Latest Posts
"The Lyons Share" Exhibit Article Updated
We had a wonderful opening reception for “The Lyons’ Share” exhibit at the Chester County Art Association. View photographs in the updated Culture On The Line article.
Lyons' Share Exhibit Opens September 5th at the Chester County Art Association
The Chester County Art Association shares the works of four active clay monoprint artists in their upcoming exhibit, “Lyons’ Share,” running from September 8th through the 24th. Learn more, including insights from the artists, in the Culture On The Line article linked here.
Culture On The Line article screenshot - © Culture On The Line and Andrew T. Smith
The Chester County Art Association shares the works of four active clay monoprint artists in their upcoming exhibit, “Lyons’ Share,” running from September 8th through the 24th. Learn more, including insights from the artists, in the Culture On The Line article linked here.
"The Lyons' Share"
Chester County Art Association
100 N Bradford Ave, West Chester, PA
Parking Available On-Site.
chestercountyarts.org
September Gallery Hours:
Monday-Friday: 10 AM - 5 PM
Saturday: 10 AM - 4 PM
Closed Sundays
Artists:
Steve Koelsch (skoelsch3@yahoo.com)
Robin Sesan (www.robinsesanart.com)
Andrew Smith (visualrealia.com)
Meredith Wakefield (mitchlyonsstudio.com)
Works by Mitch Lyons (mitchlyonsstudio.com)
"The Lyons' Share" opens on Thursday, September 5th, from 5:00 to 7:00 PM, at the Chester County Art Association in West Chester, Pennsylvania. The exhibit, featuring four clay monoprint artists plus representative works of Lyons, runs through September 24th. The Art Association is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization that has served the region since 1931.
CanvasRebel Online Magazine Interview
The online magazine CanvasRebel interviewed me for this June 2024 article on my art process, work with grant programs and arts and culture-related nonprofits, and the shift in “work” as I left the full-time teaching world. The interview ends with some thoughts on the need for creatives to be the strongest supporters of each other and the arts and culture industry as a whole.
Find the article here.
Visual Realia Exhibit at York's Out Door Country Club
Visual Realia’s (Andrew T. Smith) exhibit at York’s Out Door Country Club
Thanks to the ongoing efforts of Creative York, I have an exhibit of approximately two dozen clay monoprints and photographs at York’s lovely Out Door Country Club. The exhibit runs through July 12th, 2024.
The hallway-based exhibit area naturally allows for sharing monoprints on one side and photographs on the other, essentially providing two mini-exhibits.
For more information on the exhibit, visit the online article on the Culture On The Line website. Works may be purchased here.
“Clay & Pigment” by Andrew T. Smith
Out Door Country Club
May 13 - July 13, 2024
1157 Detwiler Drive, York, PA
Enter Through the Center Doors
Curated by Creative York
All works copyright by Andrew T. Smith and/or Visual Realia, LLC.
Welcome, Hyperallergic Readers
Visual Realia welcomes Hyperallergic readers!
Screenshot of Hyperalleric’s main page, February 15, 2024
The Visual Realia website welcomes visitors from Hyperallergic and thanks Lakshmi Rivera Amin for including us in the February 15th “A View From the Easel” column.
Questions about clay monoprints? Feel free to peruse the website or email me.
Thanks for visiting!
Andy Smith
Matrix Maintenance
Clay dries quickly — an obstacle the clay monoprint artist can not ignore.
Like any clay, the matrix that works are created on will gradually dry when exposed to air over time. In dry rooms, the matrix may start to have small cracks while working on a project. The problem compounds over time, with cracks increasing in both number and size. Because of this issue, clay monoprint artists need to take care of the matrix that they use.
Shown above is my primary clay matrix after pulling a print. The wooden frame is visible around the clay slab. Left sitting in a typical room, the clay would very quickly begin to dry, cracks would form, and eventually, the slab would shrink and pull away from the sides/frame.
When I am finished working with the matrix, I spray the clay surface with water and then cover the matrix with thin towels.
Depending upon how dry the slab and room are and how long one expects to be away, the towels are sprayed with water or placed onto the matrix already slightly wet. (Soaking wet, however, could muddy the surface clay.)
Finally, a plastic sheet is placed over the towels and matrix, and the edges are tucked under the wooden frame.
(For my smaller student boards, which are used less often, they are then slid into a large trash bag with the drawstring then pulled tight. They still need to be pulled out occasionally to add more moisture. This necessity has led me to gradually keep fewer student boards on hand — one reason I no longer lead larger workshops.)
A clay monoprint artist’s matrix gets lonely and must be visited often! If not, it will express disappointment with a new batch of cracks. On the other hand, give it regular attention, and you’ll find it sticking with you for years!