Hemlock
You know the technique used by the po-po to ink perps' fingertips down at the station? (I only know from watching my favorite crime drama of all time—Reno 911.) It's fundamentally similar to the method Connecticut-based artist Bryan Nash Gill uses to achieve his life-size tree-ring relief prints. Each mesmerizing X-ray-like piece in Gill's "Woodcuts" series begins with rolling ink over a tree-trunk cross-section and carefully applying a sheet of Japanese washi paper over the ebonized surface. Then, meticulously, earnestly, Gill rubs his fingers over each growth band to actualize a richly detailed imprint. The result is a textured and heartfelt work of art; a beautiful testament to the tree's life and everything to which it has bore witness.
Have you ever traced your fingers over a random tree ring and contemplated the history that was playing out then? Will people in the future be amazed when they view our present-day tree rings and identify, in the wavy strata, the year the iPad landed/Haiti shook/Iceland erupted/the Gulf spilled? Will the catastrophic acts of god outshine le gadget du jour when it comes to assigning one singular sensation to the 2010 tree ring? Ponder amongst yourselves.
View more of Gill's "Woodcuts" series here. Or here:
Maple
Ash
Black Locust
[Images: bryannashgill.com]
Sent from James' iPhone
No comments:
Post a Comment