Autumn
Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore,
Michigan

Ten Woodblock Prints
by Mary Brodbeck

2006-2009

This series of ten woodblock prints began with a three-week artist-in-residency at Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. In October of 2006 I spent time exploring, observing, and sketching the 35-mile section of Lake Michigan’s coastline that runs from Crystal Lake to the village of Leland in northwest lower Michigan.

Sponsored by the National Park system, the artist-in-residency program seeks to draw upon artists’ interpretations of our country’s treasured landscapes to inspire new insights, enjoyment, preservation, and understanding. I hope that the images that resulted from my immersion in the Sleeping Bear Dunes environment evoke the spirit of a place that is as unique and haunting as any I have ever experienced.

By identifying and projecting images that are iconic to the Sleeping Bear Dunes coastline, I attempt to tell a story with this series. Each print represents a chapter in a narrative of shape and color, with a one-word title that depicts a particular mood or sensual experience of the place. The story follows the coastline from south to north: Lap, Felled, Empire, Strata, Repose, Breadth, Dawn, Rise, Sentinel, and Sheltered.

The woodblock prints were made using multiple blocks for multiple colors, brushed-on water-based paints, and a hand-held Japanese baren. Each print was created with 6-10 carved woodblocks and up to 20 separate impressions.