UpDate - Vol. 11, No. 18, Page 8
February 6, 1992
New buffet at Blue & Gold

     The artist is drawn
     to the work.  Often
     it feels like an obligation
     or responsibility as if
     we were required to
     complete an assignment
     meant only for us.
     When we do our work
     we feel right,
     for the time, then
     we begin again
     because it never
     is complete.
         Epilogue from Images and Reflections
                        -Norman Sasowsky

     When Norman Sasowsky, professor of art at the University of
Delaware, tried his talented hands at creating monotypes, one-of-a-kind
original prints, it was an artistic breakthrough for him. "The process
freed me up and opened a new form of expression," he said.
     Combining nine of his monotypes with his writings on art and on
being an artist, he has created 11 folios, including 10 boxed sets and
one bound set.
     "I wanted something more intimate than paintings on a wall, so I
decided on folios for the prints. I needed a text to accompany my images
and decided to use my own ongoing reflections that I have written over
the past 10 years about art and what it means to be an artist," he said.
     The combined format of prints and writing has been important in
creating interest and response to his work, Sasowsky said.
     "Images and Reflections" will be exhibited at the Delaware Art
Museum from March 5-April 23 and "Forest of Dreams" at the Susan Isaacs
Gallery, 222 Delaware Ave., Wilmington through Feb. 28.  The gallery
exhibition will be included in the monthly Art On The Town loop from 5-8
p.m., Feb. 7, and the museum exhibition on March 6.
     A video by Thaumatrope Productions will accompany the exhibition at
the Delaware Art Museum. Called "99 Monotypes," the video features
Sasowsky talking about his art work and the role of an artist. The video
and a book of reproductions of his monotypes and accompanying text will
be available at the museum.
     Sasowsky has had a previous exhibition of his monotypes at the
Widener University Art Museum and at the University Gallery faculty
show.
     Sasowsky was on sabbatical in 1986 when a young artist friend in
Woodstock, N.Y.  instructed him in the monotype process and gave him the
use of his studio. There was immediate rapport with the method, he said.
     A monotype is a print, Sasowsky explained, but only one good
impression can be made, and it requires immediate printing. He uses a
sheet of plexiglas and etching inks to create images, and brushes and
rollers achieve different effects. Then, the plate is covered with a
paper (he uses dampened papers that absorb the ink) and the paper is
placed over the plexiglass and run through etching presses several
times, layering the colors.
     He sometimes adds finishing touches with an oil stick or other
media. The resulting prints have brilliant colors that can't be
duplicated by other methods. Sasowsky has also made some monotypes in
whites, grays and blacks.
     This art form was used by Degas and other artists, and museums,
such as the Metropolitan and Boston art museums, have revived interest
in monotypes by holding major exhibitions.
     Fleda Jackson of the English department read his writings and
encouraged him, helping him with some editing, Sasowsky said, and Ray
Nichols, Randy Bolton and Martha Carothers, all of the art department,
gave him advice and assistance with the project, and the University
helped with funding.
     "It is exciting for me as an artist to express myself in this
different media and to get positive responses from viewers. I think what
appeals to people is the color and the spontaneity of monotypes. And,
the combination of images and my writing has proved to be a successful
way of establishing a viable dialog with an audience," Sasowsky said.
-Sue Swyers Moncure