Holly Downing

Passaggio I (A glimpse of the landscape through an arched portal)

2007

"Le Seuil" (The Threshold) is an image printed in 2006. This impression is Roman numeral X of XX. It is titled, dated, numbered and signed by the artist. Judith Rothchild, printma...

This image is an artist proof XII / XII. The artist's subject matter was enigmatic: a recurring theme was that of anonymous packages tied with knots of rope; sometimes there are prison bars...

The moon, bowls, lillies and birds are featured in this 2002 mezzotint. It is #17 from an edition of 75 and is signed, titled, dated and edition by hand by this Korean artist born i...

"Sew What" is a color mezzotint with burin engraving created in an edition of 35. This impression is #6. I love sumptuously designed textiles in both real life and art. Patterns metamorphosing over fabric folds appeal to my interest in modulating rhythmic forms, particularly the swells and swirls of calligraphic stripes. I’m also fascinated by articulated wooden hand models, which appear in many of my paintings. Combining these passions with sewing paraphernalia from my seamstress days provided inspiration for my color mezzotint engraving "Sew What". Carol Wax originally trained to be a classical musician at the Manhattan School of Music but fell in love with printmaking. Soon after she began engraving mezzotints she was asked by the renowned print dealer...

Jukka Vanttinen (Finn, b. 1954) Jukka Vanttinen was introduced to the medium of mezzotint through a book by Sir Frank Short on British mezzotints. He learned through experimentatio...

Finns always seek the solace of nature. Is this mysterious stairway an escape from the challenges of civilization? Vanttinen created this mezzotint in an edition of 100 and it is tit...

Resist ground etching and engraving on Rives heavyweight buff paper, 20 x 36 inches (508 x 914 mm), full margins. Signed, titled, dated and numbered 103/160 in pencil, lower margin. Minor mat tone. A rich and finely printed impression of this complex and iconic work by Milton. Framed handsomely under Plexiglas with archival materials in a solid wood frame with silver finish. [Milton 98]. Milton states that in the evolution of his body of graphic work he found himself at point that necessitated the exertion of nerve in his subject matter. He found it imperative for growth to explore whether his compositions had previously been too polite, and through this process he experienced a great burst of artistic and psychic liberation. Milton refers to this awakening as a sort of adolescence, which he felt demanded a natural examination of mysteries of sexual awakening. Les Belles et La Bête...

Resist ground etching and engraving on cream wove paper, 22 x 39 inches (558 x 990 mm), full margins. Signed, titled, dated, and numbered 27/160 in pencil, lower margin. With the blindstamp of the printer, Robert E. Townsend, in the lower left margin. A beautiful, richly inked impression of this highly detailed, large image. In very good condition with minor mat tone, extremely minor scattered light surface soiling, and one pin-point sized dot of brown discoloration on the lower left margin, recto, well outside of image area. [Milton 99]. Milton states that there is a metaphorical evolution at the root of his body of graphic work, and with Les Belles et la Bête, Before the Hunt, he found himself at a crossroads that he viewed as a sort of artistic adolescence, which he felt demanded a natural examination of mysteries of sexual awakening. The image is brimming with fantastical images and metaphors for the confrontation of sexual exploration; a Freudian analyst appears in the left of the image, scattered tableaus of paired figures...

Mytton Hall. 1859. Etching and drypoint. Schneiderman catalog 19 state .iii/v. 4 13/16 x 10 5/16 (sheet 5 3/4 x 10 15/16). As published in Études à l'eau-forte XXIV. Illustrated: Guichard, British Etchers, 1850-1940. An extremely rich impression printed on fine laid paper. Signed in the plate. Housed in a 16 x 20-inch archival mat. Mytton Hall is a fifteenth century mansion house situated on the River Ribble, at Whalley near Blackburn, Lancashire. Haden used to stay there when he went salmon fishing. R. Gutekunst, the dealer who inherited the rights to sell all of Francis Seymour Haden's remaining prints upon his death, noted on the front of his catalogue in July 1911: "It may be useful to add that those impressions of Sir Seymour Haden's early and rare etchings, which were published in portfolio form in Paris in 1865-66, under the title Études à l'eau-forte have, with the exception of one or two sets, never been signed in autograph by Sir Seymour, and do not, of course, bear any stamp of any kind." Although Gutekunst had impressions of the majority of Haden's works for sale, he had no remaining impressions of Mytton Hall. Henry Taylor...

York Avenue, Sunday Morning. 1939. Drypoint. Kraeft 78. 7 3/4 x 12 7/8 (sheet 8 x 12). Edition 100. Provenance: Estate of David Llewellyn Reese, New York. ...

Charming drypoint etching of a series of three arched interior doorways by Susan Varjavand (American, 1941-2018). Numbered, titled, and signed ("13/20 Whisperings at a Cross Point Susan Varjavand") along the bottom edge. Presented in a new cream mat. No frame. Image size: 14"H x 11"W Susan Varjavand (American, 1941-2018) was an artist from San Francisco, California. She studied with Patricia Pearce (American, b. 1948) while at the College of San Mateo, as well as with Richard Bowman (American, 1918-2001) and Alan May...

This architectural drawing of a Suburban Villa in the countryside near Paris, France is from a 1872 book titled Private Architecture In the XIX Century Under Napoleon III. Second Series. New Houses Of Paris And Surroundings. This book was dedicated to Baron Haussmann, the name who is credited with transforming Paris' slums into the thriving metropolitan center we know today. The architect listed for this floor plan...