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| Brooke Lambert, Blossoms, 8"x10", collograph and gauche |
I recently met Brooke because her wonderful prints are on the panel next to mine in the Hello, Brooklyn show now hanging at BWAC. I was immediately attracted to her palette and the joyful nature of her work. As a fellow printmaker, I appreciate her dedication to the process and the unique results it produces.
1. Why do you make art?
I make art to express and communicate my feelings about my surroundings
in nature and to share beauty. I believe it’s important to share beauty in the
world and be a source of positivity in people’s living and working
environments. Art for me is about taking something that’s important to me
and making it visible and more beautiful to other people. I’ve always
thought that the best songs are personal to the person who wrote them but
relatable to anyone who listens to them. My goal for my art is similar: to
make something with deep meaning for myself but also something that
translates to the viewer.
2. What tools/materials do you find essential in your studio?
My works are primarily collagraphs because I’m drawn to the sculptural
qualities and rich range of color I can achieve in this way of working. To
build a collagraph plate, I first take a piece of matboard and cut it down to
my desired print size. I cover the plate with materials I’ve collected,
including string, netting, and pieces of fabric.
After I arrange my materials on the plate, I use a staple gun to attach
them to the plate while using a brush to cover them with gesso, creating a
sculptural, low-relief surface. I take that plate to my printmaking studio
and cover it with ink using a large brush. When it is completely covered
with ink, I use balled-up tarleton to wipe the ink off most of the plate, so it
sticks only in the crevices in my design.
I put my plate on my printing press and cover it with wet 100 percent
cotton rag paper. I cover that with newsprint, then run it through the press
to make a print. The enormous pressure of the press drum and press
blanket push materials on my plate into the cotton rag paper to create an
embossed print.
I take my print and go back to my home studio, where I paint with
gouache to add luminosity and color to my pieces. The results are original
painted collagraph prints.
