Brenda V.H. Friedman

How long have you been at CPC? 

I first met Deborah in the early 90s (!), when CPC was located south of Division. I took classes there, and I continued when CPC moved up to Western Ave. As a teacher, I mostly took summer classes, and especially enjoyed Duffy O’Connor’s summer etching intensives. So, off-and-on, I’ve been around CPC for almost thirty years.

 

What’s your favorite type of printmaking? 

I have always loved relief printmaking, as an artist and teacher. In linocut or woodcut, there is nothing like the quality of a carved line! I have also done screen printing (in college long ago it became an independent study) making T-shirts and tote bags for my church and family events. As an art teacher, relief printmaking was the most fun method to teach to kids. (How to hook 10-year- olds into art? Give them a carving tool!) But, Duffy O’Connor showed me the incredible joy of etching, with its many layers and effects, so much of my latest work involves intaglio techniques like aquatint and chine collé.

 

Why do you make art?

I guess because I have always loved to draw. I was the type-cast artist in my family and in school. As one of six kids growing up, I was a late speaker, but I drew all the time! So it is in my DNA. I feel incredibly lucky to be an artist and to have spent my career in the field of art, as an art educator and art historian. Art holds the power to express ideas, capture emotions, to convince and persuade. My mantra in my art room was always, “Art is essential; draw every day!” And, “If you want to spread an idea — or start a revolution — make a print!”

 

What other media do you enjoy working in? 

I love to draw with colored pencils; it is like therapy, a kind of meditation, to sit in a quiet corner and layer the colors. I also like to paint with watercolor, oils or acrylics. I have a small art studio in our basement, fixed up with shelves of art supplies, and I also constructed an outdoor painting studio in my backyard. My favorite place in the summer is to be out back working on drawings or paintings!

 

What direction are you planning to go in the coming year with your work?

I hope to complete several unfinished projects. I have an inventory of zinc and copper plates that are only somewhat developed, and they remain in different stages. I would like to experiment more with chine collé, and I’d like to try drypoint and mezzotint as well.

 

What book are you reading currently? 

I just finished “James” by Percival Everett, it is so brilliantly written. I also read “The Covenant of Water” by Abraham Verghese this summer (what an epic, a full world realized in southern India). I am currently reading “The Overstory” by Richard Powers, highly recommended to me. I love the descriptions of trees, tree roots, and the natural world. Nature is awesome, we are all interconnected.

 

What is your favorite non-art distraction? 

I am a cook who loves to be in the kitchen and creating new recipes. It is so satisfying to plan meals and concoct menus for my family. I also sing in my church choir, and play the recorder. I used to play the oboe in orchestra, and I like playing piano and wind instruments.

 

Who are 3 artists (dead or alive) that inspire you?

I have always loved the Swiss artist Paul Klee. I appreciate his childlike sensibility and wonderful use of lines and shapes. I think he kind of invented scratch-art. When Jennifer Bartlett died a couple years ago, I was so moved I cried, she had been an inspiration to me since college. I love her painted works in series; her tree and garden scenes are organized on a grid and so cool. Also, being from a Dutch family, I have always appreciated the works of Vincent Van Gogh and Vermeer. When I was given a sabbatical at my school some years ago, I went to Europe and traced the path of Van Gogh from Holland to the south of France!

 

Who is your favorite printmaker?

Jose Posada – and Carlos Cortez – are inspiring because their prints promoted social change. Their woodcuts highlight issues of social justice and the voice of the people. I admire their lifetime commitment to the art of protest. I also admire the woodcuts of Elizabeth Catlett, who worked in Mexico in the Taller de Grafica Popular. And, I love the inventive etchings of Rembrandt!

 

What was the last gift you gave someone?

I recently visited an old friend in New Jersey and gave her my print with the image of the collapsed house. It represents many things: my grandparent’s house at the Jersey shore after hurricane Sandy; my mother’s failing health and her eventual passing a few years ago; the larger collapse of our wider communities. I have imagined this image in a variety of media, from a colored pencil drawing to a relief print to etching, and I’m now working on a painting. It holds a lot of significance to me and I like to share it with friends and family.

 

What’s your favorite thing about CPC?

I love the community of artists at CPC. I have always felt encouraged and supported in my pursuits at CPC, and Deborah has created an environment that welcomes so many kinds of artists and art-making. I love the steamroller press! I love the excellent teaching staff! I love the friendships, and the bright cheery space!