Alix Hitchcock

Artist Statement

Alix Hitchcock on Gelatin Monotypes:
Alix Hitchcock first experimented with gelatin printmaking at Penland School of Crafts under the instructor, Susan Webster from Haystack, Maine as a form of alternative printmaking without a press. She now leads workshops on the method and has shown series of her own gelatin prints.

Gelatin prints are one of a kind monotypes and are made using a “plate” made from clear powdered gelatin (mixed with water and heated) that is poured into a shallow mold and left to “jell” overnight. The artist rolls ink (in this case, water-based silkscreen or relief ink) onto the gelatin plate, then lays various flat stencils (or hand cut silhouette shapes) onto the inked plate. New ink color is rolled over the stencil, and after the stencil is removed, the paper is laid over the gelatin plate and hand rubbed to absorb the ink. When the paper is lifted, one has a print that shows the different colors revealed by lifting off various stencils at different times. For patterns and textures, the artist can also lay down flat objects such as bubble wrap, or nylon netting (from grocery store items), press them gently onto the inked surface, then lift them off before printing. The gelatin plate can be used for about 3 days, and can be trimmed to any size or shape.

Many of the gelatin prints made by Hitchcock are hand-colored with Prismacolor pencils after drying. The silhouette shapes are hand-drawn and cut out of frosted mylar before the actual process of rolling on color and printing begins. Hitchcock enjoys the serendipitous nature of this form of printmaking, and the speed and spontaneity that it encourages.

The themes for these images are about particular land or sea creatures and their relationship to their natural environment, to each other, or to humans, as well as dance-like images of figures only in a composition. A silhouette format for the images works with the method of using stencils, but also works for Hitchcock to create layers of transparency, ambiguous spatial relationships, and recognizable but still mysterious forms – leading to colorful, movement filled compositions which can have an undertone of danger or anticipation.

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Artist Bio

Alix Hitchcock received her Masters in Art in painting from New York University in 1983, and her Bachelor of Fine Arts in printmaking and painting from the University of N.C. at Greensboro in 1973. She was the Winston-Salem Artist of the Year in 1998, and is a founding board member of Artworks Gallery.

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