Artist’s Statement
This decorative linocut is about a wild pheasant that lived outside my studio for a winter. She battled the elements until spring when she left for mating season. She was the inspiration for several prints including this two-block linocut image that uses a transparent base ink to make a third color. The design of this print references the repetition of wallpaper and border motifs that often idealize and stylize nature, using it to adorn our living spaces.
This two-block linocut is about the ups and downs of love both romantic and platonic. Love birds and domestic cats are symbols of both, encapsulated in this stylized decorative design.
This set of four linocuts are whimsical imaginings of how animals and plants may team up to adapt during the process of climate change.
They are printed on handkerchiefs with delicately tatted borders crafted by my great-grandmother, Maude Russell Calderwood. I never met her but discovered a lot of her various needlework when clearing out my mother’s house last year. Imagine the time and care it took to make each one! I wanted to honor them in some way and decided it would be fun to “team up” and connect with her by further embellishing the cloth with prints and embroidery.