Conservation/Restoration
We were surprised to discover recently that one of the most visited pages on the World Printmakers site is the one devoted to the conservation of works of art on paper. So we thought we'd go a bit deeper into the subject. It turns out that one of the world's foremost paper restoration clinics is located in the village of Cercedilla, in the Guadarrama Mountains north of Madrid. It is there that Pedro Barbáchano and his Brazilian wife, Ana Beny, set up 10 years ago their company dedicated to "the pathology and restoration of paper." The level of professionalism at Barbáchano & Beny is impressive, and a conversation with Pedro and Ana is full of fascinating information for printmakers and collectors, as well as some delightful surprises. See if you don't agree with me.

Amsterdams Grafisch Atelier
Most of us associate public printmaking workshops with educational institutions, short courses for amateurs and rental facilities for hobby and emerging artists who lack their own studios. So we found it very interesting when we recently discovered the Amsterdams Grafisch Atelier (AGA), a public workshop for professional printmakers. Funded primarily by the Amsterdam town hall, AGA has a refreshing approach to printmaking, an attitude which seems to reflect faithfully the free and cosmopolitan character of the city of Amsterdam. We talk with workshop director, Jeroen van den Maagdenberg.

The Son of Harmen Gerritszoon
While we're still in Holland, we'll also have a look at the life and work of one of the world's great printmakers, a genius who, throughout a lifetime of strife, never ceased to paint and make prints--and what prints! Descended from a distinguished line of Dutch millers, he was The Son of Harmen Gerritszoon.

Art for Art's Sake
The more distressed I become about the world situation, the more I am convinced that art has a major role to play in bringing the world back to its senses. Then the other day I ran across these seemingly prophetic remarkes, dated 1946, by British writer, E.M. Forster in a book entitled Two Cheers for Democracy: "... art for art's sake. That phrase has been foolishly used and often raises a giggle. but it is a profound phrase. It indicates that art is a self-contained harmony. Art is valuable not because it is educational (though it may be), not because it is recreative (though it may be), not because everyone enjoys it (for everybody does not), not even because it has to do with beauty. It is valuable because it has to do with order, and creates little worlds of its own, posessing internal harmony, in the bosom of this disordered planet. It is needed at once and now. It is needed before it is appreciated and independent of appreciation. The idea that it should not be permitted until it receives communal acclaim and unless it is for all, is perfectly absurd. it is the activity which brought man out of original darkness and differentiates him from the beasts, and we must continue to practise and respect it through the darkness of today."

Lithuanian Printmakers
Before signing off I would like to call your attention to the work of two new Lithuanian artists on World Printmakers, Marius Liugaila and Egle Kuckaite, which illustrates this page. I confess I'm fascinated by the imagination and Old World craftsmanship of Eastern European artists, and these two come from a long tradition of fine Lithuanian printmakers.

See you next month. In the meantime, count your blessings and, ¡Viva el grabado!

Mike & Maureen Booth
Editors & Publishers
World Printmakers
The Worldwide Showcase and Resource Site
for Contemporary Fine-Art Printmakers
URL: http://www.worldprintmakers.com
Email: contact@worldprintmakers.com

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