I entered two pieces this year (2023) for consideration in Cooperstown Art Association’s 88th Annual National Exhibition. I was quite pleased both pieces were accepted, but completely taken by surprise when I learned the Common kingfisher piece was awarded the Grand Prize. As simple as the composition was, it was really difficult to execute. I wanted to honor the great woodcut and watercolor artists of Japan whose simple pieces always seem so powerful to me.
I found the map in the digital archives at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. I used Photoshop to move and repurpose bits and pieces of the border and add the bird’s name to the lower border. What you see is the second version. If you x-ray the piece, there’s a different arrangement underneath that I grew unhappy with and lightly sanded, neutral painted over and started with a fresh map. I would hope Utagawa Hiroshige would approve of the effort.
The second piece – Red-headed Woodpecker, Kane PA. – was one that fell into place easier. It shows more of what I’m wanting to do in future pieces. I want to add more about the bird in the border to replace place names you’d fine in these older topos. Same as previously mentioned, I used Photoshop build to border and boost the natural colors of the aged map.
