Helen Gotlib

The Artist And Her Work

The rules of printmaking have been defined by the medium’s masters and the limitations of its tools. Helen Gotlib pushes the boundaries of printmaking in terms of scale, presentation and process, proving that there are no rules, only spaces within which to innovate. Gotlib uses a small press and raw commercial materials to render uncommonly large print based images. The creation of her work is followed through with a style of presentation that brings it out of the 1600s and into today’s white wall art spaces.

Gotlib’s unorthodox approach to a traditional medium is balanced by adhering closely to her subject. Mystified by the gradual changes in terrain and flora that occur across seasons and agricultural zones, she is inspired by interactions with nature that occur during her frequent travels and daily adventures in the Michigan woods. She patiently and unvaryingly transfers her impressions of these encounters on to the blocks and plates that add up to the contemporary print based work she produces.

Artist in residence at the Kala Art Institute, Berkeley,CA., '05
University of Michigan, B.F.A. ‘03
Concentrations: Printmaking and Scientific Illustration
Kyoto Seika University, ’01-‘02
Classes in traditional Japanese woodblock printmaking

Concerning Landscape, Detroit Artist Market, group show, Detroit, MI. ‘Jan ‘23
14+14, WSG Gallery, group show, Ann Arbor, MI. Jan’23
New Works by Helen Gotlib & Dylan Strzynski, J Petter Gallery, Douglas, MI Oct ‘22
14+14, WSG Gallery, group show, Ann Arbor, MI. Jan’22
Winds of Change, Gallery 1871, 4 person show,Chicago, IL.Sept’21
Recent Works by Helen Gotlib, Fuller Art House, Sylvania, OH. Jan’2020
Anatomy of Artists, Group Show, Marshall J. Gardner Center for the Arts, Miller Beach, IN. Oct. ‘19
Recent Works by Helen Gotlib, Dylan Strzynski & Mary Lynn Portera, River Gallery, Chattanooga, TN. July ‘19
Secret Beaches: WSG Gallery, Featured show, Ann Arbor, MI. April ‘19
Natural Abstractions: University of Michigan School of Environment and Sustainability, Enviro Art Gallery, Solo show, Ann Arbor, MI. Feb’19
Intertwined: Leslie Curran Gallery, 2 person show, St. Pete, FL. Feb’19
New Botanicals: Missouri Western State University, Potter Art Gallery, 4 person show, 'St. Joseph, MO. August’18
ART NOW: Drawing 117 Gallery, Ann Arbor, MI., Feb '18
Additive/Subtractive Works by Helen Gotlib & Dylan Strzynski, Ann Arbor District Library, Ann Arbor, MI, Jan '18
Group Shows at the WSG Gallery, Ann Arbor, MI., May 2017-
Present
Niceland,...