Artwork copyright Joan Stuart Ross. Photo courtesy of the artist.

Medicine, 1980

Joan Stuart Ross
(American, born 1942)

Location: Spokane Falls Community College, Spokane

ABOUT THE ARTWORK

Medicine is an abstract monotype by artist Joan Stuart Ross. The layers of expressive marks and colors in Ross' art are metaphors "for what occurs in [her] conscious and unconscious inner life and in the inscrutable outside world."

Monotypes are unique prints made by painting with inks directly onto the printing plate. Only one print can be made from the plate. The image is transferred onto paper using a printing press. Ross uses many layers of monotypes: "Color radiance, transparency, and metamorphoses occur as eadh layer of ink compresses into the fibers of the paper and into each other with the pressure of the printing press."

This artwork was acquired for the State Art Collection in partnership with Washington State University.

ABOUT THE ARTIST

Seattle-based artist Joan Stuart Ross creates two-dimensional artworks that combine encaustic (made using melted wax), painting, printmaking, and collage techniques. Experimenting with process and repetition, Ross creates layered visual narratives that explore natural forms and personal symbols.

Ross earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from Connecticut College, and Master of Arts and Master of Fine Arts degrees from the University of Iowa.