A CLOSER LOOK About the Artist: About Printmaking:

Transcription

1 A CLOSER LOOK Welcome to the Frist Center for the Visual Arts! This guide was designed for students and their chaperones to use together as they explore the exhibition Chuck Close Prints: Process and Collaboration. The tour contains six stops, which are indicated on the map below. Each card corresponds to a print at each stop. During your visit please remember to: 1. Touch the art with your eyes only, not your hands. 2. Walk do not run in the art galleries. 3. Notice the stars on the map below. They indicate a stop on your tour. 4. Most importantly, enjoy your tour! Chuck Close Prints: Process and Collaboration was organized by Blaffer Gallery, the Art Museum of the University of Houston Platinum Sponsor: About the Artist: Artist Chuck Close is well known for his large-scale, ultra-realistic paintings of human faces, which he prefers to call heads. Guided by a grid, Close would manually transfer each photographic portrait to canvas. While his earliest paintings were faithful to the photographic original, Close s introduction to the collaborative processes of printmaking led him to experiment with the marks contained within each gridded cell, often challenging the boundary between realism and abstraction. About Printmaking: Chuck Close used various printmaking techniques to create the portraits displayed in this exhibition. Printmaking is a process in which an artist transfers ink that has been applied to one surface, such as stone, wood, or a metal plate, onto another surface, such as paper or fabric. Because of the complicated nature of making a print, printmaking is often a collaborative process involving the artist and master printmakers. Self-Portrait, Hard-ground etching and aquatint. 54 x 41". Edition of 35. Crown Point Press, Oakland, California, printer (Patrick Foy). Chuck Close, publisher. Courtesy the artist.

2 This is a detail from one of Chuck Close s selfportraits in the first gallery. Can you find the selfportrait it belongs to? This self-portrait was made by etching into a copper printing plate and then printing with black ink onto white paper. Later, Close reversed this image by printing with white ink on black paper in Self- Portrait/White Ink. Look closely at the two prints for similarities and differences. An essential part of Chuck Close s prints is the underlying grid that guides his printmaking processes. Each square of the grid is filled with abstract marks. When viewed from a distance, those marks come together to form a representational, or realistic image. Notice the grid that makes up this self-portrait. Self-Portrait (detail), Hard-ground etching and aquatint. 54 x 41". Edition of 35. Crown Point Press, Oakland, California, printer (Patrick Foy). Chuck Close, publisher. Courtesy the artist. Self-Portrait, Hard-ground etching and aquatint. 54 x 41". Edition of 35. Crown Point Press, Oakland, California, printer (Patrick Foy). Chuck Close, publisher. Courtesy the artist.

3 Look closely at this detail. How do you think Close made the marks seen in this image of his wife, Leslie? Close first made a series of enormous portraits by inking his fingertips and pressing them on the canvas. Later he chose to translate that method into a series of prints. This print is of Close s wife, Leslie. Notice how Close used his fingers to create the different shades, or values, in this print. How would using your fingertips be more personal than using another artistic tool such as a paintbrush? Could you also use your toes to make a print? Visit ArtQuest s Exploring Exhibitions station to make your own fingerprint portrait! Leslie/Fingerprint (detail), Direct gravure. 54 1/2 x 40 1/2". Edition of 45. Graphicstudio, University of South Florida, Tampa, printer (Patrick Foy, George Holzer, Deli Sacilotto, Donald Saff). Graphicstudio, University of South Florida, Tampa, and Pace Editions, Inc., New York, publishers. Courtesy the artist and Pace Editions, Inc., New York. Leslie/Fingerprint (detail), Direct gravure. 54 1/2 x 40 1/2". Edition of 45. Graphicstudio, University of South Florida, Tampa, printer (Patrick Foy, George Holzer, Deli Sacilotto, Donald Saff). Graphicstudio, University of South Florida, Tampa, and Pace Editions, Inc., New York, publishers. Courtesy the artist and Pace Editions, Inc., New York.

4 and LISTEN Do you hear the music playing in the gallery? It was created by well known composer Philip Glass, who is featured in the print below. Close created this print using pulp paper, which is a moist, mushy material made from ground-up fabric. The pulp was dyed different shades of gray and then squeezed into a plastic gridded grill. Each square of the grid was numbered according to a corresponding shade of pigmented pulp. Have you ever done a color-by-number drawing or painting? This process of matching up the correct color to the correct section of the image is very similar to the process Chuck Close used to make this pulppaper multiple. Close is fond of repeatedly using the same person to inspire new prints. As you continue through the gallery, look for other versions of Phil. How are these other prints of Phil similar or different from this one? Phil III, Handmade paper. 69 x 53 1/2". Edition of 15. Joe Wilfer, printer. Pace Editions, Inc., New York, publisher. Courtesy the artist and Pace Editions, Inc., New York. Phil III, Handmade paper. 69 x 53 1/2". Edition of 15. Joe Wilfer, printer. Pace Editions, Inc., New York, publisher. Courtesy the artist and Pace Editions, Inc., New York.

5 Like Phil III, this image is made out of paper. However, Close used a different process to create this portrait. How do you think it was made? While completing works such as Phil III, Close would drop blobs of pulp on the floor that would then harden into little paper chips. He used these chips to make a collage of his daughter Georgia. A collage is a piece of artwork that is made by gluing various materials to a piece of paper or canvas. This can include construction paper, fabric, magazine clippings, newspaper, etc. If you were to make a collage of yourself what would you include? How would these materials reflect your personality and interests? Georgia (detail), Pulp-paper collage on canvas. 48 x 38". Collection of the artist. Courtesy the artist. Georgia, Pulp-paper collage on canvas. 48 x 38". Collection of the artist. Courtesy the artist.

6 How many colors can you identify in this print? Self-Portrait/Scribble/Etching Portfolio, State #1 #6 from portfolio of 12 plates, 12 progressives and 1 final signed print. Soft-ground etching. 18 1/4 x 15 1/4". Courtesy the artist and Pace Editions, Inc., New York. Close is fond of building illusions for viewers to enjoy. In this print he employs the typical unintentional scribble in a carefully planned method. The print is made by progressively layering different-colored doodles. The combination of hues and shapes creates a richly textured image. Look closely at the progressive prints and notice how each new layer builds upon the last. Colors across from one another on the color wheel are called complementary colors. Close layered these colors in a way that created the neutral flesh tones seen in the image. Self-Portrait/Scribble/Etching Portfolio, Final signed print from portfolio of 12 plates and 12 progressive proofs. Soft-ground etching. 18 1/4 x 15 1/4" each. Edition of 15. Pace Editions Ink, New York, printer (Bill Hall, Julia D Amario, Jessica Miller, Kathy Kuehn). Pace Editions, Inc., New York, publisher. Courtesy the artist and Pace Editions, Inc., New York. Look closely at the color wheel and identify each color s complement.

7 Look closely at each individual square in this grid. Notice all of the shapes and colors that have been layered to create the image of Emma. This print of Close s niece Emma was made in collaboration with master printmaker Yasu Shibata. The technique he used, called Japanese-style ukiyo-e woodcut, involves carving and printing wooden blocks. Yasu Shibata cut away the parts he did not want to appear in the final print and then inked and printed the remaining raised sections. He used 27 blocks and 113 colors in this print. The word collaboration means working together. Chuck Close collaborates with people to create each of his prints. Think of a time when you have had to work with a classmate or group of people on a project. Did you encounter any problems? How did you work together to solve them? Emma, color Japanese-style ukiyo-e woodcut. 43 x 35". Edition of 55. Pace Editions Ink, New York, printer (Yasu Shibata). Pace Editions, Inc., New York, publisher. Courtesy the artist and Pace Editions, Inc., New York. Emma, color Japanese-style ukiyo-e woodcut. 43 x 35". Edition of 55. Pace Editions Ink, New York, printer (Yasu Shibata). Pace Editions, Inc., New York, publisher. Courtesy the artist and Pace Editions, Inc., New York.