"The definition of art is always changing. It has something to do with the intersection of money, information, culture, and personal fulfillment. I am still working on it!"

When did you first suspect you might be an artist? Did you come from an artistic family? It would be interesting to know what alternatives you were shuffling at the time you were making the decision. Were you considering going into accounting, for example?
Not accounting, entomology! As a child I used to crouch on the ground and watch the ants. This activity might not seem a predictor of a future as an artist, but I believe it is that attention to detail and that obliviousness to the full-scale world which set me on my course. My mother is an artist herself, she makes especially insightful line drawings. My parents sent me to art classes, but rather reluctantly, they knew enough about art to know how difficult it is to make a career of it. It is a good thing I didn't think about it too much!

What was your formation like? How important do you consider art-specific formation to be, as opposed to general-culture formation?
I started college studying English literature, most of my friends were English majors, books were more accessible than art. I finally got to Europe when I was about 25 and was amazed. You can read great books in Rochester, NY, but you have to go to Italy to experience the Pantheon.

Who are your favorite artists? Which ones have influenced you most?
Giotto's sober, felt narratives, Donatello's erotic, spiraling bronzes, and Boromini's complex, ornamented spaces all inspired me when I discovered Italian art. A bit later I fell in love with the sophisticated compositions of Hokusai, Utamaro and Hiroshige. But I needed to learn to make art from artists who were closer to my own experience.

Artistically, I grew up with Minimalism, and the minimalist grid still underlies my work. I was influenced by Robert Ryman's thoughtful whites, Ida Applebroog's scary incised paintings, Louise Bourgeois' twisted spiders. Andy Warhol, Eva Hesse, Lucas Samaras, Robert Smithson, Nancy Graves, Agnes Denes, Kiki Smith, Scott Burden all excite me. I love the variety and I love finding the threads that unite different artists.

Do you think the very definition of "art" has changed in our lifetimes? If so, how?
The definition of art is always changing. It has something to do with the intersection of money, information, culture, and personal fulfillment. I am still working on it!

In your years of experience in dealing with authentic artists, both students and professionals, what character traits do you think they have in common? Or is that a myth?
I think there is a seriousness of purpose that separates artists from regular crazy people. Artists need to make things. What always strikes me is how hard artists work, good artists never seem to think about very much else.

How does a young artist go about discovering his or her "own voice?" What's the best advice you can give to young and emerging artists. ("Young" is so relative...)
It sounds so boring… work hard and make art. All good things come out of that. With persistence and good will, of course, the usual suspects. Going to art school has been valuable to me, and years of curating exhibitions of artists whose work I liked has helped me find my place in the community of artists.

Is art school necessary? What might be some good alternatives. (I love the story of photographer, Sebastiao Salgado, trained as an economist... One of the most successful journalists I know studied marine biology...)
I loved art school. I have an MFA from Hunter College, the best thing about it was getting to know so many artists from New York City. A variety of experience is great, but after a certain point, you need the commitment to making art that you share only with other artists. Marine biology is a fabulous subject, but being a marine biologist is a different kind of job, an involvement with the world that is quite different from the solitude of an artist.

As well as being a printmaker, do you do other work, such as teaching or workshops or something else?
I teach Japanese woodcut classes at various workshops across the U.S. It is an opportunity to share information about the technique and about my ideas about printmaking. I've found that the more I focus technically, the broader the issues I can address in a class.

Where does your inspiration come from?
My inspiration has always been the underlying mathematical logic of the natural world, and the relation of nature to the body.

Do you have a ritual or routine which you perform when you go into your studio to work?
Usually I have to clean up the studio. I am actually a very neat person, just so distracted that my studio gets very messy because I am not paying attention! Recently I started standing on my head for a minute each morning before I start work. I think it helps clear my head. One of those crazy things artists do!

Why printmaking? Why woodcuts?
I have been devoted to printmaking since I found it. I love process, the steps of printmaking give me a lot of space to think. I seem to learn with my hands, gaining a subtle kind of information through working with materials. My art is about repetition and pattern, and the printmaking process is also about repetition, one reflects the other.

Woodcut is the most sculptural of the printmaking processes, and Japanese woodcut gives the most control over color and registration. I am also partial to moku hanga just because it IS so difficult. It requires intense planning and a great sensitivity to materials.

What are your limited editions like? What factors do you consider when you set the edition? What do you consider a maximum number for a true limited edition?
The Japanese never numbered their editions, but today it makes things clearer for everyone concerned. My editions are usually around 20. I like doing reduction cuts because once completed I never have to think about printing them again. I make editions that are big enough for me to understand an image and to gain control over it, which happens at about 20 prints. After that, making more becomes just reproduction, and I lose interest.

What is your weekly work schedule like?
I work for an architectural office Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. In the early morning and on Fridays I get organized, buy supplies, answer e-mail and clean the studio. I try to set aside whole days to concentrate on work, I love working to the exclusion of everything else. But often my routine is interrupted because I must go to a museum, have dinner with friends, or teach a class. These are also important!

How important is it to have a proper studio? When did you finally get yours just the way you like it?
I like watching insects because they are small and perfectly organized. I try to have my studio like that. With Japanese woodcut, I can easily set up for printing in my small studio, everything within hand's reach. Keeping your studio organized is an ongoing process…the trick is to remember why you want it organized: so you can make work!

What is the hardest hurdle you had to get over in your artistic career?
Myself, my own doubts about my ability to make serious work.

How important do you think Internet is for printmakers? Do you think that importance will grow in the near future?
The internet has been a great resource for connecting with other artists, and for finding tools and supplies for Japanese woodcut. My website has been a useful place for me to put information about my work and about Japanese woodcut.

Because I deal with complex natural patterns on a grid, the computer is a perfect tool for designing work. What would I do without cut, paste, rotate and duplicate? The importance of computers and the internet is definitely growing. I think artists need to remember that it is just a tool, that they need to use it for their own creative ends.

Do you agree with me that "creativity" is not only about putting ink on paper (or paint on canvas) but rather an innate ability which shapes, colors and flavors every nook and cranny of one's entire life?
Yes. Even computers can be used creatively!

It's the year 2002(!) Where do you think art in general and printmaking in particular are going from here?
Art seems to continue no matter what, though printmaking is being challenged by a flood of digital work. Education is especially important to help people understand the concept of a limited- edition print. It is also helpful to understanding the kinds of techniques artist-printmakers use and the idea of artist-made prints and master printer collaborations.

If you had it all to do over, what would you do differently?
Just work harder, make more art.

Do you think that art is the universal language? Do you think it's a vehicle for international understanding?
I wish! It helps some of us sometimes. After September 11, I got out all my books on Islamic art. I live a few miles from the World Trade Center, and the towers were a part of my everyday life. It was very helpful to me after their collapse to look at the beautiful mosques of Cordoba and the Alhambra and to remember the great things that come out of Islamic culture.

Why New York. Are you a native New Yorker, or did you go there for the ambiente? What would be your second choice, after New York?
New York City was the place where artists went when I was growing up. So I went. I love living in a community of artists from all over the world, and I love the cultural richness of a big city. I could imagine living in London, Paris, Rome or Berlin, but in Europe history seems to dominate the present. New York has no history, there is only the present. Compared to Europe, anyway! Compared to the rest of the U.S. it is very old and very cultured. New York City is closest I can find to a balance.

Illustrations by April Vollmer. Click on image to see it enlarged.