The Joan Pabst Dubanoski Interview 
A Chat with the Renaissance Digital Printmaker         
                               
                                                                  by Bart Sedgebear

1. According to your World Printmakers brief biography you went to school at De Pauw University in Indiana. We know you now live in Hawaii, Joan. How did that transition happen? What do you like best about living out in the middle of the Pacific?

JPD: After graduate school at the University of Minnesota, my husband and I lived briefly in Iowa and then we moved to Hawaii where he was offered a position at the University of Hawaii. Our planned three-year adventure turned into a lifetime of appreciation of the tropical beauty and the amazing cultural blend of Hawaii's people. We are all minorities here. My favorite aspect of living here is the unending variety of cultures, flora, and fauna that really illuminate each day. And the weather isn't bad, either!


2. Your biog also mentions study in Germany, ceramics in Hawaii, and writing and producing a television documentary. Then, of course there’s your career as a digital artist. But, as I remember, in real life you are on the faculty at the University of Hawaii? And you also raised a family. What are you, some kind of Renaissance Woman? How do you manage it all?

JPD: Oh my, I've never looked at it this way. I guess my life has been a series of cycles, as is true of many women who have an on-and-off professional life due to child and elder care. When I was "off" I was always drawn back to artwork and I realized the power of creativity in everyday living and in my family and professional life as well. It sort of all came together and now I am able to work part of each week in research and part in my digital work. It's really a dream come true. I was fortunate enough to have the time and my husband's encouragement to pursue a number of areas until I found my love for digital work. And somehow our children and my husband survived this process with tolerance and humor. In my other life, my area is health psychology and, while I am still affiliated with the university, I'm now working at Kaiser Permanente Center for Health Research, Hawaii on a federal grant.

3. Let's talk about digital printmaking? Is it wonderfully rewarding? Is it expensive? Is it complicated to learn? Do you need extensive previous computer experience? Where is the appeal?

JPD: Digital work is fascinating, always novel and challenging. The possibilities for innovation are as limitless as your imagination. I think of the computer as a new tool for art expression, one that would have captivated some of the most gifted artists in history, especially those who experimented in multiple media forms. It's fun to see digital and traditional methods combined in a print, and the use of exciting digital substrates such as aluminium and wood veneer in mixed media applications is growing.

The work can be modest or expensive in cost, depending on the equipment one uses. I began with a laptop computer, a simple camera, an old copy of Photoshop, and an Epson 2000P printer. Some of my best work came out of that early experience. Other artists begin with a blank screen, as you would a canvas, and create images with powerful software features. I don't think one needs extensive computer experience to begin but there is definitely a learning curve as with all art forms. Part of the appeal is that there are a limitless number of things to learn and constant challenges for growth and change


4. Is it at least in part about instant gratification? Would you ever go back into a darkroom?

JPD: In terms of digital photography, the instant gratification of seeing and working on your images minutes after making them is wonderful. And learning is quicker because you don't have the lag time between capturing the image and seeing the print after the film has been developed and printed. When working on the computer, millions of colors and treatments are available, so it's exciting to experiment and see the results quickly. I haven't been in a darkroom since I was a child helping my father with developing and printing, but I wouldn't go back to the chemicals and the seclusion required or trade the vast possibilities of digital work for darkroom printing. However, I am interested in combining traditional printmaking with digital methods.


5. Do you love a tripod and a cable release?

JPD: Actually, no. I love to be as free of equipment as possible when I roam around looking for interesting images. It's more exciting to capture existing compositions in nature than to set things up in my studio. Therefore, light-weight equipment and spontaneity are important to my work. I do have a tripod and another small table-top model that I use occasionally. Digital cameras now have a timed-release button or a remote device that supplant the cable release and I do use these to reduce camera shake. Also my newest camera has vibration reduction built in that greatly improves the quality of hand-held shots. This is a wonderful innovation for me.


6. About your subject matter, what attracted you to Hawaiian flora? Obviously it's beautiful, but what made you think you could turn it into art, something you have managed very successfully. Have you always done flora? What did you photograph before?

JPD: Mostly I just shoot what seems interesting, exciting, beautiful, touching, or whimsical at the time. In my mind I'm sort of painting because I like unexpected colors, shapes, textures, and graphic qualities in what I see. I've always loved the German Expressionists and somehow they are always lurking around when I find something I love to shoot. The flora here are exotic, huge, and dramatic. I didn't really think about turning them into art. They were already magnificent compositions and I just tried to capture a portion of the mystery I felt in seeing them, maybe something different or unusual. Most of my work is from the natural world, however, in traveling I enjoy architecture, markets, documenting other cultures, and various types of abstract images wherever they appear. My favorite images are abstract, vaguely familiar yet strange to the viewer.

7. Who's your best critic?

JPD: My husband. When his eyes light up, I know I have a good image. He has a wonderful sense of composition.


8. We're not in a hurry. Can you describe for us the route you took into digital printmaking? When did you start? Had you done any traditional printmaking? Are you also a painter?

JPD: My journey to digital printmaking probably began in my dad's darkroom as a child, progressing through a lifelong love of art history, and finally finding a vehicle for my own expression of the world around me. Although I haven't done traditional printmaking and am not a painter, somehow my background of art history, ceramics, and the opportunity to work in all aspects of our Annenberg/Corporation for Public Broadcasting 13-hour
telecourse/PBS television series combined to lead me to digital work. I began digital printmaking about 10 years ago, but the technology was limited in terms of archival quality and the size of prints. After I got my Epson 2000P about four years ago, my work expanded greatly with 13" x 19" print size and archival pigment-based inks with longevity under glass of about 100 years. The quality of the prints was astounding, often revealing more glorious color and detail than was apparent on the camera LCD or the computer screen. This unexpected quality was very captivating to me.


9. How long did it take you to get up to speed, both in technical terms and as regards exhibiting?

JPD: I was exhibiting in my first show three months after receiving my new printer, thanks to the Digital Art Society of Hawaii (DASH). I attended my first meeting with this organization and was invited to participate in their yearly show two weeks later. Mark Ammen, then president of the organization, was a wonderful mentor for this short timeline. I received an honorable mention for my image "Phantoms of the Metro". This was so exciting that I never looked back. Technically, the prints seemed amazing to me from the beginning; however, reading the manual is a good idea and continually experimenting with new ideas provides ongoing instruction. Recent advancements in color management (e.g., the SpyderPro series) calibrate the monitor image with the printed version. This assures fidelity of color in the print and reduces the number of proofs needed before achieving the desired print quality.

Phantoms of the Metro

10. Did you have mentors, role models, muses, maestros? This is the place to acknowledge them.

JPD: I was raised in a family that valued fun, generosity, whimsy, humor, and adventure, all qualities that continue to nurture me and my work today. Mary Ellen Hancock, my ceramics mentor, taught me everything I know about creativity and about throwing away the pattern. The German Expressionists, Fauvists, and Abstract Expressionists have always captivated my vision and emotion in their unexpected images. Mark Ammen and the current president of DASH, Arthur Nelander, have given me priceless mentoring and encouragement, as has Mike Booth of Worldprintmakers.com. My husband's eye for composition provides an ongoing critique of my work. None of my work would have been possible without these generous gifts. However, I am essentially self taught, probably the best path for me.


11. You belong to DASH and have participated actively. What does belonging to a digital collective offer an artist? Aren't artists supposed to be loners?

JPD: Some artists are loners but I treasure being a team member after years of appreciating the advantages teamwork in my academic life. DASH members come from all areas of artistic expression. They are painters, graphic artists, printmakers, photographers, mixed media artists, and more. This is an exciting blend of talents and interests and we all share our digital knowledge and discoveries. We help each other, exhibit together, and encourage each other; there is an exciting synergy that one doesn't find in isolation. Our president, Arthur Nelander, taps his vast set of professional and digital experiences in leading DASH. We all benefit from his outlook and guidance. Being a member of DASH has been critical to my growth and development as a digital artist.

12. I noticed that you have been the DASH webmaster. Would you like to make any comments about art and Internet?

JPD: My first experience with the Internet was when a colleague linked me to the Louvre collection with the old Mosaic browser. I could actually view the Louvre works and print out any image in which I was interested! I was completely and immediately hooked on this new technology. I think it's invaluable as an educational and communication tool for the art world. It's also invaluable for artists wanting a wider venue for their portfolios
and for the use and sale of their work. Worldprintmakers.com has been the leader in this field. These resources benefit private and corporate collectors, and designers who are looking for a wide range of choices for their commercial projects.


13. Would you mind talking a bit about technique? Does your approach require a lot of hardware and software? I suspect a lot of World Printmakers readers would like to know the details of your kit.

JPD: My equipment is fairly basic. I have a Windows-based PC with a 120 gigabyte hard drive and 512 megabytes of RAM and a flat-screen CRT monitor (colors are still a little better on CRT than on LCD monitors). I have two 120 gigabyte Maxtor external hard drives for back-up that I consider essential. I use one to back up daily work and one to do a complete system back-up periodically. A Wacom tablet and pen and an Epson 2000P printer complete my hardware setup. I use Photoshop CS software for editing images, Spyder PRO for color management, and the Epson 2000P (newer versions are the 2200 and R2400) for printing up to 13" x 19" images.

I print my smaller images on archival watercolor papers. Beautiful papers are essential to high quality prints. Larger works on paper or canvas are printed by master printer, Stefan Meinl, of Meinl Digital Imaging & Printing, whom I met through DASH. He has done most of my work on his Epson 9500 printer, although he can print up to 44" wide and 320" long on his Epson 9600. I have basic cameras and have yet to graduate to digital SLR (inevitable in the future, however), mainly due my preference for less and lighter equipment and more spontaneity. I began with a Nikon Coolpix 990 that can capture macro work at 0.8" to fill the frame. Now I am also working with a Nikon Coolpix 8800 with vibration reduction, a wonderful feature for the way I work. I also have a Canon PowerShot S400 with me at all times to capture things in the moment. The power of the image is in the eye of the creator, so I try not to be too distracted by equipment.

Joan and Stefan in his digital printshop.

14. Would you mind walking us through the process of creating one of your favorite prints? A specific print. Right from when you got up in the morning, till when you either print it up or send it out to the printer.

JPD: When we were visiting the island of Molokai, I actually did get up early in the morning to check out some interesting Monstera plants that I had seen the day before. I thought that the early morning light would be mellower. While composing the images, I noticed that the camera was picking up some unusual colors that I didn't see when looking at the plants. The colors may have been reflections from surrounding plants or the colored walkway -- I wasn't sure but the effect was interesting. What I enjoy most are unexpected surprises that crop up in digital work.

Back in my studio I loaded the images into Photoshop CS and found several of them interesting, possibly as a triptych of sorts. I usually use levels, curves, selective color, and saturation to evaluate the contrast, color-cast, and color balance of every image. A few areas were too light so I cloned (a copy and paste facility) color and texture from surrounding areas to fill in. The opacity of the clone can be adjusted for a soft natural look. This activity feels similar to painting using a digital brush. Other images require the use of more advanced features of Photoshop, such as the incorporation of layers to combine images, the application of filters, etc.

My next step was to proof the images by printing on the Epson 2000P and adjusting the colors until the envisioned images appeared. Color management software is essential to matching the computer screen with the printer output. Then I submitted the images to Genuine Fractals 3.5, a program that allows an image to be made smaller or larger without losing the original sharpness and color. These were to be large pieces, two 40" by 30" and one 40"x 38", printed on canvas by Stefan Meinl. The color fidelity was amazing in the final images with no loss of resolution and they popped with proper lighting. Stefan also finished the canvas with a protective coating of Liquitex acrylic varnish, available in gloss or matte form. I choose matte to reduce light reflection. The canvases were wrapped around the stretchers with the print extending to the rear and hung as a triptych without frames. The overall effect is abstract with unexpected colors. In this journey the process was as much fun as seeing the final product.

15. What would you say to traditional printmakers who would like to try digital but don't dare.

JPD: "“What have you got to lose?" I'm sure that's what they would say to me and I plan to take them up on the challenge. The opportunity to combine traditional with digital printmaking is too tempting to resist!


16. The real reason that we're having this chat is that you have made digital printmaking history by providing the digital images for the renovation of a 1,480-room hotel, the Sheraton Waikiki. First of all, congratulations, both from me and from all the hard-working digital printmakers out there in the cyber-ether. We're all very, very proud of you. And we're dying to know how you did it. Would you care to fill us in? You called them? They called you?

JPD: Mike Booth e-mailed me that a designer had contacted him about my work that was part of DASH's first group show on Worldprintmakers.com. When Mike mentioned 1,480 rooms, I was glad to be sitting down at my computer!! We soon found out that the project was in Hawaii, a massive renovation planned for the Sheraton hotel located on the beach at Waikiki. The designer from Peter Vincent & Associates, Inc., a Honolulu-based architectural and interior-decorating firm, requested an appointment to view my portfolios and then she chose six images, three each for two room themes she was designing. Although the Sheraton owner planned to choose one theme for all the rooms, he liked both the ocean and mountain/city view themes and chose both for the renovation. Ultimately, three images were used in one room theme and two in the other.

It's important to note that without DASH president Arthur Nelander's encouragement, Tropical Mosaic 2002, our show on Worldprintmakers.com would not have been possible. He was familiar with the site and thought highly of it, so he suggested we take a new route with a virtual exhibit in addition to our yearly show in Hawaii. Members responded enthusiastically and we recently mounted a second DASH show on Worldprintmakers.com, Tropical Mosaic II. We greatly appreciate this new venue for DASH.

17. How does an artist react when someone walks up to her and says, "We'd like to buy 3,500 prints?" Please tell us about the deal? Was it quick and easy? Or an uphill trudge? Did you hammer out the deal yourself, or was that part done for you by an agent? If you did it yourself, how is it facing a multinational corporation alone on a dusty street at 12:00 a.m.? What about the logistics: How does one go about printing and delivering 3,500 prints?

JPD: After we realized that the project was in Hawaii, Mike suggested that it would be best for me to negotiate with the designer directly. However, he offered to mentor me throughout the process. Arthur Nelander was also critical in helping me to handle the negotiations. I did not have the business background to handle this myself and without the expertise of Mike, Arthur, and Stefan Meinl, I could not have undertaken this project. It was a huge learning experience. It was also a roller coaster of ups and downs through various stages, decisions, and long waiting periods not knowing what was happening.

Stefan printed all the images in one run to guarantee consistent color and quality. This took about eight months as he balanced the Sheraton job with others he was completing. We used pigment-based ink and Hahnemuehle William Turner watercolor paper, both archival quality. I reviewed each print and they were delivered to the framer who prepares them as each floor is completed, four floors of 58 rooms each to date. Stefan did a fantastic job. My greatest satisfaction with the project is that a large chain decided to celebrate local flora and place fine art prints in their guest rooms. Hats off to Sheraton for this decision.


18. What about editioning? What kind of editions do you have to make in order to put together such a big print order?

JPD:I solved this problem by using an open edition on all of the prints. This provided the hotel with fine art prints at a substantially reduced cost and opened the door for visitors who may want to purchase a print as a remembrance of their trip. Because the size of such an edition cannot be estimated, I thought it best to print open editions. Also I believe that the power, excellence, and integrity of the image should drive its value rather than the edition size. Therefore, I was happy to provide open editions for the Sheraton project, knowing that each print was equally vibrant, of archival quality, and printed on beautiful paper. This sense of providing a high quality print every time is one of the joys of digital work


19. Those of us who are directly or indirectly in the print business tend to fix on the advantages for the artist in an operation like this. But presumably there are also advantages for the client? What are they?

JPD: I guess the main benefit for the client would be excellent prints delivered on time for the project. In the long run, visitor satisfaction with the renovation of the rooms should boost occupancy rates and visitor return rates. Images available for purchase in the gift shops could add another source of revenue. The integrity of the entire business design, especially in hotels, would be aided by a theme carried out in the rooms, public areas, restaurants, meeting rooms, suites, on menus and letterheads, etc. This could lead to a strong identity for the business. In creating this approach, the client can choose many substrates and sizes to vary the applications. Digital work is especially flexible and adaptable for imaginative applications of this type.


20. Have you gotten any feedback from Sheraton clients? What do they think of the digital decoration on the walls of their rooms? Will your prints also be used to decorate the public areas of the hotel? That would be interesting, GREAT BIG ONES!

JPD: The four floors of the renovated guest rooms have just been opened so no feedback is available yet. I hope that the guests enjoy the new rooms. If Sheraton were interested in some BIG ones it would be a wonderful challenge. I would love to do some things on canvas for the public areas. The total renovation is done in stages so I'm not sure what the future will bring.


21. Got any advice for your digital colleagues, should someone approach them with a 3,500-print order?

JPD: Take 10 deep breaths as you step on the roller coaster! Learn about the business you are dealing with to understand how things are done and what their needs are. Ask experienced mentors to fill in the blanks. Be VERY patient. Large projects require many phases of planning. Decide on the quality of work you wish to produce and don't waver. Practice clear and quick communication with your agent, the printer, the designer, the builder, the framer, and the ultimate client. Be clear about every aspect of the job to ensure success. And try to prepare yourself for an amazing journey!


22. What's next on your Renaissance agenda, Joan? A cathedral?

JPD: A little beyond me, and yet, a partial rose window at sunset….…..