*"Untitled #1" by Elizabeth Stevenson, 4.5x4.5x4.5in, fired white clay (2015)*

We are officially in the Holocene (“entirely recent”) epoch, which began 11,700 years ago after the last major ice age, but many argue for the current period to be term “Anthropocene”—from anthropo, for “man,” and cene, for “new”—because human-kind has incurred a profound enough impact on the earth to merit the classification. Claims about global warming aside, mass extinctions of plant and animal species, and pollution on a large scale have inarguably changed the planet.

"Untitled #4" by Elizabeth Stevenson, 11x15in, collograph relief print on paper (2015), $150 | BUY NOW — *"Untitled #4" by Elizabeth Stevenson, 11x15in, collograph relief print on paper (2015), $150 | BUY NOW*

Elizabeth Stevenson is directly inspired by this concept in her work, “… it fueled me to keep creating,” she explains. “Natural patterns are what originally inspired me to create this body of work. The lines I would see in sand when water washed over it or the small orb like forms of pollen particles. After looking to so much of nature for inspiration it made sense to study the science surrounding it. Once I had a better understanding of how nature works and the way in which humans are destroying it I found even more reason to create work motivated by it.”

For Stevenson, the process begins with a study of microscopic images: “Beginning with open organic forms I wished to investigate natural configurations that I saw and abstract them.” In the very beginning, she finds the three-dimensional forms to be soft and fragile, almost vulnerable to the pending manipulation by the artist’s hand. Her carving is primarily deductive, removing mass to create new empty space.

“The forms continued to push me to create and find different processes for making, which led me to develop a more jagged and unraveled representation of the natural world. With these new lines and shapes I began to look to more macroscopic imagery for inspiration. There is a glacial quality in the appearance of the newer pieces, as the lines seem to melt and become undone. Fluid lines drip off into empty space, or are they being contained? All of these forms seemingly contained within a circle, which I can only explain as an attempt to control what I was creating or to control the things that inspire me.”

Age: 21
Hometown: Louisville, Kentucky
Education: BFA candidate, Interdisciplinary Sculpture, Kentucky College of Art + Design at Spalding University, Louisville, Kentucky

"Untitled #3" by Elizabeth Stevenson, 13.5x10.5in, monotype print on paper (2015), $100 | BUY NOW — *"Untitled #3" by Elizabeth Stevenson, 13.5x10.5in, monotype print on paper (2015), $100 | BUY NOW*

*"Untitled #2" by Elizabeth Stevenson, 3.5x3.5x3.5in, fired white clay (2015)*

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Print Making, Mixed Media

Vignette: Susan Moffett

Josh Jenkins · November 18, 2016

“The rhythm of this work is integrated with the presence of music and dance in my life.”
– Susan Moffett

*A photograph of Susan Moffett in her studio.*

Music is so often, if not always, an integral part of the life of a visual artist. Besides being a highly respected printmaker and teacher, Susan Moffett is also a “Caller” for contra and square dances, and now is playing the fiddle. If we might characterize such pursuits as folk music crossed with precision of execution, it would be perhaps be a fair description of the work we see here.

The tradition and protocol of printmaking includes labored technique, process, and the notion of limited editions of prints pulled by the artist to their exacting standards, but we find Moffett abandoning those for what she calls the, “the freedom and spontaneity of woodcut monoprints. Instead of a traditional series of perfected prints with a consistent image, I opt to use the block prints in an intuitive exploration of organic forms, creating rhythm within and relationships between the prints. Small prints are repurposed in relationships of color, density and repetition, to make a larger installation.”

Although Moffett is too educated and sophisticated in her sensibilities to be labeled a folk artist, there is an elemental quality in these latest images. Yet, because they are densely textured and highly detailed, they are also complex. We often find such tension at the heart of art that is compelling, a balance of contrasting themes and aesthetic that seems the honest, organic result of genuine discovery.

"Moonlight in the Forest" by Susan Moffett, 19x14in, relief monoprint collage, $375 | BUY NOW — *"Moonlight in the Forest" by Susan Moffett, 19x14in, relief monoprint collage, $375 | BUY NOW*

Moffett is Professor Emeritus of Fine Art at Indiana University Southeast where she taught Printmaking, Drawing, and Art Appreciation for many years. She teaches private drawing and printmaking lessons.

"Seasonal Rhythms" by Susan Moffett, 42x54in, relief Monoprint Installation, $2,250 | BUY NOW — *"Seasonal Rhythms" by Susan Moffett, 42x54in, relief Monoprint Installation, $2,250 | BUY NOW*

Moffett is a founding member of PYRO Gallery in Louisville, where she is currently exhibiting with Wendi Smith and Marilyn Whitesell in Ex-Faculty; New, Renewed and Repurposed through November 26, 2016. She has exhibited throughout the United States as well as abroad in Ireland, Poland and Australia. Her work is in numerous public and private collections including:

Selected Collections
• Evansville Museum of Arts and Science, Evansville, IN
• Hyatt Regency, Louisville, KY
• Brown-Forman Distillers Corp., Louisville, KY
• The Kentucky Foundation for Women, Louisville, KY
• Wyatt, Tarrant & Combs, Louisville, KY
• University of Dallas, Irving, TX
• The University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN
• Owensboro Museum of Art, Owensboro, KY
• The University of South Florida, Tampa, FL

Hometown: Dallas, TX
Age: 66
Education: MFA, Northern Illinois University, 1977; Texas Tech University, 1973
Gallery Representation: Pyro Gallery (Louisville) Ro2 Art (Dallas)
Website: http://www.susanmoffett.com

*"Seasonal Rhythms (detail)" by Susan Moffett*

*"Cool Flow, Fall," by Susan Moffett, 14x20in, relief monoprint collage, NFS*

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Print Making, Drawing

Vignette: Rachel Singel

Josh Jenkins · November 10, 2016

*“Lily Leaves” by Rachel Singel, 12x18in, intaglio on mulberry paper (2016)*

*A photograph of Singel at work in her studio.*

The line as an element in art is often taken for granted. The common layperson’s observation that “I can’t even draw a straight line,” betrays a common misunderstanding about how an artist approaches line. When an artist wants to draw a straight line, they pick up a ruler, but a line has so much more potential. Printmaker Rachel Singel thoughtfully explores the linear in her work: “Lines are the building block of my world. The printmaking process allows for a technical consideration of how these lines are distributed throughout the work, with the weight of each line relating directly to how much time it etches. Their physical qualities carry weight; they do not descend into the paper but protrude from the surface.”

If that explanation sounds academic, it fairly reflects the intellectual aspect of the printmaking process as well as Singel’s position as Assistant Professor at University of Louisville’s Hite Art Institute, but her lines also describe recognizable forms in nature, and in Venetian Vortex, there is a discovery of the hallucinatory character that can be found in the natural world, and line works in concert with scant patches of color to move into the realm of the abstract.

*“Venetian Vortex” by Rachel Singel, 56x72in, intaglio on cotton paper (2013)*

“Lines develop into curves, from curves to semi-circles, and from semi-circles to the full circle. This stylistic tendency comes from my interest in openings in nature—those places around which nature’s complex forms develop. Close studies of natural objects reveal holes in their surfaces. The space is a source of weight—a fulcrum point that seizes my attention by giving the illusion of an even deeper space, seeming to recede to infinity. The lines radiate out from these seeming voids—the starting points for infinite variation within the work.”

Singel was one of the organizers of the October 2016 Mid America Print Conference hosted by Indiana University Southeast and The University of Louisville. Her work was featured in an exhibit with Susan Moffett, Marilyn Whitesell, Mary Lou Hess, Susanna Crum, and Susan Harrison.

Singel was also selected to participate in the Mid-America Print Council Members Juried Exhibition at the Carnegie Center for Art and History, October 2016.

Singel currently is co-curating a group exhibition at Asheville Bookworks. She has exhibited internationally in Venice, China, Korea, Chile, Japan, Slovenia, Bulgaria, and the United Arab Emirates, and her work is included in 2016 Literary Innovation: A Juried National Exhibition Inspired by William Faulkner and Ernest Hemingway at the Catapult Gallery in Cape Girardeau, MO, through November 27, 2016, and in Points of Departure: An Exhibition without Borders, at the John Michael Kohler Arts Center on Sheboygan, WI through January 15, 2017.

*“Seed Pods” by Rachel Singel, 18x20in, intaglio on mulberry paper (2015)*

In Louisville, you can next view Singel’s work in The Art and Architecture of the Jewish Ghetto in Venice, Italy, The Jewish Community Center, Louisville KY, January 15-February 21, 2017.

Permanent Collections (selected)

Tipoteca Italiana Archives, Cornuda, IT
Jewish Museum of Venice, Venice, IT
Baylor University Libraries, Waco, TX
Avery Architecture and Fine Arts Library, Columbia University, New York, NY
University of Denver Special Collections & Archives, Denver, CO
DePaul University Special Collections & Archives, Chicago, IL
Stanford University Special Collections & University Archives, Stanford, CA
Artist Books Collection, University of Louisville, Louisville, KY
SGCI Archives, Pacific NW College of Art and Portland State University, OR
John C. Hodges Library Special Collections. University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN
Guanlan International Print Biennial, Shenzhen, China
Permanent Collection Christchurch Polytechnic Institute of Technology, Christchurch, New Zealand
Proyecto´ace Print Collection, Buenos Aires, Argentina
Venice Printmaking Studio Print Collection, Venice, IT
Indiana University Print Collection, Bloomington, IN
University of New Mexico Print Collection, Albuquerque, NM
Pyramid Atlantic Art Center Print Collection, Silver Springs, MD

Age: 29
Hometown: Louisville, Kentucky
Education: MFA, University of Iowa, 2013 BA, University of Virginia, 2009
Website: http://www.rachelsingel.com

*“Exploding Flower” by Rachel Singel, 16x20in, intaglio on handmade cotton paper (2015)*

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Print Making

Vignette: Elizabeth Stevenson

Vignette: Susan Moffett

“The rhythm of this work is integrated with the presence of music and dance in my life.”– Susan Moffett

Vignette: Rachel Singel

“The rhythm of this work is integrated with the presence of music and dance in my life.”
– Susan Moffett