Bill Ritchie's art in Louisiana
in the
Northwestern State University of Louisiana Collection
Clyde Downs, Professor
Active side of Frigate #7, above, with toolbox and contents. Below, toolbox closed and passive side of #7
Frigate Halfwood Press No. 7
Specifications: Roller diameter 1 7/8" x 7.5" long, top and bottom. Bed is 3/8" polycarbonate, 7 1/2" x 21". The overall length is 22"; overall width is 12 3/4"; overall height is 13". Weight is 26 lbs.; Drive wheel is 10 1/2" diameter stainless steel. The bed is rack-driven, approximating a 3:1 mechanical advantage. Woods used are American black walnut with wenge interlayering. The pressure screws are linked and synchronized. The press included three etching felts, user's manual and plus a PressGhost memory and USB extension cable for connecting to any computer. This press was ordered with the optional unique handcrafted black walnut toolkit.
About Clyde Downs at NSU: Clyde wrote: "I teach printmaking at Northwestern State University in Natchitoches, Louisiana and became aware of your fantastic small presses. . . . It would be very useful for us to use when we visit area high schools, as well as using for workshops out in the community." Downs has an MFA in painting and printmaking, has served on the faculty in the Fine Arts department at Northwestern State University since 1991, teaching woodcut, intaglio, etching, dry plate, lithography and painting. Downs studied under Rodney Harmon at Tamarind Institute in Albuquerque, conducts workshops and leads tours of galleries in Santa Fe and art expeditions at Ghost Ranch, New Mexico. His creative process has resulted in numerous awards and serves as juror in art shows. See Professor Downs' Linked-in page
Presentation print: Included with the shipment of the press is a selection from monoprints made on another Frigate Halfwood Press, from of Bill Ritchie's Rembrandt's Ghost period.
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