Deborah Maris Lader

           Since being enrolled in printmaking this semester, it’s been something that has been more interesting than normal lately. The Mid America Print Conference was at IUS this past weekend (Oct. 5-8, 2016) and the Barr Gallery was filled with work from the recipient of the 2016 Outstanding Printmaker Award, Deborah Maris Lader. Her work was very interesting, intriguing, and strange. What is meant by “strange” is that the works catch the eye of the viewer and pull them in to observe more into the works.

Wholes by Deborah Maris Lader

            Wholes was one of the first pieces that really made the viewer think. This is a lithograph print that is one of the few prints to be done in color in this collection, which seems necessary for the image and the story that goes along with it. There is a brick wall as the background that has holes out of it which reveals what seems to be the cloudless blue sky. There is a young girl in the image who looks as though she is day dreaming about being on the other side of the brick wall, where the sky is a long with the birds and a kite. Her stomach has a hole in it which reveals the brick wall. This shows that she is empty and longs to be on the other side of the wall. There are also some thorns that appear in the image which intertwine between her legs, keeping one of the legs against the brick wall. This could signify that she is being held there even though she wants to be on the other side of the brick wall.

            The story of this image is really clear and all of these elements she’s added in really help to reiterate the story without being too overwhelming. There are small and minor details that don’t overcrowd the image and overflow the viewer's brain. The contrast between the brick wall and the blue sky is very important, and the value of the brick wall adds more details as well.

Working on Wings to Fly by Deborah Maris Lader

            Working On Wings To Fly is an incredibly detailed black and white image that showcases Deborah’s love for birds and hands. After walking around the gallery and viewing all of Deborah’s work, the viewer should be able to gather that she really enjoys hands and birds. Which is exactly why Working On Wings To Fly is so interesting. This piece is a black and white etching print that has a large bird with human hands instead of wings. The large bird is standing in water and holding a baby bird. There are multiple hands that seem to be in and out of the water as well. Gathering from the title, it seems as though the large bird is a mother, and the small bird that it’s holding is its baby who is learning to fly and use its wings.

            There are so many different value ranges on the image, and the attention to detail in everything is beautiful, especially in all the hands that are in this image. Even though this image is in black and white versus Wholes that was in color, it seems fitting that this image is made this way. Maybe to signify a memory, maybe Deborah relates this to her own personal life. She’s the large bird and one of her children is the small bird, and this signifies them learning how to walk, or leaving the nest for college. Even though it seems like this image’s story isn’t as clear, it’s still really interesting and makes the viewer think about the image which is exactly what most artists want their viewers to do.

Overall the prints were very detailed, had incredible value to them, and definitely made it clear why she had won the 2016 Outstanding Printmaker Award. All-in-all, the show was very successful and Deborah truly knows how to make eye catching work that requires the viewer to observe more than just the first glance of the work.