Local Color

Looking for inspiration? In our own backyard, the National Portrait Gallery and American Art Museum house a few gems from screenprinting superstars like Andy Warhol, above and Ralph Steadman, below. Warhol's portrait of Pete Rose masterfully balances a signature black halftone, hand line work, a large white space and vivid primary colors. Warhol was king of his craft, and this example is worth the Portrait Gallery trip.

Steadman's screenprint—an homage to "Gonzo" creator Hunter S. Thompson—is a new AAM acquisition and on view on the first floor. The print depicts the double-thumbed peyote-button-clutching-fisted cannon that Thompson designed for shooting off his ashes following his suicide. The funeral launch featured red, white, blue and green fireworks and was financed by Johnny Depp.

A Pleasant Evening

The art of screenprinting is thriving. Screenprint Society now requires reservations and is usually fully booked. Anthony Dihle, at left, and a familiar face at Pyramid Atlantic, has launched his Fire Studio at the Pleasant Plains Workshop. Anthony shares the studio with Kristina Bilonick. Both use screenprinting as a major part of their work. Located near Howard University, Pleasant Plains is a storefront studio — a unique and urban combination. In early May, with a dark thunderstorm threatening over the horizon, a throng of artists, designers and admirers crowded into the space for the opening of "We Are Monsters". It is thrilling to see the resurgence of screenprinting and the buzz of a bold new venture. Go Anthony!

Pleasant Plains Workshop
art studio, gallery and boutique featuring artwork and goods by DC artists.
Open on Fridays 2-7 pm and Saturdays 1-6 pm
2608 Georgia Avenue NW Washington, DC 20001

The work of Elizabeth Graeber is on view and for sale at Pleasant Plains.

Screenprint, Naturally.

Screenprint Society regular Mary Ott has a new show of screenprints and etchings at the Touchstone Gallery, on view through May 1. Mary often arrives at Pyramid Atlantic with her portfolio bursting with dried ornamental grasses, which she transfers to her screens by placing them directly on the exposure unit. At left, Mary washes out her image.

Mary at work at Pyramid, with 

guests looking on. Above: Grass Bouquet VI, etching and screenprint

Grasses by Mary D. Ott on view through Sunday at Touchstone Gallery, 901 New York Ave. NW. Gallery hours are Wednesday-Thursday 11 a.m.-6 p.m.; Friday 11 a.m.-8 p.m.; Saturday-Sunday noon-5 p.m. Visit www.touchstonegallery.com or call 202-347-2787. Read the Washington Post review of Mary's show. Congratulations, Mary!

Along Came Johnny

Screenprint Society has become so popular lately that we were forced to require reservations. And so we didn't immediately recognize the name Johnny Carrera of Quercus Press, Waltham, Mass. Johnny, who arrived at SS on April 7, is the tour de force behind the glorious, immense volume of wood engravings and copper electrotypes Pictorial Webster's. Not merely a compendium, the images are grouped in subtle and synchronous ways. And that was just the beginning. He went on to create and print limited edition handbound books. Fortuntately there is also a mass produced version from Chronicle Books for smaller pockets. Peek in to his amazing process here.

"I believe a person instinctively tries to find the connection between things when they are grouped together, and so when confronted by combinations of two or more images the mind looks for a link to give their grouping meaning." 

Last night Johnny screenprinted his first shirt with one of his trademark couplets: the similar swords of the Kingfisher and the Unicorn. We look forward to more collaboration from the collection!

PULLED

New from favorite publisher Princeton Architectural Press: 

PULLED: A Catalog of Screen Printing. The fresh design 

of the book and inspiring examples of contemporary 

screenprinting make this a must have for the studio. 

Maybe we'll take up a collection.

 

3 Color Circus

A huge turnout kept Rebecca, Marty and Grant Dickie at their color stations for the entire 3 hours of the open house. The demo circus print generated lots of enthusiasm and queues to pull the 3 plates in succession, creating the magic of a finished piece of art.

Special shout out to board member Michael Pollack who rolled up his sleeves and dove in to help with the yellow plate, and Jose Dominguez for the great publicity. It was a fantastic and fun event.

< Marty, manning the red plate

A crowd of partygoers circled around the screenprinting demo. Especially rewarding was seeing the children proudly admiring their finished prints. Becca on board, helping the littlest screenprinter get her hands on a squeegee.

Screen in the Clowns

Our circus themed poster demo is at the ready for today's open

house and birthday party. Stop on by to pull your own 3 color 

circus poster. There will also be cake, a raffle, letterpressed birthday 

card sets and other demos.

Pyramid Atlantic Birthday Party
2-5 PM
Juried Member's Exhibition

Artist Reception

3-4 PM

Saturday, April 9, 2011

8230 Georgia Ave
Silver Spring MD 20910