Today we’d like to introduce you to Kevin Clark.
Hi kevin, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
My grandfather was a print maker, his press, (one that I still use today) was in his basement. I made my first pieces when I was 6 yrs old, It was actually just “a cool thing to do with Grandad”
I studied Botany and worked at Disneyland, moved to Oregon 1990, Brought my Grandfather here to live with us and kept busy making fun little single color cards. The woodblock print history drew me to the historically famous Japanese art, Where I exhibited and gained more experience. By 2004 I was in the Smithsonian, along with several other prominent collections. Today I’m in 20 museum collections and public exhibits.
We have a small gallery with art studio and residence, oldest in the local county. Mostly we ship out works, but we also have a full service frame shop and gallery for local shows and exhibits.
Ask google for the “famous Oregon woodblock print artist”… after the hundreds of shows and years of work I usually pop right up.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
It took time, and patience. I discovered some things are for later even though they may be created now. My Grandfather told me to produce something every day, sales catch up later and you’ll have the inventory.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I work with woodblock prints… hand carved, hand blended ink and hand printed. My paper of choice is Japanese hand made washi. Colors are applied with individual carved blocks, most images require multiple woodblocks. I have a couple of presses including my Grandfather’s 1887 press. The entire process, though labor intensive, I can do completely without electricity… (though I do like having the lights on).
Any advice for finding a mentor or networking in general?
Didn’t actually realize I had a mentor, or that I was learning anything…. Just a cool thing to do with Grandad
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.etsy.com/ClarkStudioGallery
- Instagram: clarkstudiogallery
- Facebook: clark studio & gallery
