In a natural transition from working with letters as forms, using the historical Hatch Show Print collection and archive, Sherraden’s new work explores geometric shapes as the primary form source. Recalling quilts or oriental rugs, the work is assembled through a process of construction, deconstruction, and reconstruction. Newly carved wood blocks, created during his recent sabbatical in Northern Europe, rely on richly detailed foliate and abstract designs. The block prints are cut and then reassembled with an eye toward the balance, color, and contrast that are key to quilt and rug design. Bold and colorful, these new works are a natural extension of thirty years of typesetting, in essence, a shift from abstracted representational work to pieces that are at first glance entirely abstract in nature but belie rich details upon closer inspection.

ABOUT JIM SHERRADEN

Jim Sherraden has been associated with Hatch Show Print since 1984, as manager and master printer, and is currently working as Hatch Show Print Collection Preservation Specialist. As a printmaker, Sherraden was the 2013 recipient of the distinguished Artist Award for the state of Tennessee and continues to cut blocks to create new and inspired. These works of art are available for sale in Hatch Show Print’s Haley Gallery.