The Flatbed Files No. 10 "Still Water" by Joan Winter

Joan Winter (American, born 1947) is a renowned sculptor and printmaker whose work is inspired by Japanese architecture, the textures of wood, and the play of light on natural and manmade forms. Her prints and sculptures are often interrelated and inspired by one another. She describes her process in the following, “Art, for me, is still and silent, both physical and emotional, and lives by companionship and contemplation. Uniting all of my work is the desire to reveal the essential and timeless nature of form. I am searching for ethereal qualities concealed between the layers of the visible and invisible, between light and shadow.” Before Winter’s very successful career as an artist, she worked in interior architecture which gave her a keen eye for three-dimensional form. Her prints often reflect this in how she composes them in transparent layers. Winter created her first series at Flatbed in the spring of 2004, and returned in 2006 when she would create our featured Flatbed File of the week: “Still Water”.

“Still Water” is a large 58 x 36.75 in. soft-ground etching and relief. Inspired by the wooden slats of Japanese room screens, “Sill Water” is composed of five horizontal bands stacked consecutively on top of each other, each separated by a solid thin line. The entire print is made up of different values of a warm light sage color. For the large bands, Winter used a lacey wood grain to simulate the wind-rippled surface of a pond. This beautiful ripple effect helps create a soft, natural atmosphere, which is contrasted by the sturdy solid lines separating the five bands. These lines help give order and rhythm to the tangled, organic shapes seen in the bands. When looking at “Still Water", this harmony between order and organic expression creates a meditative effect similar to looking into a pond or a Japanese zen garden. This play of two and three dimensions is often seen in Winter's work and helps make "Still Water" a truly enchanting print. 

Joan Winter 
“Still Water”
2008
Color soft-ground etching and relief
Image Size: 54 x 32 in
Sheet Size: 58 x 36.75 in