Biography
I work primarily in linoleum block printing, usually focusing on scenes of Coney Island, in Brooklyn, New York. Recently, I’ve been focusing on carousel animals from around the world because I like the strange and often contorted expressions on the faces, like “get me outta here!” I usually work in a series, exploring a theme through a multitude of various prints on a specific theme.
My Coney Island work often shows the dark underbelly of life as reflected in decaying structures intended for public amusement. My prints have been likened to the aesthetic of American photographer Diane Arbus. I own one of her photographs: The Spook-o-rama ride at Coney Island, one of the few photographs of hers that does not have a human in it. Most of my prints do not contain figures, or they are incidental or small. That Spook-o-rama ride is still in Coney Island, though it has changed over the years. I made a print of it.
My detailed prints are usually created in black and white for maximum graphic impact. Other subjects include New York Harbor historic ships and recently I have been experimenting with color reduction linocut prints and white line printmaking.
I have been a board member of the Society of American Graphic Artists since 2012. This 100-year-old national organization has helped to further my development as a printmaker. I am also an elected member of the Art Students League, which has provided the basis for my return to art making. I have a studio in Jersey City and print on the Art Students League’s presses.
Earlier work includes the campaign poster, a silkscreen, for the Socialist Party USA (1980). After a career in government and politics, I have been an active printmaker since 2007. I graduated from the University of Vermont, studying studio art.