Erin Leon, The Bottles, drypoint intaglio, 2021
My printmaking career began in 1990 at The Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. My focus was in woodcut printmaking under the instruction of Master Printer, Dan Miller. I graduated from the Maine College of Art in 1995 with a BFA in Printmaking. I studied under James Cambronne, Master Printer, with a focus in intaglio. I became a key holder/printmaker at Pickwick Press in Portland, Maine for 8 years. It was during this time that I began to work in a large scale format, concentrating on highly detailed woodcuts and drypoint plates of endangered and exotic species. During this period, I participated in Big Ink as a contributing printer and worked as an independent curator and artist in Brooklyn, NY, Austin, TX and Portland, Maine.
My family and I moved to Minnesota and in May of last year, I became a member of Highpoint Center for Printmaking in Minneapolis. Since then, I have created a drypoint intaglio print every month as a challenge to myself. Each of these prints focus on macro/microcosms or parts of a whole. This method of mark making has been my most intimate experience as a printer, with the time that goes into each piece. Recently I was able to study photolithography under Grace Sippy in an adult class offered at Highpoint.
My continuing goal is to create large scale, multi-layered prints utilizing the techniques that I learn and advance at Highpoint. As a member of the co-op, the richness and depth of my work has improved and my prints continue to develop and evolve. Being a member of the co-op also created new friendships and a network for me as an artist here in Minneapolis.
