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The spy is being spied upon.

2019 Leslie Peterson Sapp Search 48x40

A young woman is being witnessed as she has snuck into an office at night, perusing documents on a desk. The green glow of the desk lamp illuminates her black jacket. Her profile and veil are silhouetted by the hall light shining through the office door window. Windows within windows, spies spying spies, rectangles framing one another, frames within frames. 

What she is reading, what information she is hoping to find, who is she spying on, and who is spying on her? What will her fate be?

Backlight

 Although the man looms large in the picture, the woman seems to dominate somehow. Is the man leaving or just arriving? Is he being sent on an errand of sorts? Is there an agreement between them, or is this a confrontation? There is a sense of urgency- is it inspired by passion or fear?

2019 Leslie Peterson Sapp Backlight 38x48

There are two previous versions of this general image entitled Egress and Egress II

In this video I discuss how I developed all three from the original inspiration from the classic film noir "Nightmare Alley" through several sketches, to multiple complete images.  

2017 Leslie Peterson Sapp Egress 16x20

2017 Leslie Peterson Sapp Egress II 38x48

 

Story Without a Plot

Here it is! The official show announcement.  Through the month of August, I will be the featured artist at RiverSea Gallery in beautiful Astoria, OR. Opening: August 8th, 6-8pm and on Facebook Live from 6-6:30pm. Show  dates: August 8th - September 8th RiverSea Gallery 1160 Commercial St, Astoria, OR. For those of you who cannot make it in person, I will be broadcasting on Facebook Live from 6-6:30pm. Go to my Facebook art page to see it. Don't do Facebook? Have no fear! You do not have to have a Facebook account to view it. I will be sending out an email the day before the opening with details and a link. (You can sign up for my newsletter by clicking on the lovely lady with the gun just to your right...) In addition, on August 13th at 5pm I will have an online artist talk, probably in the form of a Zoom call. I will provide a short talk on exhibit, then open the “room” up for questions. I will be sending out an email the day before with details and a link to the event. We will be presenting my collage paintings along with intaglio and woodcut prints. The work is inspired by classic film noir and pulp fiction covers, full of romantic longing, drama and adventure. Populated with femme and homme fatales, they evoke mysterious narratives. Come bathe yourself in the intrigue and glamour of a bygone era! RiverSea Gallery is dedicated to the safety of all it's visitors. Therefore masks and social distancing are required (fortunately it is a very large space!)We hope to see you there!

Art in the Time of Covid

I have been fortunate that my life has gone fairly smoothly during the Covid-19 crisis, despite upended expectations and uncertainty about the future. Despite it all, I have an exhibition coming up on August 8^th at RiverSea Gallery in Astoria, Oregon!

As is the case with every art show there is a lot to do, accompanied with the anxious hope that the opening will go well. Will it be well attended? Will there be any sales? But art in the time of Covid has brought these typical concerns to a new level.

Riversea Gallery has reopened with the changes that all business now require, such as masks and social distancing (fortunately it is a very large space!) But this opening is going to be like none I’ve ever had before. Attendance is impossible to predict. The normal wine and snacks will not be served. And this time there will be extra efforts made to share it all on the web. Watch for videos uploaded onto my Instagram account, maybe even Facebook live. Like so many of us, I am frantically ascending the steep learning curve of online technology!

Additionally, I will provide an artist talk, but this time it will be virtual, probably in the form of a Zoom call. I will provide a short talk on exhibit, then open the “room” up for questions.
Although the opportunity to interact in physical space will not be there, there are some terrific advantages! For one, you can participate from your home, and if you are not presentable, you can block out your video camera and still participate, grubbies and all!

I will be keeping you all apprised of links and times to participate in my newsletters, social media and on my website home page.

Adventures in Intaglio!

I took intaglio and woodcut back in college almost 30 years ago. Since that time I have contemplated restarting my interest in printmaking, and now I have finally pulled the trigger.

I enrolled in a printmaking course at Portland Community College. Signing up for a class two days a week for 11 weeks is no small commitment! But it turns out it was barely enough time to scratch the surface (no pun intended!) of the possibilities and complexities of this medium.

Intaglio is a process where lines are etched or scratched onto a metal plate. Ink is applied to the plate, then wiped, leaving ink captured within the lines. Then damp paper is placed on the plate, and is rolled through a printing press. The ink transfers onto the paper, creating an image. 

In total, I did three different plates over the course of the semester.The first one I did is called "The Bitter Sea" (5"x7")

Here is a picture of the inked up copper plate before the first printing:

Here is an image of the print after rolling it through the press.

Notice the image gets reversed when transferred to the paper!

This initial state of the print was done entirely with drypoint (which is simply scratching the image onto the plate with a metal object).

Here I added aquatint, which creates fields of varying shades of grey.

The second plate I developed might be called my magnum opus of the semester. It is named "Vacancy" (8"x10")

Utimately I did a total of 11 states before deciding it was finished!

I decided to utilize some of the earlier states by tinting them with watercolor. I’m fascinated by how the mood can very so greatly with different color schemes.

The final piece I did was a tiny 4”x6” image, based on a jazz record album from the 50’s, called “Struttin’”.

 Although I would LOVE to keep going with the printmaking, it is necessary for me to put it aside for the time being and concentrate on some collage painting projects coming up this year. Keep you eyes open for more news of those projects, and when they are completed, I will surely dive back into printmaking! 

Stay tuned...