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About GeneI was fortunate to receive a great vocational art education in the high schools of Grand Rapids, Michigan and Spokane, Washington. This included printing press use, typesetting, bookbinding, cutting negatives for silkscreen, mechanical drawing, wood shop, metal shop, woodblock printing, jewelry (casting and piercing) and wood sculpture. I made posters for school dances and events, and was able to start selling my work. Then I got drafted.
Throughout my time in Vietnam, I continued to draw, paint our company logo on helicopters, and as most bases had darkrooms, I made use of them. Becoming a combat veteran gave me a different perspective on life, and a single-minded focus on becoming a working artist. Military service provided me with the opportunity to attend art school. Accepted into Cornish School of the Allied Arts, I studied sculpture, jewelry, printmaking and painting. My instructors were Charles Stokes, Paul Heald, Dale Owen, William Cumming, Gordon Anderson, Stephen Hazel, Anne Praczucowski and Joel Jessen. At Cold Mountain Institute on Cortes Island B.C., I studied environmental design in construction through Antioch College. I lived in a small cabin without power, and I spent a lot of time drawing. I put together a watercolor kit and started doing studies from The Tao of Painting, incorporating my interest in Chinese philosophy into my painting. This influence is still very much in my work. I continued to study printmaking and jewelry in Vancouver B.C. At that time in Vancouver there were many European artists and craftsmen who brought with them the traditions and techniques of their craft. There I learned the importance of preparing my work for what the untrained eye does not see, but senses, a feeling of quality, craftsmanship and skill. I was able to earn a living making jewelry in my home shop for fairs, and later in professional jewelry shops. When I returned to Seattle in 1977, I had a solid set of skills that allowed me to be hired as a professional jeweler. After years of work in various shops, I became a master jeweler. Throughout this time I maintained a drawing practice of people (see the Notes From a Sketchbook tab on the website, now evolving into the Street Portrait woodcut print series) and nature (such as the backyard plum tree, now a woodcut print). In Skagit County since 2007, after spending some time painting in oils, I switched to limited edition woodcut prints. Printmaking allows production of unique pieces, resulting in affordable art of high quality. For me it gives a balance between technical expertise and artistry. I look for forms and shapes and colors to create interesting compositions using recognizable locations in Skagit County. The process begins with a drawing. The image is separated into colors by carving multiple wood blocks, leaving behind only the image to be printed. The wood left in relief is inked (linseed oil-based ink) in the colors I have mixed, and run through the press onto 100% rag paper. Each print is numbered, titled, signed and stamped. |
Recent Press:
Cascadia Daily News Skagit Valley in Color review by Stephen Hunter
Skagit Herald Skagit Artists Open Studios for NW Art Beat Tour by Emma Fletcher-Frazer
Tales of the Magic Skagit Listen to Your Art by Morgan White
Cascadia Daily News Skagit Valley in Color review by Stephen Hunter
Skagit Herald Skagit Artists Open Studios for NW Art Beat Tour by Emma Fletcher-Frazer
Tales of the Magic Skagit Listen to Your Art by Morgan White
Awards |
Edmonds Arts Festival 2024, third place printmaking for My Plum Tree Special Edition
Schack Art Center 23rd Juried Exhibition Honorable Mention for The Wind in the Old Tree Mount Vernon Artwalk 2017, People’s Choice Award for the painting Refined Living in Anacortes PNW Jeweler’s Association Competition 2006, People’s Choice Award (Warren Jewelers) International Diamond Awards 1978: as part of the Mastercraft jewelry team Federation of Canadian Artists 1974: Certificate of Merit in Lithography Bellevue Arts and Crafts Fair 1972: Painting, Second Place |
Shows the Past Two Years |
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