Frederick Mershimer

Frederick Mershimer (American, born 1958)

Moody, mysterious, majestic - these are some of the ways to describe the mezzotints of Frederick Mershimer. His images travel through the serenity of a Brooklyn neighborhood on a still night, rush past the frenzy of taxis jockeying for position around a New York cathedral, and parade down the fire-lit streets of New Orleans in its mythical Mardi Gras celebration.

The evocative realism he creates transports the viewer beyond first appearances to reveal the hidden beauty and vitality of his scene. At first glance, his work can be interpreted as bold naturalism. Yet, he skillfully choreographs lighting and detail while altering perspective to draw the viewer's attention to the essence of the piece. Mershimer's mezzotints speak to both the grit and grandeur of the modern American city.

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Fritz Eichenberg

(American, 1901 - 1990)

German born wood engraver and lithographer Eichenberg studied at the School of Applied Arts in Cologne before moving to Berlin where he was a reporter and staff artist for the Ullstein Publishing House. When Hitler came to power in 1933, Eichenberg moved New York where he taught at the New School for Social Research and worked on the Federal Art Project. He taught at the Pratt Institute and served as the director of the Pratt Graphics Center where he edited Artist's Proof, a journal on printmaking.

In 1966, he moved to Rhode Island and chaired the Art Department of the University in Kingston. Eichenberg's wood engravings and lithographs are almost always associated with literary sources. His prints are in numerous collections including the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Library of Congress, Yale University Library, the Hermitage, the Vatican, the Bibliotheque Nationale.

George O. Hart

Guntars Sietins

(Latvian, b. 1962)

Guntars Sietins produces masterful mezzotints with subjects that defy gravity, explore texture, question the laws of physics and redefine the order of nature.

Sietins attended the Applied Arts College and the Academy of Arts of Latvia in Riga. He has exhibited throughout Europe, Japan and the United States and won prizes at the Felicien Rops International Printmaking Competition in Belgium, the Print Biennial in Varna, Bulgaria, the Tallinn Print Triennial, the Norwegian International Print Triennial and the International Print Biennial in Maastricht, the Netherlands.

Jackson Lee Nesbitt

(American, born 1913)

From workers waging war with heavy machinery to a lone horseman traveling down a rut-filled country road; from the animated crowd at a livestock auction to the dignified worshippers at a serene Sunday service; Jackson Lee Nesbitt has cho sen to represent the essence of humanity and the nobility of ordinary folk striving to get along as best they can.

He studied with Thomas Hart Benton and John Demartelly at the Kansas City Art Institute, and his work has continued over the decades to celebrate his Regionalist roots.

James Groleau

(American, b. 1960)

The mysterious mezzotints of James Groleau, whether the earth-toned studies of death and personal introspection, or the brightly colored floral and portrait series, reflect an interest in order in the universe and man's place within it.

Groleau studied at the Massachusetts College of Art and the City College Printmaking Program in San Francisco. He exhibits both nationally and abroad and has received numerous awards. He is a member of the California Society of Printmakers and a board member of the Graphic Arts Workshop in San Francisco.

John McCrady

John McCrady, born in Canton, Mississippi, was the son of a minister. After a brief stint at the University of Mississippi, McCrady enrolled at the New Orleans Art School sponsored by the Arts and Crafts Club. One of his drawings was selected in a competition which earned the artist a one year scholarship to the Art Students League in New York. Upon his return from the League in 1934, McCrady took up residence in the Vieux Carre in New Orleans and began to paint the regionalist and religious themes that made his reputation. He worked on the Louisiana WPA from 1936 through the early 40s. In 1940, McCrady joined the roster at Associated American Artists. Caroline Durieux was working in lithography at the time and his decision to work in that medium was inspired by her enthusiasm. Under Durieux's direction, McCrady also produced four silkscreens to aid the war effort. McCrady produced just 9 lithographs in his career. By 1954 McCrady began to devote most of his time to teaching and he opened the John McCrady Art School on Bourbon Street in New Orleans. In 1975, the New Orleans Museum of Art mounted a major retrospective of his work.

Joop Vegter

(Dutch, b. 1931)

Joop Vegter was born in 1931 at Rijswijk in the Netherlands. he studied in Amsterdam at the Art Education department of what was then called the Institute of Arts and Crafts. In 1963 he received a degree which is comparable to a Master of Fine Arts in drawing, printmaking and education.

Until 1987, Vegter served as Professor of Printmaking at the Art Education Department of the Akademie voor Beeldende Kunsten Utrecht at Amersfoot, Holland. He taught printmaking, including the relief, intaglio lithography and stencil processes.

Vegter started his printmaking career as an etcher, but since 1974, he has worked in his favorite medium, mezzotint in both black and white and color. His mezzotints have been exhibited in many national and international group exhibitions as well as in one-man shows. He has received four international awards for his miniature prints. He also works in watercolor and pen and ink.

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Judith Rothchild

Jukka Vanttinen

(Finnish, b. 1954)

Vanttinen was introduced to the medium of mezzotint by a book on British mezzotints by Sir Frank Short. He learned through experimentation and made his first mezzotint in 1982. Vanttinen considers the mezzotint to be his primary artistic medium.

His work has won prizes at the 1989 Biennial in Wakayama, Japan and at the 1993 International Biennial of Graphic Art in Sapporo, Japan. In 1994, Vanttinen was selected for inclusion in "Intergrafia '94 - World Award Winners Gallery in Katowice, Poland".