Baren-suji is the newsletter of [Baren], The International Forum for Woodblock Printmaking. The official internet site of [Baren] is http://barenforum.org Baren-suji are the marks left by the baren when printing. Similarly, this newsletter assumes the role of recording the marks left by the woodblock printmakers that constitute [Baren]. Comments and contributions are welcomed. Please contact: Baren-Suji Editor Baren and The Encyclopedia of Woodblock Printmaking were created by David Bull in 1997 to promote the art of and share information about woodblock printmaking. Baren activities include an international discussion forum, a network of woodblock printmakers, workshops and get-togethers, and the very successful Exchange and Exhibition Programs. To join [Barenforum], simply point your browser to: http://barenforum.org and click on Administration Links. Be sure to read the FAQ's and Guidelines of the Forum.

ISSUE 10: April 2003 NOTE! To return to this Table of Contents from anywhere in the Newsletter, just click on the barens scattered about. SPRING FEATURES: MEET THE ARTIST - SHIREEN HOLMAN      by Barbara Mason A VISIT TO DAVE'S WORLD      by John Amoss EDITOR'S CHOICE      by Julio Rodriguez DEPARTMENTS: Editor's Notes Exchange & Exhibition News Members in the Spotlight Opportunities for Printmakers Printmaking Supplies from Traditional Japanese Makers

Welcome to the spring issue of Baren-Suji, the newsletter of barenforum.org. We have much to report since our last issue. My apologies to the group for a five month absence but unfortunately my entire editorial staff took to heart the celebrations of Baren's 5th Anniversary and are still unaccounted for....last seen sailing aboard a South Pacific cruise.... With Exchanges #14, #14a and #15 completed and behind us, the group is now focusing its attention on June for our "Kansas City, 2003 Summit". Signup still has open spots and people wanting to drop in for a visit and meet the folks are welcome. Contact sponsor Mike Lyon for more information. Since last issue there has been some changes and additions to the Baren Mall vendor list. Please check out the new barens from the Kikuhide workshop. Don't miss the special projects section and our "Members in the Spotlight". The acceptance letter from the NYC Public Library is a true testament to our recent accomplishments. Finally, I cannot end without a note regarding the current world situation. For the most part of five years barenforum.org has functioned as a model for an 'online' forum where people from all over the world can come together regardless of their cultural, political or religious beliefs. While our discussion focus is quite narrow - relief printmaking - I can not help but think that the world can perhaps learn something from what we as an international community have accomplished. Perhaps a bit presumptuous on my part, perhaps a bit of wishful thinking ! My sincere wish for a quick end to the war and for peace, tolerance and understanding among all people of the world. "CUT, PRINT !" - David Bull, Baren founder "We must, indeed, all hang together, or most assuredly we shall all hang separately" -Printmaker Benjamin Franklin

*Print above by Joe Sheridan, "Pink Lake, Quebec" from Exchange #15- Hanga-only

A special thank YOU! to the contributors this issue:

As always, an extra thank you to our friendly Baren graphic designer, John Amoss, for the Baren-suji masthead design and the many logos that keep popping up in the Barenforum web site and also to our webmasters David Bull, Maria Arango and Mike Lyon for all the behind the scenes work.

Enjoy!
Julio Rodriguez, Editor of Baren-Suji
Please direct letters to the editor and comments to: Editor

Remember that your contributions will continue to make this newsletter interesting and palatable for all. To contribute a feature article or an item of interest, please contact: Contributions

Print by John Center (Chicago, Illinois), "B. Franklin", from Exchange #14A.

Remember! General information and links to all exchanges can always be found here: http://barenforum.org/exchange/index.html
And in case you missed them, the prints in the Exchange Gallery can delight you here: http://barenforum.org/exchange/exchanges.html

Exchanges #14,#14a ,#15 were completed and the prints are now on display in the Exchange Gallery. A big thanks to our coordinators Darrell Madis, Marilynn Smith and Kat Pukas for a fantastic job.

Deadline for Exchange #16 is May 1st, 2003. This is an open-themed exchange of chuban sized prints. Sharen Linder (Palatine, Illinois) is the coordinator for this exchange.

Signup for Exchange #17 starts on April 1st, 2003. It is an oban size exchange. Theme is "War and Peace". For info on this upcoming exchange go to #17 - "War and Peace" .

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"WHAT IS BAREN?" A fun puzzle project idea by Maria Arango. Participants are carving a piece of the puzzle woodblock to express their feelings on what Barenforum means to them. Maria will then collate all the small blocks and print the puzzle making enough copies for all participants. Revised participant list and confirmation form at: http://www.1000woodcuts.com/puzzle/project.html

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LARGE PRINT Exchange II. Format for this exchange is open, maximum size 22" X 32", 25 prints required. For more information and details on LPE II, head over to the Large Print Information Site. Coordinator Sharri LaPierre and Rudolf Stalder.

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CALENDAR-2004 Project. Baren members will create prints for several calendar types. Each participant will receive a free calendar and the remaining stock will be sold with funds going to help cover the operating costs of barenforum.org. For more information and details on Calendar-2004, head over to the Signup page. Coordinator Julio Rodriguez (Skokie, Illinois).

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DECK OF CARDS Exchange. Member Colleen Corradi (Italy) is coordinating a side exchange at Monoprint.com. Each participant is assigned a playing card to print and will make an edition of 53 prints to exchange with the group.

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For those wanting to work at their own pace and perhaps do smaller editions, The Baren International Swap Shop is awaiting your prints. James Mundie presides over the Swapshop and is looking forward to adding your prints to those already received.

The Swapshop Gallery can be seen at: http://barenforum.org/swapshop/intro.html

This program is also open to non-members. We hope that you will also encourage non-members to participate so that we can promote the traditional exchange of prints among printmakers throughout the world.

*Print above left from the Swapshop by Daniel Dew, titled "Proverbs 15-30".

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PRINT EXCHANGE CENTRAL. For additional information on these and many other world-wide exchanges, make sure you check on Maria Arango's information page. Corrections and updates should be e-mailed to Maria directly at Print Exchange Central.

A great way to keep up with all the exchanges is to bookmark the Exchange sign-up pages in your Favorites or Bookmarks (Internet Explorer and Netscape respectively).

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EXHIBITIONS

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"Wood and Water", Color Woodblock Prints

Matt Brown, Paulette Nejko, Lynita Shimizu & Sandy Wadlington

March 1 - April 26, 2003
Opening & Print Demonstration: March 1, 1-5pm.
Wenniger Gallery
19 Mt. Pleasant St., Rockport, MA
www.wennigergallery.com
Open daily 11 - 5 (978-546-8116).

* Member Lynita Shimizu doing a printing demonstration at the opening

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Seven woodblock prints ( Wheat, Barley, Pomegranates, Figs, Dates, Olives, Grapes) by member Carol Lyons will be on exhibit at the Manhattan Borough Presidents Office.

Manhattan Borough Presidents Office
1 Center Street 19th floor South, NYC
March 3- 27, M-F 10AM- 4PM
Opening Reception March 4 6PM- 7:30PM
Check out Carol's prints on her website under Biblical Art.

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Member Claude Aimée Villeneuve will be exhibiting in Oak Park, Illinois in April. She'll be involved in activities from the 5th through the 10th. Oak Park, of Hemingway and Frank Lloyd Wright fame, is a great town that's just west of Chicago..hardly far enough out to be a suburb.

You can see some of Claude's prints in Baren's #9 & #13, in Print Australia's "What is a Print?" and "Illustration" Exchanges, and in the Printmaker's "MprINT Exchange 2000".

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For anyone in the Pacific Northwest, Thea Cynthia S. Bendix is exhibiting five of her woodblocks and collographic monotypes at "The Carnegie Center" in Oregon City. This old building was recently renovated and is quite beautiful inside. Rest yourself by the fireplace, sip a latte, and look at the collection of art by area artists.

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Making Histories: Revolution and Representation
2003 Southern Graphics Conference
Boston, April 2-5, 2003

The most comprehensive gathering of print enthusiasts ever to convene in Boston will occur on April 2-5, 2003, for an International Conference on Contemporary Printmaking, Making Histories: Revolution and Representation. The Art Institute of Boston, Boston University, Massachusetts College of Art, the School of the Museum of Fine Arts, and The Boston Printmakers, are working in collaboration to host the 2003 Conference.

Baren member Kat Pukas is participating in one of the conference theme portfolios this year. Kat is taking part in the "Dog Head Stew" portfolio, organized by Elizabeth Hanneman, West Virginia University, Smiling Pig Metal Arts.

For more info on the SGC go to http://www.bu.edu/cfa/events/printconferenceSGC/

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SAMURAI - Discover the heroic exploits and unique lifestyle of legendary Japanese warriors in a colorful exhibition of woodblock prints, screens, scrolls, tea ware, arms and armor.

April 4 to June 22, 2003
Worcester Art Museum
55 Salisbury St.
Worcester, MA 01609

"http://www.worcesterart.org/Exhibitions/samurai.html"
"http://www.worcesterart.org/Exhibitions/yoshifusa.html"
"http://www.worcesterart.org/Exhibitions/yoshitoshi.html"

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If you are missing out on the exchanges and exhibitions, be sure to tune into the Baren forum and take a gander through the Encyclopedia. Opportunities abound and await!

*Print titled "Firemen/WTC" from 911-Firemen's Folio by Carol Lyons.

As readers may recall, we last reported that Baren's 911-Firemen's folio of prints had been accepted to the print collection of the New York City Public Library. Carol Lyons met with curator Roberta Waddell to deliver the folio and also the artist's resumes. Below is the acceptance letter sent to Carol by the Curator of Prints.

"Dear Carol,

I've been sitting in the very quiet Study Room in a very quiet building (the Library is wonderful, too, on a Sunday, when the building is closed), studying the woodblock prints, which pay tribute to New York Firemen. The prints represent very personal, heartfelt and moving testaments, and I am grateful to all the participating artists, who have given eloquent shape to our communal sorrow and to our eternal gratitude to those heroes of 9/11.

I would be honored to have the "New York Firemen" portfolio in the Print Collection of The New York Public Library. I would appreciate receiving information on the artists, so that we can properly catalogue the prints and add the artists' resumes (and any other reviews, etc.) to our artist files.

There is something particularly wonderful about a group of artists, who have only met on the internet, exploring the earliest of printmaking processes, the relief print, and using that medium, as it has served from the beginning, to share thoughts, feelings, and points of view with a wide audience. And now we have that newest of tools, the web to expand that audience even further. The Barenforum website is a wonderful resource, which also serves as an important record of the Firemen's Art Benefit. But nothing can capture the impact of the actual prints like studying them in person, letting them drive home their individual messages communicated only by ink on paper.

I am truly grateful to you for sharing with me this moving project and making it possible for these prints to be part of Print Collection of The New York Public Library.

Sincerely,
Roberta Waddell
Curator of Prints, Curator of the NYC Public Library Print Collection"

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Last January Baren member and founder David Bull had his annual print exhibition in Japan. This time around David had some exhibit surprises, including three prints on display designed by Baren members.

January 23-28, 2003
14th Annual Exhibition - Challenging Long-Lost Skills
(Gallery Shinjuku Takano, Tokyo)

For more details and photos please visit Dave's exhibit page.

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Member April Vollmer has just completed a show at the Franklin & Marshall College in Lancaster PA, Phillips Museum. Photos of the show are on April's website at www.aprilvollmer.com/transmutations

April writes:
"This was a show of woodcut AND digital work, I am finding many colleges are interested in what artists are doing with digital. I don't think digital does it alone, though, don't' worry, I'm not giving up woodblock!. Now I am off to Berlin for two weeks to teach a Japanese woodblock class, and see some art! I thank Baren for introducing me to Eva Pietzcker and her Druckstelle workshop."

http://www.aprilvollmer.com

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Jeanne Norman Chase had an exhibit last February at the Venice Art Center in Florida. It is a show of both her Prints and Drawings.

Jeanne writes:
"One Salon had all of my drawings, the other Salon had my prints. I had etchings, woodblock prints, woodengravings, monotypes and collagraphs. Near each technique was a framed explanation of what the print involved. That was so they would understand something of printmaking. I found people very interested in reading about each different form of printmaking. Instead of just hanging it all together the prints were separated into categories. I found that the viewing public likes to be informed as to what they are looking at. It was a huge success and will be up through the month of February."

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Member Sylvia Taylor was a featured artist in StoneMetal Press' exhibition during the past November & December 2002. Her "Salem Witches" quilted prints were on exhibit. Contact Baren member Le Green for more info at StoneMetal Press.

StoneMetal Press
1420 S. Alamo #104, Upstairs Building B
Blue Star Art Complex
San Antonio, Tx 78210, (210) 227-0312.

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Woodcut by barener Tyrus Clutter 'in Ticket', a Friday supplement of The Sacramento Bee newspaper. This print is also included in a traveling print and drawing show through the Printmakers network of the organization Christians in the Visual Arts (www.civa.org)., Gallery W, in Rancho Cordova, just a few miles from Downtown Sacramento.

It was my great pleasure to interview Baren member Shireen Holman for the Baren Suji. She is a wonderful printmaker and a wonderful person. She has long been a member of Maryland Printmakers and recently was the editor of their newsletter. If you haven't seen her artist books, you are in for a treat. They are great on the internet, but truly amazing in person. She is a careful and thoughtful printer and her work is technically excellent and full of personal imagery.

Barbara: Where did you grow up and do you think that influences your art?

Shireen: I grew up in Bombay, India, and moved to the United States when I was thirteen. Being half Indian and half American is part of my whole sense of myself. I think it influences all of my work, whether or not I intentionally add references to both cultures into the art.

"The Staircase" (1988), Monotype on artist-made paper, 28X22"

Barbara: Your work seems narrative to me, are these stories from your family or culture?

Shireen: I don't exactly think of my work as narrative, although my books definitely have a theme. "Stream of Life" is an artist's book illustrating poems written by a cousin of mine. The poems are about life, from its dawn to dusk, and the colours of the woodcuts progress from morning colours to evening ones as the book progresses. Another book, "Memories of My Father" consists of visual memories, both from India and from America. "The Artist At Home" is a series of woodcuts showing my life as an artist -- so I would say that my work definitely relates to my family and my life, although I try to use themes that are pretty universal.

Barbara: What first attracted you to printmaking?

Shireen: I was first excited by printmaking when I took a woodcut class my senior year in college. I had always been interested in art, but I had only done drawing and painting until then. After that I decided to go back to school and get a second B.A. in fine arts, and then I was really hooked.

Barbara: Why do you think the print appeals to you more than other media?

Shireen: Although my first interest was in woodcuts, by the time I was in graduate school I was totally immersed in etching. I loved the beauty of the ink on paper; the depth of the colour; the range from exquisitely subtle to rich and bold. The slight sculptural effect created by embossing also really appealed to me as adding an extra dimension to the work. And so many extra dimensions are added by printing layer over layer. I started doing woodcuts again about nine or ten years ago. With woodcut prints I find the same beauty as with etchings, but there's also the pleasure of the actual cutting of the wood - much more fun than sticking a plate into acid while wearing a gas mask!

Barbara: I know you do artist books. Which came first, the interest and love of the book or the print?

Shireen: Definitely printmaking came first. I saw an exhibit of artists' books sometime in the early 1990's and thought - wow, you can really develop a theme more fully, work in the concept of time, and create something more sculptural with a book. There seemed to be so many possibilities. But my books are really books of prints - they aren't paintings or drawings or whatever else.


"The Artist at Home"(2000), is an accordion book of woodcuts printed on Rising Stonehenge paper. The cover is made of wood, with dollhouse wood siding, trim and a dollhouse door. Individual page at right.

Barbara: Was it a problem to incorporate the two so beautifully?

Shireen: This is a nice compliment! Hard to come up with an answer, but I would say I struggle over every print I make. It never comes easily for me, and coordinating prints into a whole book is a lot of work.

Barbara: What influences your art the most? Favorite artist or style???

Shireen: Well, I have a lot of favorite artists, printmakers and not. In many cases, I think that I don't work in at all the same way that the artists that inspire me do, but I do feel their influence anyway. Some of them are Lynd Ward, Ben Shahn, Wolf Kahn, Rembrandt, Hokusai, Hiroshige, Vermeer, Indian miniature painters, Monet - oh well, doesn't make much sense, does it? :)

Shireen Holman, Printmaker and Book Artist
email: shireenh@earthlink.net
Website: http://www.shireenholman.com

When David Bull, a veteran printmaker and the founder of [Baren] asked me if he could publish one of my designs, I couldn't type the three letters 'Y..E..S..' quick enough. But no sooner had I hit the send button, then my repressed fantasies of making a pilgrimage to Japan (where the streets are paved with woodblocks) began bubbling up to the surface. After taking a quick inventory of my responsibilities: business, school, children, etc.... I sheepishly asked Dave if the designer (me) could oversee the proofing there in Tokyo.

He was very open to the idea and so, on Dec. 7th, my wife Margaret and I found ourselves on a westbound commuter train from Tokyo to Ome. Dave met us at the station and his friend Sadako thoughtfully drove us to Seseragi Studio, where Dave works and lives. We found his studio to be very compact and much neater than most bachelor's. As is the custom in Japan, everything had its place and we felt that we fit in well also. While we acclimated to the time change and waited for our luggage to be delivered, Dave and I went over the keyblock he had carved (I e-mailed him a drawing the week before) and where we should go from there.

Satisfied with the plan and eager to see the sights, my wife and I decided to take a quick sidetrip to Kyoto the next day. To our surprise, we awoke to 9" of snow. The view out of Dave's upper story window down to the creek reminded me so much of a Hiroshige print. We walked to the train station and Dave left us so that he could get back to carving and we could catch the Shinkansen--the bullet train route to Kyoto.

At 180 mph we zipped past Yokohama, Mt. Fuji, countless streams, manicured tea edges, snow-bowed bamboo forests...I frequently wondered how much of the route ran over the historic Tokaido road. After arriving in Kyoto, we set out to locate the mid-priced Japanese traditional 'bed dinner and breakfast' where we had made reservations. As we wandered about, the male in me was hoping that the street signs in kanji would magically make sense. But this soon gave way to the practicalities of begging locals for help. Not understanding a word of Japanese, we would simply state the address and whatever direction a samaritan would point, we would travel until we came upon another helpful soul. All this time, I could hear Mrs. Yamato's (the inn's owner) request echoing in my head: "Dinner will be served at 6:30. Please do not be late". We arrived there in a cold sweat at 6:28. Instantly, everyone was visibly relieved and happy.

The next morning we struck out for the Buddhist temple complex of Kiyomizu. The time of year was perfect--clear and crisp with very few tourists. Then we browsed through print and art stores, more parks and temples. It seemed as if everything in Japan was treated thoughtfully, down to the sidewalks.

We stayed at a western-style hotel the second night; just like the states except for the beer vending machines in the hallway. In the morning we visited the Uchida Publishing Co. in the Kyoto Handicraft center. There were two craftsmen working. This carver was toiling on a keyblock for a Yoshitoshi "100 Moons" reproduction. I met the manager who introduced me to the printer, who in turn seemed pleased with my interest.

We toured Sanjusangendo, a 12th-century temple which contained 1,000 bronze Buddhas before hopping on the Shinkansen to take us on the return trip to Tokyo.

Back at Dave's I found all of the color blocks carved and ready to go. So, we charged though a round of impressions. This was new territory for each of us and the layering aspects of the Shin-hanga style was quite a challenge. We soon realized that experience played a big part of what was required--simply trial and error. Based on what was learned with the first round of proofs, we produced a second set.

I have to admit that initially the process seemed a bit awkward, but soon a system was established and the print began to dictate itself. It was also very nice for the designer (me) to pay attention to the overall vision while the printer (Dave) concentrated on making it work. Of course, there was some overlap of input between us which is the ideal situation in my mind. During the 5 days of proofing, we were visited by two of Dave's friends, Ueda-san and Vyasheslav "Slav" Varlakov.

During the day while proofing was going on, my wife wandered about happily hiking, shopping and exploring. At night, we enjoyed being entertained by Dave at the various local restaurants and neighborhood haunts. We also had the pleasure of being invited to Sadako's house for a wonderful home-cooked dinner.

Reluctantly, the proofing came to and end on the 16th and Dave showed us about the Asakusa and Ueno district of Tokyo before putting us on a train back to Narita airport for our return trip. Although we began to miss our boys back at home, we couldn't have asked for a more gracious host or a more stimulating visit! I can't wait to return.

You can learn more about our final print here

To see more photos of John & Margaret on their trip to Japan please go here.

John Amoss
Amoss Illustration, Inc.
amoss@mindspring.com / jamoss@uga.edu
ph: 706.549-4662 / f: 706.549-3962
http://www.mindspring.com/~amoss , http://www.uga.edu/~jamoss
365 Ponderosa Dr. Athens, GA 30605

* Editor's note: To read more on John & Dave's collaboration print go to the barenforum.org archives and search under "Dave and John's collaboration".

Looking at prints from past Baren exchanges is akin to visiting with dear old friends. As I page thru my folios I can't help but recall something special about each and every print. I have listed here one of my favorite prints from each of the last fifteen exchanges. Of course there are many more among my favorites which I'll include in a follow-up issue of Baren-suji. So...how did I do ? Did I pick some of YOUR favorites too ?

Exchanges #1 - #15. Click on any of the prints below to see an enlargement.

John Amoss would like to announce that Mr. Antoon Speters from Georgia University has been named the recipient of Barenforum.org's second Printmaking award. Along with his award for his winning woodcut, Mr. Speters also received a Hiroshige calendar. Sponsorship made possible by the generosity of contributing members. Photos and website update coming soon.

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PRESS for Sale. Polymetaal press for sale: 4 years old/ bed 24" x 47". 5" upper roller. star wheel. $1750. w/blankets contact: dwaimon277@earthlink.net Press is located in CT.

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Print at right titled "Felix and Cat" by Louise Cass from Exchange #14.

WORKSHOPS:

Michael Schneider (Vienna, Austria)
Woodblock workshop in first week of July at the "art didacta" in Innsbruck / Austria. One week intensive. The class will be from July 6-12,2003. With an exhibition on the last day. Participants number limited to 12. Material list will be provided. Tools and paper can be bought there. The office of the "art didacta" e-mail: artdidacta@aon.at is prepared to answer questions in English and they can help finding cheap accommodation and travel arrangements. The fee for the class is 273€. Class is held every day from 9 to 12 and 13 to 18h.

Lower East Side Printshop
59-61 East 4th Street
NYC, 10003 212-673-5390 or at http://www.printshop.org/

Frogman's Press & Gallery, Workshops.
105 North Third Street, P.O. Box 142
Beresford, SD 57004 - 0142
Phone/Fax: (605)763-5082

Kala Art Institute, 1060 Heinz Ave, Berkeley, CA 94710. Workshops and class schedule.

Zea Mays Printmaking
Located in beautiful western Massachusetts and offering a wide array of summer workshops. Zea Mays Printmaking is a studio/workshop dedicated to safer approaches to printmaking. Workshops are limited to 6 people. For further information and images, visit their website, or call the studio at 413.584.1783

Final Opportunity
Considering the date on which this newsletter is being published, the editors thought it might be a good idea to send you off on a little journey to a place that you might not have stumbled across if left to your own devices. Once you have clicked this link, will you ever be able to return ...?

The Wood Engraver's Network (WEN).
Since 1994 WEN is an organization dedicated to the education and enjoyment of relief printmaking and, in particular, engraving upon end-grain wood.
WEN offers the delicate and engaging Block & Burin, a quarterly newsletter (soon to be semi-annual) filled with wood engraving history and wisdom. Members design the cover and it is always a beautiful surprise. Members also exchange prints, called Bundles, on a quarterly basis.
Membership information can be found at WEN's new and improved web site:
http://www.woodengravers.net

EXHIBITIONS AND CALLS FOR ENTRIES:

Feb 28, 2003 ARTIST MARKET Jul 3-6, 2003. Voted one of the top 100 events in North America. Application fee. Booth fee. For prospectus send SASE to: Westmoreland Arts and Heritage Festival Artist Market, RR 2 Box 355A, Latrobe PA 15650 OR 724-834-7474 OR info@artsandheritage.com

International Miniature Print Exhibition
Juror:  Reba White Williams, Ph.D.
President, The Print Research Foundation

send for prospectus
Center For Contemporary Printmaking
299 West Avenue, Matthews Park
Norwalk, CT  06850 USA
Contemprints@snet.net
Deadline for entries February 1, 2003

Hello from Taproots School of the Arts in St. Louis, Missouri. We are holding our annual Book Arts Fair April 5 & 6, 2003.

The Fair will feature exhibits of professional and student work in the book and paper arts, including papermaking, letterpress, bookbinding and artists' books, as well as an artists' market. Author readings and talks, led off by this year's winner of the National Book Award for Fiction, Julia Glass, along with musical performances and a cafe will round out the only event of its kind in the St. Louis area.

Taproots' Book Arts Center is the only venue in St. Louis and the region that offers professional studio space and equipment for rent, instruction for all levels, and a supportive community for the book arts. Taproots is also an urban neighborhood art school with a focus on developing literacy in school-age children through the book arts. www.taproots.org

Exhibitors and vendors are welcome to contact Ginger Gambaro via bookarts@taproots.org

March 31, 2003 Call for Artists: October 18-19, 2003 6th Annual ARToberFEST 2003, Juried Fine Art Festival on Galveston Island. Booth Fees $75-$125, All media welcome. Deadline: July 15. For prospectus send SASE (#10) to: ARToberFEST 2003, 2115 Postoffice Street, Galveston TX 77550 OR modz@airmail.net

March 31, 2003 Crafts at the Castle 18th Annual Exhibition and Sale Park Plaza Castle, Boston MA. Show dates: Dec 4-7, 2003. Juried by 5 slides of artwork. Booth slide requested. Application fee: $30. Booth Sizes 8x8-10x20. Deadline April 4, 2003. Applications are available in February 2003. Contact: Crafts at the Castle, Family Service of Greater Boston, 31 Heath St, Jamaica Plain MA 02130 OR www.artfulgift.com/catc

March 31, 2003 "Face to Face 2003," Portraits real or fantastic, human or animal, all media incl. masks; slide deadline March 31. Show May 16 - June 22, 2003. Juror: Marietta Warner-Siegel, Ph.D., Art Historian, Gallery Director. No commissions on sales. Near Manhattan; average 2500 viewers; awards include Solo show. Download required prospectus from www.stagegallery.org, or send SASE to: "Prospectuses," 11 Prospect Place, Massapequa NY 11758. 516-797-9115.

*Print by Gilda Machado-Zimmerling, titled "Desert Moon", from Exchange #15.

April 5, 2003 SKY, BLUE, HEAVENS. Call for Artists. In celebration of the Centennial of Flight, the Purdue University Galleries (West Lafayette, Indiana) invite entries for a national exhibition of artists' response to the achievement of manned flight. The exhibition will be presented in the Stewart Center Gallery from September 1 through October 12, 2003. Gallery director and an advisory panel will select the artwork for exhibit. There will be no entry fee but exhibiting artists will be responsible for shipping. All media are eligible. Interested artists should send up to 10 slides or jpegs of current work, resume, artist statement, and SASE to: Craig Martin, Purdue University Galleries, 525 Northwestern Av Physics Bldg Rm 205, West Lafayette IN 47907-2036, cmartin@sla.purdue.edu, (765) 494-3061. Show prospectus is available for download at www.purdue.edu/galleries

April 11, 2003 PHOENIX GALLERY 2003 NATIONAL JURIED COMPETITION:June 25 - July 12, 2003. Juror: Lilian Tone, Assistant Curator, Dept of Painting and Sculpture, Museum of Modern Art, NY. All media. Award: solo/group show. Deadline: April 11, 2003. For a prospectus send an SASE to: Phoenix Gallery, 568 Broadway, New York NY 10012 OR phoenix-gallery.com

April 11, 2003 SEEKING GRAPHIC DESIGN/TECHNOLOGY ARTIST California State University Channel Islands seeks applicants for a full-time, tenure track position; salary commensurate with qualifications and experience. Required: MFA degree from an accredited institution; specialization in graphic design/visual communications, a minimum of two years college/university teaching experience, record of effective teaching, research and service; a commitment to working in multicultural communities. For deadline and additional information and to submit your application please visit our website via the Internet at http://www.csuci.edu. Those who have difficulty applying via the Internet should call (805) 437-8455 for technical assistance from 8-5pm, Mon-Fri, PST.

April 30, 2003 New York, NY - Showcase 2003: Recent Work, ninth annual international competition for exhibition to be held in September of 2003 at the Limner Gallery, 870 Avenue of the Americas, New York City. $8000.00 in awards. Deadline April 30. For prospectus e-mail Limner Gallery at slowart@aol.com, print form from internet at http://members.aol.com/slowart/showcase.htm, or send SASE to: SlowArt Productions, 870 Sixth Av, New York NY 10001

April 30, 2003 THE HALPERT BIENNIAL 2003 Jeff Fleming - Senior Curator of the Des Moines Art Center will serve as juror. The Halpert is a national juried visual art competition and exhibition. The competition is open to all two-dimensional visual artists, excluding photographers, who are over the age of 18 and currently residing in the United States. Awards totaling $5000. Application deadline April 14, 2003. The Halpert Biennial is a part of An Appalachian Summer Festival, a multi-arts festival featuring music, dance, theatre, and visual arts. Prospectus are available on www.turchincenter.org, or send SASE to: The Halpert Biennial, Turchin Center for the Visual Arts, Box 32139, Boone NC 28608

June 7, 2003 INTERNATIONAL JURIED COMPETITION Juror: Rhonda Cooper, Director of University Art Gallery at Stony Brook University, Long Island NY. AWARDS: group show, $1000 cash award, and internet exposure to the best work in the show. NO COMMISSION. ( The gallery director will also review the slides, and up to 10 more artists will be selected for future gallery shows, with the possible inclusion in the gallery stable.) All Media (except video, film and performance), $25/3 slides, $5 for additional slide. SASE for prospectus: ALPAN Gallery, 2 West Carver St, Box 4319, Huntington NY 11743 OR download it from www.alpangallery.com

Info above collected from Baren notices and from the FREE Edition of the ART DEADLINES LIST . You can subscribe to either their free or paid lists at: http://artdeadlineslist.com/subscribe

The search for good tools and materials is a never-ending activity for the woodblock printmaker. Unlike days of old, when the technology had wide commercial applications and supplies were thus readily available, in the modern world woodblock printmaking has ... how shall we put this ... a rather limited appeal.

In consequence, supplies - good supplies - are difficult to come by in many parts of the world. But there is one place where woodblock printmaking is still practiced widely, and that is Japan. Hobby-level supplies are available locally in any town, in stationery shops and do-it-yourself centers, and professional tools are still made for those who need them.

But Japanese suppliers are focused on their domestic market and have no ability or experience in dealing overseas. The foreign customer too, finds it very difficult to obtain knowledge about the products that are available in Japan, and how to get them.

This is where the printmakers of the [Baren] group are stepping forward - to put these two 'worlds' together.

The [Baren] Mall is a buying service - it has no physical store, there is no inventory, and there are no employees. Orders placed on this website are transmitted to the mall manager (a [Baren] member), who also processes the payment. The manager forwards the order to the appropriate suppliers in Japan, where the goods are immediately packaged and shipped directly to the customer (by Air Post). [Baren] settles the account with the Japanese suppliers later - receiving a small commission in return for acting as 'go-between'.

The dealers are happy to have their products exposed to a global market - the consumers are happy to be able to have easy access to the supplies - and the [Baren] group gets a small boost to its treasury, to help this non-profit group fund some of the exhibitions and activities it undertakes around the world.