Little*
woodblocks on vintage paper
7 x 9.5"

(*each circle is only 4" in diameter)

copyright Kate Castelli 2014

Progress/Process

The impossibility of February

The Frequency of Falling
woodblock on vintage paper, unique impression
7 x 9.5"

copyright Kate Castelli 2014

Corner of a Circle

The second circular woodblock in a new series I am working on...horizon (lines).

Corner of a Circle
woodblock on vintage paper, unique impression
7.5 x 10.25"

copyright Kate Castelli 2014

Kate Castelli at Twelve Chairs

Kate Castelli: Prints & Drawings

25 January -- 26 April 2014

opening reception Thursday, 20 February, 5-7pm

12Stairs Gallery at Twelve Chairs Boston

581 Tremont Street, Boston, MA 02118
http://www.twelvechairsboston.com/

(above)
The Known Universe III
woodblock on 19th century book cover, unique impression
10 x 12.25"

Horizon (line)

The Defeated

Beyond surprise, my ribs start up from the ground.
After I had sunk, the waters went down.
The horizon I was making for runs through my eyes.
It has woven its simple nest among my bones.

W.S. Merwin, The Moving Target (1963)

:::

Off Kilter 
woodblock on vintage paper, unique impression
7.125 x 10.5"

copyright Kate Castelli 2014

Printing (finally)

I finally got the chance to print the woodblocks I have been working on over the last few months. I spent a few hours listening to the Rolling Stones, proofing 5 circles, and getting my hands dirty. Not a bad way to spend a cold, grey Friday.

The Boston Printmakers / Arches Student Print Show

My collaborative woodblock print with Caroline Board was selected to be in the...

2013 Arches Student Print Exhibition
Sponsored by Arches Paper Company and The Boston Printmakers

The Boston University 808 Gallery, Commonwealth Avenue, Boston, MA

October 27 through December 30, 2013, Opening reception: Sunday, October 27, 2013

The Boston Printmakers is pleased to announce the 8th Arches Student Print Exhibition. The student exhibition, sponsored by the Arches Paper Company, will be shown in conjunction with The Boston Printmakers’ North American Print Biennial at the Boston University 808 Gallery, Boston.The first seven Arches Student Exhibitions, held biannually starting in 1999, were a resounding success with participation by 20 - 25 New England art schools, colleges and university printmaking departments.