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Sandra Swan’s
large woodcuts can take years to develop. Each stage of the work
is carefully planned. Before she begins drawing, Sandra selects
the wood blocks that will determine the size of the final print.
While drawing, she works as close to her subjects as possible, giving
the piece the exaggerated perspective that characterizes her work.
Most of her studies are made on a large scale and are all drawn
directly from life. (continued below image)
Sandra Swan, Betty B, Woodcut, 51 ½" x 38 ¼”
last print from an edition of 50
$4,750.00 framed
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The
artist’s printing techniques are similar to the traditional
Japanese method using rice paper and a wooden spoon for rubbing,
but she has to modify the age-old process to handle the extra large
sizes of her blocks. The three dimensional aspect of her work is
a departure from this tradition. Since all the steps in the making
of a woodcut are so time consuming and require such intense effort,
Sandra selects her subjects with great care.
Sandra
Swan was born in Bronxville, NY in 1934 and grew up in Greenwich,
CT. She studied drawing with Howard Trafton of the Art Students
League in New York and etching with Carlus Dyer at the Silvermine
School of Art in New Canaan, CT. She moved to Block Island in 1960
where she lived for ten years. Sandra currently divides her time
between Block Island and Charlestown, MA.
Her
work is in the permanent collections of the Fogg Art Museum, Cambridge,
MA; the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, MA; Phillip Morris, New York;
and Fidelity Management Trust Co. , Boston, Ma. and numerous private
collections.
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