[vimeo]http://vimeo.com/48876899[/vimeo]

AS220 is proud to host printmaker Alexis Granwell as our Artist-In-Residence for May 2013. During her residency, Alexis worked on a series of oversized drypoint prints using the Takach 10’ press.  She printed from several 6’ Sintra, foam polyurethane, plates and incorporated monotype, collograph and silkscreen with the drypoint Sintra plates.

Alexis will showcase the work she’s produced during her residency and talk about her techniques tomorrow, May 29th, at AS220’s 95 Empire Black Box Theater at 6pm. Free admission. Come check it out!

Alexis tells us her story:

“For the past two years, I have been creating large-scale etchings that reference primitive architecture as well as the cyclical aspects of landscapes under construction.  This body of work is inspired by the notion of a city’s archaeological layers and its parallels to the time and timelessness of one’s mental life.  The prints have a strong diagrammatic as well as ancient quality.  Forms suggest yurts, land mounds, craters and constellations.  The intricacies of pattern, repetition or line within these images map metaphysical landscapes.

I began this series in August 2011 when I was fortunate enough to receive a private grant that funded my trip to AS220.  For several months before, I created large-scale hard-ground etchings, drypoints and aquatinted plates as well as oversized handmade Abaca paper for the plates to be printed on.  That August, I learned how to operate the electric press and layer color at a large scale.  I produced over 25 prints from the 4 plates during that time period at AS220.  Prints varied based on viscosity of color, texture of paper and explorations of monotypes layered over the etchings.  Last year, I returned to AS220 and printed 5 large-scale prints that incorporated more complex layers of color. Several of these prints were recently on view at Tiger Strikes Asteroid in Philadelphia, PA, IPCNY in New York, Bryan Miller Gallery in Houston, TX, and Lawndale Art Center in Houston, TX.  In addition, this fall I will exhibit these works in a solo show at Towson University in Towson, MD, and a two-person show at Giampietro Gallery in New Haven, CT.

For a long time I had envisioned making large-scale prints.  I have a background in painting and my etching/monotype process is often akin to that medium.  Much of my decision-making happens at the press.  I intuitively layer color and often monotype while working with etching plates.  When I discovered that AS220 had the 10’ press, I began to experiment with different methods of etching, drypoint and aquatint so that I could expand my plates beyond the traditional format.  Now that I’ve had the experience of printing large, I intend to continue to explore working with other materials. Silkscreen printing will be a new experience for me.  I am interested in exploring the relationship between the flat marks of silkscreen and the dimensional marks of the drypoint.”