Known as the “painterly print”, and favored by such masters as Edgar Degas, a monotype is a single, unique print. Using a photo as reference, and recalling the feeling of the scene, I paint on plexiglass with small brayers, or rollers. I often layer colors of the oil-based inks, which tends to create some translucency in the final works. I also make shapes and marks with the rollers and their edges. Given the difference in my tools and methods, my monotypes tend to be looser and more abstract in style than my watercolors and oils. From the painting on plexiglass, and using a printing press, I make one image on paper. What emerges is to some extent a surprise, as some colors blend and some marks are reshaped. The layers of ink and the sweeping as well as choppy marks of the rollers evoke shifting clouds and sands, and hint at the depths and constant movement in the skies and seas. These works on paper are evocative of the scenes that inspired them – fleeting views of the Outer Cape’s distinct and beautiful landscape.
