Old Growing Thing, 2009, intaglio, 16 x 20 inches, edition 100
an exhibition of etchings
Larry Welo
I have always been an artist who loves to draw. I like to work with my subject in front of me. When I was taught etching in the 1970s, I learned that printmaking is an indoor pursuit, where every aspect is done in the studio. If I did a landscape, for instance, the source material would be drawn with pencil and paper, followed by the creation of the composition and the work on the plate done in the studio. One day, about 15 years ago, some plein air artist friends of mine invited me to come along with them and bring one of my copper plates. With the indoor approach ingrained, I agreed to go with them, thinking that I would only be wasting one day. Quite the opposite occurred. A connection was made, and since that time, I create virtually all of my etchings while working on location. I draw onto my plate while observing my subject in front of me. The copper plates are fairly portable and I do everything while working on location, outdoors or indoors. The creation of the composition is done on location while holding the plate in my hands. I also visit the subject on different days and different weather conditions. I glean from the subject different things each time. I carefully study what I have drawn onto the plate and stopping out areas that I don't like, eventually the plate is put in the acid bath. The plate is etched at different time intervals, which enables me to get a wide range of values when the plate is printed.
I also love to print my work. I look at the printing process as being critical to my etchings. When I print, I do not strive to have each print be the same. I apply ink to the plate and manipulate the ink that I have applied. Some areas of the plate are wiped very cleanly using newsprint and whiting. In other areas the ink will be manipulated with my hands and fingers creating values and an ink surface that works together with and compliments the printed line work. If you compare it to music, I think a good analogy would be that the plate is like the score, and the printed image is a performance of the score. I try to make each print better than the one preceding it, and am always interested in trying things that I have not tried before. For me, printing is not a static process, but one of continued creativity and exploration.