The Woodblock Prints of Alfred Stark: Back Gallery Becomes Bird House

Young Robin | Al Stark

Alfred Stark has been drawing birds and landscapes since he was a child hiking the woods of northern Illinois.

"Recently my wife and I bought our first house. It seems natural that the birds that have been a constant inspiration in the beautiful woods and prairies near our house would find themselves lost in the wondrous surrounding of our new home."

Kingfisher | Al Stark

Our Bird House, on exhibit at The Flying Pig Gallery in Algoma, Wisconsin from August 6^th through September 5^th, showcases Stark's woodblock prints of these birds in this very unusual setting.

Stark received a Bachelor of Fine Art in drawing from Northern Illinois University in 1995. He began to teach himself woodblock printmaking techniques in 2003, using a mix of Eastern and Western techniques.

His woodblock prints have been featured in many regional and national shows; most recently in the 21^st Paper and Clay Mid-Atlantic Art Exhibition in Norfolk, VA, and in the 3^rd Annual Kyoto International Woodprint Association (KIWA) Exhibition in Kyoto, Japan.

Inked Block | Al Stark

Alfred Stark will be on site in the gardens demonstrating the craft of woodblock carving and printmaking on the afternoons of September 2nd through September 5th.  Hope you can make it one of those days to meet Al and experience the printmaking process. 

The Flying Pig Gallery and Greenspace is located at N6975 Hwy 42, 2 miles south of Algoma. The gallery is open daily, 9am-6pm.   Find us on Facebook and click here to visit their blog.

Kishwaukee Valley Art League–October

4 color print by al stark, originally uploaded by pejnolan.

I am the president of the local Kishwaukee Valley Art League. It is a large group - about 50 - for our size town. In addition to that office I also am the Demonstration Coordinator. Funny, I just happen to know this really cool woodblock artist named Al Stark. Al was our presenter for our October meeting. He demonstrated his Moku Hanga technique by printing the 4-color chicken above. He also was kind enough to donate a framed print of his waxwings for the league's raffle - a $200 value!

After his awesome demonstration, he allowed members to pull a print off of one of his blocks. In the photo above Mr. Toth is learning how to print using a baren. It is really wonderful to watch Al work. His eyes light up and he is full of life cracking jokes and completely at ease when the focus is on his art.

He will be having a show with me in November entitled "cricket and sparrow" at the Kishwaukee College Art Gallery with a reception on November 3rd, 5-7pm. If you want to view more of our work, please stop by!