February 23, 2008

Melancholia, Self Portrait, 15" x 21"

I drew and printed this lithograph in 1978 at the Yale School of Art. Back then the print studio was adjacent to the architecture studio on the same floor. There were many influences floating around in Paul Rudolph's building: Josef Alber's tubular wall sculpture hung above the entrance. Cement casts of classical Greek sculpture hung in the stair wells. Al Held was an important influence on my work.  I was one of the few printmakers he took an interest in.  He was brash and rude and completely honest. He would drive up to New Haven from NYC in a big old Cadillac.  They had an apartment for him to stay in overnight. He would make the rounds of our studios and give us critiques.
 Elizabeth Murray, William Bailey, John Walker and Gabor Peterdi were also teaching. I drew this image inspired by Durer on a thin old stone which cracked in half after the second impression was pulled.

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