“Printmaking is innovation.”
      -- Michael Mazur

“Actually it is the potential for change that captivates me.”
      -- Wayne Thiebaud

Combine these two sentiments and that sums up my approach to printmaking. I love the possibility to see and try alternatives, the potential in various techniques and materials - this is what makes me so passionate about this art form. Today’s printmaker has so many choices - from the traditional methods and materials of stone, wood, and metal to 21st Century solar plate, plastic, and computer technology. This is a fabulous time to be a printmaker.

Add to printmaking the re-emergence of the book as “fine art" and there is even more potential for innovation in concept and presentation for artists. “Touch” is now linked to “look and see” as my prints can move off the wall to become tactile sculpture. Each print becomes part of a larger whole, tied together by structure and/or text.

Working with talented poets and printmakers on collaboration portfolios and book projects keeps my printmaking viable and evolving. It enables me to bring new enthusiasm and vision to my own work as well as the classes I teach. What I love about printmaking is absolutely everything!

Carol Strause FitzSimonds