Collage and the use of Prints

I want to publicly and more formally welcome Daniel aboard the clearinghouse! I am excited for the change and a chance for new perspective. He is involved with collage as a medium, and I look forward to reading his posts. Now some of the pressure for this is off of me and maybe it will become a pleasure again instead of a burden. Thank you Daniel!

I discovered the work of Josh Bernstein today on Art Fag City, a reputable art blog. His work just pulled me right in. At first I was mesmerized by the block print work, Depressa Resurgit. It is a massive 12" x 72" piece utilizing blockprints, maple and photography. I feel organic nouveau influences in this piece and i love it. I have been looking more and more at prints and how various artists use prints in their work. This unusual implementation of the print over the photo really is effective. Me like. I do have a question however. It appears as tho this is a collage on wood, using blockprints that were cut and photographs in a background. I wonder why this isn't called "collage", and instead the artist lists the ingredients. ??? I may be completely wrong, without seeing it up close and observing texture it's hard to say.


Depressa Resurgit, 2008 12" x 72" blockprints, maple and photographs

The talented Robert Rauschenberg was famous for using prints in his work and I really like the idea of it. I personally am not so keen on the problem that is created by using multitudes of rectangular shapes. This piece by Bernstein seems to solve that by the use of a cut print. Nice work!


Retroactive 1 (1964). A large press photograph of John F. Kennedy speaking at a televised news conference was the source for this screen print on canvas. He juxtaposed the image of Kennedy with another photo silkscreen of a parachuting astronaut. (courtesy of warhol.org)