WILLIAM PATERSON UNIVERSITY ART EXHIBIT CELEBRATES PRINTMAKING

NorthEast Prints 2003, a juried exhibit of works by 25 professional printmakers from New Jersey, New York, Massachusetts and Connecticut will be on view at William Paterson University’s Ben Shahn Galleries from March 24 through April 17. Gallery hours are Monday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Admission is free.

The show, in Ben Shahn’s South Gallery, includes a variety of printmaking media, including woodcut, etching, monotype/monoprint, lithography, intaglio, silkscreen, and processes involving photography-derived imagery and digital collage. The exhibit was curated by David W. Kiehl, curator of prints for the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York.

Nancy Einreinhofer, director of the Ben Shahn Galleries, says the exhibit contains a "variety of ideas and expressions representative of the current East coast art world, which are explored through both the traditional print mediums, such as etching and woodcut, and the latest digital technology. Through this annual exhibit we are building the University’s collection of prints and we are excited to be acquiring such fine examples."

Among the artists featured in the exhibit is Robert Craig of North Plainfield, whose black and white linocut, "Killing Time," depicts a train yard. "I often meditate on my pieces, and only then work them out in visual form," he explains. "Once in physical form, the images are in constant evolution during their creation."

Catherine Le Cleire of Upper Montclair weaves family and heritage into her prints, such as "My Father’s Letter #2," a screen print in which the text of a handwritten letter overlaps an anatomical rendering of the upper half of a man’s torso. "In weave-like attachments that form a kind of tapestry or quilt, my visual memories are joined," says Le Cleire.

Marc Cote of Newton, Massachusetts reveals his fascination with character development, physiognomy and gesture in prints such as "Petrified Man," a woodcut in which a man’s head is visible underneath a pattern of striations. "I’m interested in our secret, rarely revealed egos," the artist says. "I want to capture the temporal nature of the person – confident, magnetic, animalistic, materialistic, downtrodden, giddy."
Highland Park resident Erena Rae explores the power of language in her works, including "Little Hope," a digital print. A photo of a young girl, titled "Be All That You Can Be," is superimposed by words with feminine suffixes, such as "hostess," "majorette" and "songstress." According to Rae, "The art that moves me most is art that points out unfair or unethical practices – especially those which have become so routine that either they go unnoticed or they are assumed to be normal."

The exhibit is one of three shows on view concurrently in the Ben Shahn Galleries. On view in the East Gallery is "Myths and Tales: Growing Up Female," a one-person show of prints by Patricia Cudd of Freehold. In the Court Gallery, artist roycrosse presents a selection of his diverse artworks, which include drawings, paintings and sculpture. All exhibits are free and open to the public and are wheelchair accessible.

This exhibit is made possible in part by funds from the New Jersey State Council on the Arts/Department of State, a partner agency of the National Endowment for the Arts.

For additional information, please call the Ben Shahn Galleries at William Paterson University at 973-720-2654.

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3/20/03
For Further Information, contact:

Mary Beth Zeman, Director, Public Relations 973-720-2966