2011. This painting from the fern bundle was finished with a watercolor and indigo wash, which really brought the image to life. Dimensions: 42" x 42" (sold)

From a series of river tooth images. 2011.

In 2006 I was invited to collaborate on copperplate etchings with Julia D'Amario at the Sitka Center for Art and Ecology. It was an opportunity to explore my imagery in a form I had not engaged since college.

Julia helped me understand each process, and I often started with soft ground by drawing through a thin sheet of newsprint to layout the image. Julia then began proofing as I laid down aquatint and bit through it with spitbite. Eventually I used drypoint to add the character of that line to the images. I got more bold as the days flew by. I ended up making six plates in eight days and Julia editioned the prints. 

I have just begun hand-painting some of the prints with watercolor. This image derives from an aerial photograph of the Salmon River at Cascade Head taken in 1939.

This the last and the largest plate from my series of copperplate etchings. I wanted to make a plate of the full rivertooth (42"), but I was limited by time and my skill level with the medium. As it is, this image is roughly 27" by 14" so it required serious work to complete. Julia D'Amario was instrumental in helping me understand ways to present the object in space. 
All of these images are printed on Hahnemuhle warm white.

This is an image of the fern bundle from the back. I made a number of these images in variation using black charcoal and then colored ground pigment sticks.

2009  

(Colored version Sold)

This image of a group of fern bundles, which I found in the forest at Sitka Center in 2009, has fascinated me and led to paintings.

30" x 22"

2009

Continuing to explore this object I discovered in 2009, I have grown the image to approximately 50 inches. I have introduced pure pigment as the backdrop, giving a feel of steel plate and rust. 2012.

This river tooth was a challenge because of its rough shape and its top edges relative to the interior of the river tooth, which is hollow. The image is 14" x 10" on a 22" x 19" sheet. Soft ground, white ground/aquatint and drypoint, burnishing.

The piece was done in five "movements" to match the movements in the musical composition. So depending on the time - quicker or more slow, the marks were made to reflect that time and the vigor of the marking was connected to that timing as well. First moment was slow and the audience saw a transition from a soft pixelated image of the horizon and a pattern of waves moving towards the shore. I passed a wet brush over the pixelated color which was laid onto the rough texture of the paper with a Caren'd'ache wax crayon. That color changed into watercolor as the wet brush passed over it. Then in each movement I used specific strokes of color up and down for thermal uplift and downdraft of water movement. As the music continued I used larger gestures to depict waves and circular movement experienced in water and finally I used white oilstick to indicate the roll of waves over the surface of the ocean. All of this was to honor the 40th Anniversary of the Cascade Head Scenic Research Area at Cascade Head and the Salmon River. (Sold)

This 52" x 14' painting on Arches 140 lb. watercolor paper was done in response to a 31 minute chamber music piece performed live in front of an audience of 100+ at the Lincoln City Cultural Center, December 15, 2014. The music was a composition by Portland composer Scott Johanson reflecting his response to water, specifically the sea.