Espalier Prints and Collages
by Ann Forbush
May 11 - June 23, 2007
Hours: Mon & Thurs 10-4
Tues & Wed 12:30-4
By appointment apforbush@comcast.net
Opening Reception: Fri, May 11, 6-8 pm
Solstice Reception: Thurs, June 21, 6-8 pm
Artist's Statement
Espalier is the horticultural technique of training trees through pruning and grafting in order to create formal "two-dimensional" patterns. Like bonsai and topiary, espalier is another example of how humans coerce undisciplined nature.
I am fascinated with espalier because it is both beautiful and quirky, wild yet tamed. It represents the sheer determination of living things to thrive, in spite of external constraints.
As a printmaker and textile artist, I have always been intrigued by the paradox of representing the natural world on a flat plane. To create a sense of depth I often use overprinting, layering and paper stencils.
These stencils can be rather fragile, and working with them requires a delicate but decisive hand. My prints share a similar quality in that monoprints are each unique: once the ink is lifted from the plate, the images will never be duplicated as they are in other methods of printing. I like to depict images of a transient nature; I am drawn to atmospheric landscapes, fleeting objects, architectural fragments.
Through the use of collage, in this new series, I have added rice paper textures and translucent layers, combining traditional espalier forms with “liberated” forms of my own.
Ann Forbush, 2007
Up in Smoke
20" x 20"
Formosa Espalier
20" x 20"
Greek Vases I and II
12" x 36"
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