Featured Artist Linda Whitney

Enjoy the captivating works of printmaker Linda Whitney, whose art celebrates the grace and spirit of indigenous dancers. See more by visiting her website.

 

 

As a child I wanted to be either an Indian, as portrayed by Tonto on the Lone Ranger, or an artist when I grew up. Fortunately for my creative career, I had an artist as my sixth grade teacher who introduced our class to printmaking.

 

 

My first print won a student award and my future path was founded. I pursued both undergraduate and graduate degrees in printmaking. I spent my academic teaching in the print lab while creating full color etchings using four to six plates. This was before non-toxic methods were developed. Knowing that I wanted to continue investigating printmaking in retirement, I seriously researched mezzotint, the lesser toxic intaglio process.

 

 

I also met and married an indigenous spiritual teacher who was a traditional powwow dancer. We spent many years attending powwows along with other ceremonies. Slowly my two childhood wishes were melded. I loved watching the athletic dancers in their beautiful regalia. I began to draw their portraits, their dance poses and the various outfits that signified the different dance types and styles.

 

 

I started making small hand-colored mezzotints of the outfits and larger black and white prints of the various dancers. This resulted in entering juried shows and a solo exhibition in a museum titled Regalia. One of the juried shows was the 2019 International Mezzotint Festival in Ekaterinburg, Russia.

 

 

The seven mezzotints that were invited won one of four international awards and gave me a paid trip to the festival. I not only experienced Russian hospitality, but met over 100 mezzotint artists from around the world and viewed over 1,000 contemporary and historical prints.

 

 

In the airport on my way home, I received an email from a print club on the US east coast. They asked me to produce an edition of 100 mezzotints as their gift print. I arrived home ready to get to work. After five years of working very hard and the teachings of my husband, I’ve arrived at an understanding.

 

 

The native American spiritual path is contemplative and considerate as is the mezzotint process, especially at the size I prefer to work. I strive to understand the athletic movements of the dancers and capture them in hand-rocked copper.

 

 

Adding my own regalia designs, I print the image on Hahnemule Copperplate paper and hand paint the finished mezzotint with earth pigments in four direction colors. I work largely to challenge myself physically, taking time to strengthen my tenacity to accomplish a slow, methodical process while giving honor to the spiritual approach and connection each dancer has to the people, their ancestors and to future generations.

 

 

I live in my home studio with my three-legged rescue dog, working up to twelve hours a day. After having prints invited to over 400 exhibitions with several mezzotints winning awards, I’ve stopped entering juried shows to concentrate on a touring solo exhibition of 30 hand-colored mezzotints titled Grand Entry.

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