Torso 15, 36″ x 24″

This series of direct relief mono prints is inspired by Gyotaku, the traditional Japanese art of fish printing.  Technically, these are direct relief monoprints, which means they are taken directly from the subject and each print is unique, as in one of a kind. Live models allowed me to make prints of their torsos on handmade paper.  These are body prints, Gyotaku for humans.*

They began as an experiment, with me as the first guinea pig, so I would know what I was asking of my models.  My intention was to portray the human figure in an anonymous, non traditional way, free of portraiture,  as a search for human essence.

What I got was a timeless, primitive, almost archeological trace of a human being.  And while at first glance the images appear anonymous, closer inspection reveals intimate details the likes of wrinkles, earlobes, crows feet, belly buttons, and, yes, even nipples; so much that, they offer a subtle glimpse of individual identity, graceful evidence of a living being as identifiable as a fingerprint, and as uniquely beautiful as a snowflake.

*No humans were harmed in the making of this art.