Woodcut Curator's Log

The curator is seldom seen but sees to it that the living prints' records are correct and that the rules of printmaking are followed.

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He had the top drawer of his print storage cabinet open and was pulling out huge--I mean about two-foot by three and a half-foot sheets--prints out and piling them on the floor, upside down. When I asked him what he was doing, he told me he was going to recycle them! I saw the signatures on some. They were artist's proofs, trial proofs, state proofs--apparently the whole shebang was there. "The whole thing?" I asked him. He said:

"I guess so. Maybe I'll hold back that one that's in a plastic sleeve--just to show what I threw away." He said they were something called the "Jagged Door" from the Sheraton Offset Project. I looked it up later on, and saw it was from around 1980 or 1981. I'm not sure what he did to recycle that paper--it couldn't have been for printing woodcuts. Too heavy.

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We arrived ten minutes early so we sat in the little park that's a half block from the work site. I had been thinking about Daniela and what it must be like in Valdivia City now. I want to come up with a recipe, but which one? Today's main dish at the studio? Trouble is, chili's loaded with ground beef! This is not the stuff EarthSafe 2028 is made of. I was thinking, too, about that museum guy that called yesterday, and what to do next. It's my move. Kids were playing nearby and I heard a kid yell at the other one, "Kick the ball rolling." I thought you were supposed to say, keep the ball rolling.

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He sent me word there were some people from Japan who wanted to include three prints in a show in their country. I could tell he was doing it for fun, not money. Dang that guy! Who's going to pay? He doesn't want to levy the charges on the sponsors, even though--as the Professor has said over and over--they get the short-term benefit.

The artist said he really thinks they might be people who share the 8-million vision. I'm not so sure when they eschew hi-tech. He gave them his photo and everything.

One thing that intrigues me though is he told me they know more about Mexican, Central American and South American culture than anyone he has met yet. I just hope they have courage!

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I was thinking about breakfast and she was going on about an armor maker and swordsmith in New Zealand who wanted to know how to etch steel and iron and how he was asking printmakers what to do.

It was interesting, yes, that here was this guy, whose ancestors had taught printmakers their art and craft, and now he was back, asking how it was done! Everyone chuckled. I admit I was bored until she came to the part about playing cards.

"Cut up your prints and make playing cards out of them," she said. Yes! I could hardly wait to get back to the artist and ask if I could start cutting up his prints for him. They were, after all, only offset trial proofs and not woodcuts.

	Artist's Diary	The artist provides the vision and imagery of the living print, laboring after the compelling image.
	Printer's Notes	The printer performs many tasks to keep prints alive, crafting and designing solutions to problems the artist, curator and publisher propose.
	Publisher's Journal	The publisher produces the bases for living prints by supporting all the players and keeping communications clear and on course.
	Professor's Papers	The professor explains the living print, the history of printmaking, and keeps the academic community informed.

©1999 Bill H. Ritchie, Jr. ritchie@seanet.com