Provincetown Printmakers at Boston Museum of Fine Arts
4/20/2023

Provincetown Printmakers at Boston Museum of Fine Arts
I'm proud to have been asked to contribute a few words as wall text, to add a bit of contemporary context to accompany the current exhibit of woodcuts by the Provincetown Printmakers, at the Clementine Brown Gallery (Gallery 170) at the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston. A facsimile image of one of my prints, Essential No.1, accompanies the text. My statement is as follows:

“I first became acquainted with white line woodcuts as a university printmaking student, while waitressing in Provincetown during the summers of 1979-1980. I was intrigued by their luminous colors, simplified yet sophisticated designs, and low-tech approach. There were no classes in the medium at that time, so I taught myself to print by trial and error, reading everything I could find about the early Provincetown printers. My understanding was advanced when I attended the MFA's 2002 exhibit "Blanche Lazzell and the Color Woodcut," and I had the opportunity to examine her work more closely. 

A visual artist’s voice can be found in their imagery, and much can be conveyed without the need for the spoken word. We may be delighted by design, shape and color while gleaning important cultural and social clues in the choice of subject matter. The prints displayed on the wall at left represent a conversation among the artists, a conversation that continues with us, in the 21st century.“

The exhibit continues from April 1 through October 15, 2023.