By necessity and passion I am a wearer of many hats. While starkly different than projects that fit more neatly into the world of “fine art,” these printed woodcut illustrations are near to the printmaking core of Studio Shappy’s practice. Woodcuts contain an economy of distinctive and beautiful marks inherent to the carving process that have offered a meditative break from my routine interests. It also turns out I’m not half-bad at bringing real and fantastical imagery to life from wood and paper. And so I’ve employed this skill on a number of design and illustration, in-studio and client projects. Keep your eyes peeled for my brand, Loamy, which features woodcut graphic tees and other merch sold in my shop.

Live + Work in Maine is a “private-sector intitiative” working to promote career opportunities and highlight Maine’s “world class” quality of life. This series of graphics for t-shirts and other merch. was produced in collaboration with Portland, ME branding and advertising agency Pulp+Wire. Each graphic highlights Maine’s eight tourism regions. Composed of illustrations featuring  regional landscapes and defining characteristics, each graphic was carved into wood and relief printed on a traditional etching press. Capturing the uniquely sharp and detailed marks inherit to the relief carving process helped tether this line of merchandise to Maine’s proud and abundant craftsperson and artisan traditions. Studio Shappy was responsible for the full scale of production, from development and design to printing.