JOHN HEINTZMAN
For the month of November, the Peoria Art Guild will be presenting an exhibition “Portfolio 24” in the Project Space Gallery. This project resulted in a collection of prints by local artists demonstrating the unique beauty of relief printmaking.
A print portfolio consists of a set of images, generally unbound sheets, which artists conceive as a thematic unit, meant to be viewed in a specific order. One of the great appeals for the artist is an ability to communicate ideas that require a sequential reading, much like the experience of reading a book. For the collector or viewer, a collection of an artists’ works that is in this format enriches one’s visual language, allowing escape and permission to enter the creative minds of others, thereby offering new insight into their artworks’ construction and meaning.
Submission to the Peoria Art Guild for its Portfolio 24 by Patricia Whalen Keck.
In 1871, the newly established Metropolitan Museum of Art engaged preeminent French etcher Jules Jacquemart to create a series of prints reproducing paintings from the founding collection. Executed during a period of political and social turbulence, the Jacquemart portfolio stands as an important model for future Art Portfolios, and although the publisher’s circular announced the project as an ongoing series, it never advanced beyond the first group of 10 prints. This venture was, however, more than just an effective means of publicity. When The Met selected etching as the series’ medium, it entered a lively and ongoing debate around the graphic arts of the time. We hope the same will be true for Portfolio 24.
Submission to the Peoria Art Guild for its Portfolio 24 by Lisa Nelson Raabe.
My brother Jeff and I saw the opportunity to organize and support a portfolio that would reflect the breadth and depth of artistic expression by local artists here in the Peoria area. We identified a group of 15 who agreed to participate in this inaugural project. This group includes:
Aareon Boyd, Bill Conger, Ann E. Coulter, Cathie Crawford, John Heintzman, Barb Hoffman, Ken Hoffman, Patricia Whalen Keck, Knyame Eugene Maison, Susanne Nestory, Lisa Nelson Raabe, Joe Richey, Angela Risinger, Nichole Gronvold-Roller, and Zac Zetterberg.
The artists we invited all have strong ties to the Guild, and we challenged them to create original prints for Portfolio 24. Our intention for this project was so the portfolio will stand as an important precedent that demonstrates the Art Guild’s longstanding relationship with contemporary artists and the print medium — exemplified by partnering with Bradley University’s International (nee National ) Print and Drawing exhibition since the 1960s.
Submission to the Peoria Art Guild for its Portfolio 24 by Barb Hoffman.
In 2023, the Art Guild engaged a young printmaker, Angela Risinger, to oversee the print studio and aggressively present more opportunities for classes and workshops. Her expertise is in relief printmaking — a viable print discipline that was not only accessible to most artists but also afforded an open opportunity in its ability to translate ideas to a matrix directly.
Working with these local artists — whose ability to explore a variety of materials, colors, textures, and simple nuances, e.g. the play of light on all surfaces — gave life to creative ideas that started us on a path where experimentation and pushing the traditional boundaries of relief printing became evident of a unique experience for all involved. According to Lisa Nelson Raabe, “Printing with Angela was a fun way to find a new process within an established form. We met several times to discuss what could be and then found a way through the various possibilities. When we met the unexpected, we found a solution that was a learning process for each of us.”
Submission to the Peoria Art Guild for its Portfolio 24 by Ken Hoffman.
This is a collection of diverse expressions through varied images — inspired by nature, abstraction, chance, and simple gestures. Each edition has its own voice but also engages in conversation with others’ prints. It is this concert that demonstrates to the public what is so incredible when it comes to contemporary art through printmaking. Susanne Nestory’s concept is a perfect example. Paying attention to natural details, she has been making rubbings from various historical buildings that are known for supporting artists with spaces to create. The wood grain gives her images life — composed of not only incredible lines but also revealing a history of the people who have worked there, the products contributing to our economy for more than a century, and the opportunity to use chance and graphite to express herself. Coupled with a masterfully carved block by Angela Risinger, the co-joining of drawing and printmaking, creates a natural pattern, unnoticed, as we have all walked that path many times. This is the excitement we hope all will experience through this portfolio.
Submission to the Peoria Art Guild for its Portfolio 24 by Susanne Nestory.
This project has become the first print commission for the Peoria Art Guild. It has allowed the opportunity to exploit a range of graphic possibilities where artists can use the portfolio to communicate a wide range of ideas and beliefs. Following the printing of her reduction linocut, Ann E. Coulter reflected, “The subject I chose to use for the “Portfolio 24” project came from the same source as my paintings but evolved into something quite different and unexpected during the process of making my print. I think a lot about deconstruction and reconstruction as I build my nature-based paintings, so I was fascinated to witness the dismantling and re-assembling of my image during the multi-stage printing process. The end result was very surprising in the most wonderful way. Making this print allowed me to expand my way of thinking about my subject, which for me, was one of the primary goals of the project.”
Portfolio 24 will be exhibited through Nov. 27. The Peoria Art Guild is open 9 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday and 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Saturday. Admission is free and open to the public.