Reflections 3
Reflections 3, Micah Schwaberow, woodblock print, 1987
Reflections 3 is one print in a series of woodcut relief prints done by Micah Schwaberow in 1987. An additional piece by Schwaberow is displayed in this exhibition. Micah Schwaberow’s miniature woodblock print technique exhibits the traditional Japanese methods of block carving known as moku-hanga. Moku-hanga requires the use of multiple carved blocks that create a rich effect in the layering of line, color, pattern, and texture.
Schwaberow learned the traditional Japanese technique during his one-year study in Japan with master printmaker Toshi Yoshida in the early 1980s. Schwaberow, born in Eugene, Oregon, now lives in Santa Rosa, California. Many of the sources found in his current artwork derive from the landscapes surrounding Sonoma County. Micah’s personal technique includes intense color achieved by watercolor pigments instead of ink. The soft landscape image portraying rolling hillsides is layered with deep purple, blue, and green colors of sky, water, and land. The complex layers of color produce shadows from the interactions in the lines, resulting in a very intimate image. This small three by three inch treasure-like woodblock print forces its message into a condensed form. Schwaberow describes his work as “color haiku, large places compressed…intimate glimpses through small windows.”
Marla Nelson and Rachel Pierce