As part of the Greater Huntington Parks and Recreation District’s monthly Art Walk event, students in Professor Sarah McDermott’s Relief Printmaking class will be printing large-scale relief blocks based on the research of faculty members in other Marshall departments.
To prepare for the event, students partnered with faculty in Marshall’s Biology and Sociology/Anthropology departments, interviewing them and making a design inspired by their research, said McDermott, who is with the School of Art & Design.
Topics include solitary bees, inspired by Dr. Pam Puppo; coyote behavior, suggested by Dr. Shane Welch; fire ecology, recommended by Dr. Kyle Palmquist; basketry, cordage and textiles, inspired by Dr. Marion Coe; ritual violence in the Chimú and Inca empires in Peru, suggested by Dr. Rachel Witt; bird evolution in East Asia, an idea from Dr. Herman Mays; and hellbender conservation biology in West Virginia, and diamondback rattlesnake monitoring, inspired by Dr. Jayme Waldron.
Print designs were hand-carved into 2-foot by 4-foot wood panels that will be printed onto paper and fabric using a pavement roller donated by West Virginia Paving.
“This event will be a great opportunity to learn about large-scale printmaking,” McDermott said. “Come out and watch the giant mobile ‘printing press’ in action and support this interdisciplinary collaboration between artists and scientists.”
For more information, contact Mark Zanter, director of the School of Art & Design, at zanter@marshall.edu. To learn more about Marshall’s School of Art & Design, visit www.marshall.edu/art.
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