Description
About this piece:
Heaven & Earth is a stream of conscious drawing series that was etched –drypoint– into soft plastic plates in one sitting. It was then printed over three days in an a la poupée style on Hahnemühle Biblio paper on a Charles Brand etching press. The scene takes the viewer from the furthest highest of the atmosphere to the lowest lows of the depths of the Earth in a vertical panorama from atmospheric clouds to mountains to the forest floor to beneath the earth’s surface. A reflection of our time here and our role in the spaces we inhabit.
This was created as part of a workshop with Rebecca Goodale.
Materials:
paper, ink
About the artist:
Growing up in rural Pennsylvania farming in a small village nestled in a valley of the Appalachian foothills, Richard Reitz Smith was surrounded by the seasonal effects of nature. The hills simultaneously protected from the outside world, yet kept him from it. The sky was that connection, a source of wonderment; a constant connection to the world beyond the crest of the hills, but ever-changing. In studying nature, Smith found truths of a transcendental vein that he has applied to life. Since moving to Maine in 2002 from New York City, the Penobscot Bay area has been an accessible source of inspiration. Motifs of the sea, sky, and rocky landscape now echo in his work as well as those remembered from his childhood.
Richard holds a BFA in painting and illustration from Carnegie Mellon University with a minor in graphic design. After developing products for Crayola and Liquitex, he earned an MFA in graphic design (Tyler School of Art- Temple University). Most recently he was the founding Chair of the Book Arts program at Maine Media College where he offered workshops in letterpress, bookbinding, and paper creation. He has also taught at other higher ed institutions nationally.
