Kathleen Walsh Buchanan is the Artist of the Month at the Camden Public Library for November. Her collagraphs will be on display in the Picker Room through the end of the month. Kathleen creates and prints her artwork at her Grey Seal Press in Thomaston. She says, “I generally print my images in small editions of 20 to 30 prints. The printing plates are capable of being printed many more times before any deterioration of the image occurs, but I enjoy keeping my editions to this limited size. Although there are multiple prints of the images, each print is considered an original piece of art because it is generated entirely by the artist’s hand, not by using a mechanized reproduction process.”
She continues, “My path to becoming a working artist is perhaps somewhat atypical — I was educated and employed as a biologist prior becoming a full-time printmaker in 1999. As an undergraduate at Tufts University, I majored in biology and nurtured my creative skills with as many studio art courses as I could possibly fit into my schedule. After graduation in 1993, I worked in the consulting field for a few years before heading off to graduate school. It was while completing my master’s degree in wildlife biology at the University of Alaska that I decided to renew my efforts at studio art and printmaking in particular. At first glance, biology and printmaking seem to have little common ground, but much of my training as a scientist has served me extremely well as an artist. Both disciplines require skill at observing the environment, at not only looking but seeing what is going on around you. I look at biology and art as two dialects in the same language, different ways to communicate what you have learned about the nature of things, about the truth of your experience.“I am constantly inspired by the area where I live — the coast of Maine always reinvents itself with ever-changing ocean and sky, and seasons which each have grace and character all their own. My two young children are my constant companions, and fuel the creative process by reminding me to engage the world with a sense of newness and discovery. In addition, music and poetry influence my work and fill my studio at all times. I look to the work of Rockwell Kent, Sabra Field, Christy Moore, and Billy Collins for guidance and energy to keep creating.
“As an artist, I am fascinated by relationships. My connection to the natural world, my role as a mother, and my own sense of self all find expression in my images. I enjoy looking at landscapes and their inhabitants not only as appealing composition subjects, but also as metaphors for our human experience.
“Collagraph printing, with all its intricacy and subtlety, is a fascinating medium to use in the communication of these ideas. A collagraph is a hand-made print that is generated from a printing plate that is a collage of various material. For my pieces, I start with a sturdy backing board of plain masonite panel. I then glue down shapes of bristol paper on this board that delineate the major elements of my design. I paint over this paper with acrylic gel mediums to add texture and detail to the design, and to prevent the bristol paper from being saturated with ink when it’s time to print.“Once the acrylic is dry, the plate is ready to print. I cover the entire plate with an oil-based etching ink and use tarlatan (starched cheesecloth) to wipe away excess ink. The end result is that ink remains stuck in the textured and recessed areas of the block, but wipes away from smooth areas. These result in the “darks” and “lights” of the image respectively. Dampened printing paper (I use Magnani Pescia, a bright white, Italian, 100% cotton paper) is then laid on top of the plate, felt blankets are laid on top of the paper, and it all is cranked through the etching press. The pressure of the press embosses the paper into the plate, forces it into all the recesses, and allows the ink to be drawn out onto the paper. Most of my images have multiple colors, which requires that separate plates be made for each color. The multiple plates are printed one at a time, working from the lightest to darkest colors.”
