Contemporary Art in Context: Dan Welden

Dan Welden, artist, master printmaker, educator, and author, has been making art for more than sixty years. At the forefront of the alternative health and safety-oriented printmaking movement, he originated an etching technique called Solarplate and he co-authored the definitive manual on the process with Pauline Muir titled Printmaking in the Sun (Watson-Guptill, 2001). Welden promotes creativity as an endeavor that should be reserved for museums and galleries. Standing before his work, one can easily drift off as if in a dream and become absorbed in his expressive abstractions. His art is based on observations made in nature and his five senses. Mystery and emotion are always present in his highly personal visual statements that are influenced by his travels around the world, whether it be Norwayʼs fjords, New Zealandʼs sheep tracks, or the Navajo rock fissures of Arizona. His landscapes are not intended to be read as pure geography but as connections to land, people, and his inner journey. Itʼs essential to Welden that people form their own interpretations of his work.

Emotion Over Subject Matter
Weldenʼs most recent works are one-of-a-kind, challenging the tradition of making multiple prints from a single etching. After the printmaking phase, Welden adds additional pigment with pencil and paint, creating what he refers to as a hybrid work on paper. In his words, “Itʼs sort of magical in a way because I donʼt have something in mind when Iʼm creating. My head is empty. The work starts to develop as I start making marks, and thatʼs when it comes alive for me.”

Traditional Etching and the Solarplate Alternative
Etching is an intaglio printmaking process in which a polished iron, copper, or zinc plate is covered in an acid-resistant varnish or wax called the ground. An etching needle or other tools are used to scratch the artistʼs desired imagery, exposing the metal underneath, after which acid is poured over the plate or it is dipped in acid. The acid eats into the metal only in the exposed areas, creating recesses that retain ink. The ground is removed using a solvent, and the plate is ready for printing.

Traditional forms of etching, lithography, and screen printing involve noxious chemicals and are considered hazardous and not environmentally friendly. However, the Solarplate offers an expanded range of techniques and aesthetic versatility without the toxicity of acids and solvents. A Solarplate has a light-sensitive emulsion that enables the artist to paint or draw directly onto the plate or create a film transparency through a digital file or by drawing onto a transparent film. The plate is processed by exposing the direct drawing or the film in contact with the plate to the sun or placing it in a UV exposure box. Tap water is used to develop the plate, leaving behind furrows with an exact impression of the artistʼs drawing. Once processed, the plate is ready for receiving ink and printing on paper.

About the Artist
Dan Welden lives and works in Sag Harbor, Long Island. His work has been featured in 102 solo exhibitions in museums and galleries worldwide, as well as over 700 group exhibitions. As the director of Hampton Editions Ltd., he steps away from his personal work to share his talent and vision with the curious novice and to collaborate with other artists including Willem de Kooning, Eric Fischl, Kiki Smith, and Dan Flavin.