5 Fine Art Printmakers

This exhibition is a collaboration between five artists who met each other though their membership of the Blackchurch Print Studio in Temple Bar, Dublin.

 JOAN GLEESON-  Living near the sea, the coastline provides an ever renewing source of inspiration and investigation. The ever changing coastal activity of wind and tidal motion, and the impact of such activity on sand and dune provide the impetus of some of her work. Her work investigates shale delineated water lines, bird imprints, insect and worm trails. All contribute their distinctive marks on the earth surface, while flocks of birds move in lightening wave motion on earth shore. Within the ethereal quality of light, natural forms take on a new aspect, a transparent quality, in the context of light penetration.  The suggestion therefore is that all original input, creativity and creative action all inevitably contribute to the greater richness of the whole. Creative expression moves from time into timeless and limitless potential of endless unfolding life.  joanmgleeson@gmail.com

ANN GILLEECE–  The early inspiration for my work came directly from my involvement in the performing arts – as a professional orchestral musician. The image of that first print was of a cellist, sitting behind his instrument.  I have spent a lot of time in Italy over the last many years, so it’s not surprising that my work is influenced by Italian landscapes and cityscapes, the Italian Renaissance (commedia dell’arte, artists, architecture) and famous Italian women from the past.  I use a variety of techniques in my print work, but my favourites are sugarlift, aquatint and etching. The starting point for many of my prints is a drawing or a photograph. After that the medium often dictates over any technical choices I make.  Print-making represents my secret garden, that place where I can find my inner self!  anngilleece@hotmail.com

GERHARDT GALLAGHER–  Drawing has always been part of my life and my sketch books a permanent feature. These are the basis of my art which has developed over time, from earlier hard-edged space and time themes in acrylics and oils to figurative stylised images and more recently figures on a landscape in paint and print, the latter maybe inherited from my grandmother, a painter and etcher of the north German landscape. I came to printing some 20 years ago focussing mainly on acquaint etching, a somewhat painterly process, which suits the light and shade of my  mainly natural world subject matter. This is inspired by the imagery of the west and south of Ireland seascapes and the Wicklow mountain region near where I live. gerhardtgallagher53@gmail.com

BÉBHINN NIC LIAM–  I work in a variety of media, predominantly printmaking in the last 10 or so years. I am fascinated by the traces left behind by previous generations, their work, their utensils and other objects, memories, even the paths they walked.  bnicliam@gmail.com

LINDA UHLEMANN–  Linda Uhlemann trained at NCAD and graduated as a jewellery designer and maker. In later years she returned to IADT and graduated with a BA Hons in Visual Art Practice. She won the RDS student graduate Print prize and then was awarded a scholarship to The Art Students League in New York. She is a member of the Black Church Print Studio and a fine art printmaker.  Through working as a contemporary jeweller for many years my print work has evolved using many of the same techniques.  Drawing on the imagery of rivers, mountains, rocks and shorelines, the plates are scored and marked like weathered and eroded landscapes, then printed in colour layers, giving them a rich luminosity and strength. My work is a means by which I express my love of and my communication with our increasingly fragile world.  lindauhlemann06@gmail.com

About printmaking:  These prints aren’t mechanical reproductions but are fine art prints, created using craft printing methods. Each print is hand-produced, one at a time. Metal plates, of copper or aluminium, are most commonly used. The image on each plate is created using a variety of techniques available to printmakers, such as drypoint or etching with acid. Each plate is then inked by hand before being put through a traditional press, using high quality acid free paper. This produces a unique work of art with depth, richness and character not found in electronically produced prints.

The resulting print is then allowed to dry under pressure. The artist will first create an Artist’s Proof (A/P) before deciding to edition the work or not. This is indicated by showing the number of the individual print and the total number available in that edition. For example 1/10 is the first print of an edition of ten. Variation Prints (V/P) may also be made, perhaps on a different colour or process. Although the print you see may be sold, if the artist has produced an edition, further hand made prints may be available.

Sometimes, in the case of a mono-print, only one print can be made from the plate and so is a unique piece. Fine art prints are best hung out of direct sunlight and areas of condensation.