About the exhibit

Artists:

Alice Shaw
Alisa Golden
Betsy Davids
Bettina Pauly
Casey Gardner
Charles Hobson
Julie Chen
Karen Sjoholm
Kat Howard
Lucia Dill
Lucy Childs
Macy Chadwick
Mandie Rider
Michael Henninger
Nance O'Banion
Reiko Fujii
Thomas Rockwell

 

Thomas Rockwell

San Ramon, California

thomas_rockwell_hiddeninplainview_2.jpg
thomas_rockwell_hiddeninplainview_1.jpg
thomas_rockwell_hiddeninplainview_3.jpg

Hidden in Plain View

BFK Rives cream paper, tracing paper, sinew, cotton thread

4 x 5½ x ¼

© 2013

edtion size: ?

$ 300

This book was constructed from tracing paper with the text printed on the interior of the pages. The surface of the book is actually devoid of printing- the content is only visible due to the translucent paper. The pages were printed from Litho plates and bound together with sinew. The text is Enochian, a 16th Century occult language for communing with Angels, and instructs the reader on a guided meditation. The images are seals used to invoke elementals & angels. The largest challenge was actually the Wild Card - incorporating evidence of process in the final work. I struggled with different methods, but none were obvious enough to others that saw the results. Finally, I decided to best suit the parameters of both Lyrical & the Wild Card, I would actually print sections of the plates that were used for alignment in addition to the images or text. The biggest challenge was letting go of the need for perfection & letting the work behind the scenes show through in the finished piece.

Ideation Cards:

technique: high-tech (letterpress, offset, or printmaking)

layout: based on a grid

paper: transparent/translucent

text: abstract, non-verbal, or gibberish

image: lifted from outside sources

color: favorite

structure: historic structure

adjectives: lyrical/musical, encyclopedic, allegorical, surreal

wild card: incorporate evidence of process into the finished piece

Thomas Rockwell is a sculptor and book artist in the California Bay Area finishing his Bachelors of Fine Arts in Traditional Arts at Cal State East Bay in Hayward. He has been working with a focus in metals for several years, specifically with a focus in metallurgical and alchemical symbolism. He strives to combine elements of the occult with modern scientific understanding both visually and through use of materials.

to purchase any of the work in the exhibition, contact Alicia

click here to purchase print catalog