Jim Meyer


Buena Vista

My aim is to make art that reflects the mystery and beauty of the creation. Hand-printed woodblock prints are well suited for that purpose—they are organic, low-tech, and require the patience of the skilled manual arts. Visually, they tend to be honest and strong.
I've been working with woodblock prints for about twenty years, starting in commercial art—making illustrations for advertising, design, and publishing—and then showing in galleries.

One of the oldest of all forms of printmaking, woodblock prints are made by carving a design into the surface of a flat piece of wood, applying ink to the remaining surface—either by a roller or a brush, and then pressing a piece of paper onto the inked surface.The piece of paper with the ink pressed into it is an original print, a piece of original art.

Color woodblock prints are made either by using a separate block for each color in the print (multi-block prints) or by using the same block for each successive color, but cutting parts of the block away after each color is printed (reduction prints).

Exhibibitions
  • Grand Hand Gallery; St. Paul, Minnesota; February-March 2011
  • Northern Printmakers Alliance; Bloomington Art Center; Bloomington, MN; July 2009
  • Grand Hand Gallery; St. Paul, Minnesota; April 2008
  • Roby King Galleries; Bainbridge Island, Washington; October 2007
  • Gallatin River Gallery; Big Sky, Montana; January 2007
  • Roby King Galleries; Bainbridge Island, Washington; October 2006
  • Grand Hand Gallery; St. Paul, Minnesota; April 2006
  • Flanders Gallery; Minneapolis, Minnesota; November - December 2005
  • Sivertson Gallery; Duluth, Minnesota; August 2002
  • Meadow Creek Gallery; Edina, Minnesota; October 2001
  • Edgewood Orchard Galleries; Door County, Wisconsin; September 2001
  • Phipps Center for the Arts; Hudson, Wisconsin; January 1999
  • Flanders Contemporary Art; Minneapolis, Minnesota; September 1997
  • Silverwood Gallery; Vashon Island, Washington; February 1997
Education
  • Wheaton College, Wheaton, IL; 1976; B.S.
  • University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN
  • Minneapolis College of Art & Design, Minneapolis, MN

Awards

  • Merit Award, 1997 Hopkins Area Arts Association Show
  • Merit Award, 1995 LA Society of Illustrators Show
  • Honorable Mention, 1992 Minnesota State Fair Fine Art Show