Monotypes in space

Includes bibliographical references (page 14)Personal Statement\ud The monotype provides for an ideal marriage between the techniques of painting and printmaking. The opportunity to improvise and to work sequentially is one of its enchantments. In juxtaposition to the intaglio print method, it is especially rewarding to create images freely with a minimum of the mechanical process.\ud A recent viewing of the masterful work of Edgar Degas stimulated my continuing pursuit of this particular medium. Degas??? use of pastels, superimposed upon his monotypes, led me to strengthen my own prints by the addition of various drawing approaches. Also, his involvement with the Japanese print coincided with my own special interest.\ud An awareness of the physical environment, plus an attitude toward pictorial landscape influenced by Japanese prints, has helped shape my imagery. The San Fernando Valley and the surrounding mountains have been my proving ground. I have interpreted this familiar terrain in a multitude of ways, frequently altering my vantage point to encompass a broad planar valley view. The viewpoint of the current series is modeled after those earlier landscapes. the Cloud-scapes, with their emphasis on line and negative space, reveal elements derived from the Japanese print. The Astro-scapes are, in a sense, my private refuge from man???s obliteration of the natural attributes of our land.\ud These images form space through a system containing both close color tonality and vibrant luminous surfaces. They were created by embellishing areas with microscopic shapes, akin to Field painting; but utilizing a personal imagery. With very few materials one can conjure visual wizardry, which is actually a grouping of dots, strokes and lines over a rolled up ground color combined with wet transparancies, suggesting mists, clouds and amorphous space. Pure color was interwoven in some of these compositions, but, since the color areas were minute in relation to the scale of the total print, the effect is similar to that of a tapestry. Most of these prints were perceived as though one were seeing them from a great distance. All the images are fantasies designed to offer a fresh visual experience to the viewer