Breathing Space #2
- Date:
- 2015
- Medium:
- Woodcut monoprint, Akua Intaglio inks
- Dimensions:
- 111.8 × 76.2 cm
- Image courtesy of
- Artist's official site
Breathing Space #2 (2015) continues Kernan's investigation of the woodcut monoprint as a vehicle for abstract painting. Akua Intaglio inks, used throughout the series, are water-soluble and remain workable on the block long enough for the artist to wipe, dilute, and rework areas before printing — closer to the tonal manipulation of intaglio plate work than to the flat color fields of relief printing in the Japanese [nishiki-e](/glossary/nishiki-e) tradition. Within the Breathing Space sequence, each numbered impression is a unique pull from a shared or related block structure, with variation introduced through inking decisions rather than recutting. Kernan's compositions in the series favor staggered horizontal and vertical bands or interrupted geometric forms set against negative space, the title indicating the deliberate intervals she leaves between marks. The print situates itself within a long American tradition of expanded woodcut practice and reflects Kernan's role as co-founder of Mixit Print Studio in Somerville, the open-access workshop she established with Jane Goldman in 1987.
Breathing Space #2 was created by Catherine Kernan in 2015.
Breathing Space #2 depicts abstract.
Breathing Space #2 measures 111.8 × 76.2 cm.
![[abstract composition with diagonal woodgrain] by Gen Yamaguchi](https://1.api.artsmia.org/800/135949.jpg)