Kreg Yingst

Initially trained as a painter (BA and MA), I first became interested in relief block-prints when I discovered the woodcut novels of printmakers Lynd Ward and Frans Masereel. The strong graphic contrasts of light and shadow, black and white, seemed to appeal to my aesthetic sensibilities. I quickly delved into the work of the German expressionists and Mexican socialists, and perhaps have been influenced in some way by all. My block-prints are carved out of wood or linoleum – a compression of cork, wood pulp, and linseed oil. I print each block on an obsolete showcard sign press, and the larger prints I burnish by hand. The choice of paper and style are important in trying to create the correct feel for the subject matter. My ideas are a result of my interests in the narrative; story, poetry, lyric, and personal experience. Music series: the narrative aspect of lyrics was a natural progression for me in developing artistic ideas. The blues legend, Robert Johnson, became an early study in Faustian narrative myth, while many other musicians had their own unique stories to tell. From there, it was simply the beginning of a series, or cycle of prints. I’ve worked in this method for the past 20 years as it allows me the opportunity to fully exhaust my ideas and flesh out the subject matter. I enjoy researching the history of the blues, country, jazz, and Americana, while the rock series is deeply imbedded in personal experience. It was with purpose I created my small images the same size as a cd cover, the mat similar in size to an album cover, and the medium size prints scaled to resemble old music posters. The print bin creates the same recollection of browsing through albums in a record store. It’s been my intention to foster a nostalgia or retro experience, while still making the art uniquely my own. Method: 1) I begin each idea for a block print with a small thumbnail sketch. A final draft is then drawn to scale and transferred to the linoleum block. The drawing on the block is backwards as the eventual print will be the mirror image. 2) after the drawing is transferred, the linoleum is carved using several v and u shaped gouges. There are a number of strategies when trying to break down an image into just black and white, but in the end, whatever is cut away will be white while the surface of the block will print black (or another color of choice). 3) once the block is carved, the surface is inked, a paper is chosen, and then both are hand-cranked through the press. The blocks that are too large for the press are burnished on the back using a large wooden spoon. 4) multi-colored prints have an individual block carved for each color. The block must align with the previous image and be pulled through the press multiple times. In addition to this method of creating color prints, I also individually hand-paint some editions using watercolor. 5) the final print is then signed and numbered in a limited edition.