Original Fine Art Prints
"Thank you for taking an interest in my printmaking.
"Making fine art prints is new to me (2022) and all the work here was made within the past few years. Traditional techniques suggest traditional subject matter, of course, and that's how most people start, including me.
"Eventually, as my confidence grew it was easy to try new approaches and so I did that, too.
"Today prints themselves are a kind of "poor relation", or, put another way, a minor key medium. They are largely out of favor in our fast paced and wound up world. That is because they are on paper, almost always modest in scale, usually humble in voice, often lack bright colors, trumpeting innovations, and harsh "slash and dash" techniques.
"They are, simply put, easily overlooked.
"That said, for me they have a kind of 'puppy dog in the window' appeal because they can be technically challenging and often require considerable time and devotion.
"Add to those features, I have noted over the years that many mature artists seek out printmaking in their later years. I have been a painter all my life, but once arriving in my mid-seventies I began to wonder what I was missing by never having made fine art prints. So I decided to find out.
"One of my first discoveries was that almost anything that has passed through a press has suddenly been stamped with a kind of unifying and legitimizing, Imprimatur, if you'll forgive the pun.
"Surprise creeps in, but is always held in check, and framed by unification, definition, and "pressure." The language is subtle, but unmistakable.
"So called 'plate marks' and 'plate tone' are only two examples. Another might be the markings and various attributions and other information appearing on the face of the print, traditionally in pencil, together with a signature, date, edition number, etc. All these small things add up and make prints special. At least they do for me.
"Ideally, successful work should speak for itself, but it cannot hurt to say I am seeking an expression anchored in nostalgia, but sometimes drifting into experiment.
"In printmaking, the kids play quietly, and they are often alone.
"So JOIN ME! Be part of the advance guard! Help lead the charge to bring back attention to fine art prints! Slow down, chill out, and listen to what they may have to say - often it's in a whisper."
"THANK YOU for being interested!
Sincerely,
CHUCK BAUER
"Making fine art prints is new to me (2022) and all the work here was made within the past few years. Traditional techniques suggest traditional subject matter, of course, and that's how most people start, including me.
"Eventually, as my confidence grew it was easy to try new approaches and so I did that, too.
"Today prints themselves are a kind of "poor relation", or, put another way, a minor key medium. They are largely out of favor in our fast paced and wound up world. That is because they are on paper, almost always modest in scale, usually humble in voice, often lack bright colors, trumpeting innovations, and harsh "slash and dash" techniques.
"They are, simply put, easily overlooked.
"That said, for me they have a kind of 'puppy dog in the window' appeal because they can be technically challenging and often require considerable time and devotion.
"Add to those features, I have noted over the years that many mature artists seek out printmaking in their later years. I have been a painter all my life, but once arriving in my mid-seventies I began to wonder what I was missing by never having made fine art prints. So I decided to find out.
"One of my first discoveries was that almost anything that has passed through a press has suddenly been stamped with a kind of unifying and legitimizing, Imprimatur, if you'll forgive the pun.
"Surprise creeps in, but is always held in check, and framed by unification, definition, and "pressure." The language is subtle, but unmistakable.
"So called 'plate marks' and 'plate tone' are only two examples. Another might be the markings and various attributions and other information appearing on the face of the print, traditionally in pencil, together with a signature, date, edition number, etc. All these small things add up and make prints special. At least they do for me.
"Ideally, successful work should speak for itself, but it cannot hurt to say I am seeking an expression anchored in nostalgia, but sometimes drifting into experiment.
"In printmaking, the kids play quietly, and they are often alone.
"So JOIN ME! Be part of the advance guard! Help lead the charge to bring back attention to fine art prints! Slow down, chill out, and listen to what they may have to say - often it's in a whisper."
"THANK YOU for being interested!
Sincerely,
CHUCK BAUER
