Yvette Lucas is a photographer and printmaker who finds her primary inspiration in nature. Her focus has been to illustrate our connection to the natural world by revealing the personality of a place or subject as she sees it. The intention is that the viewer will feel an emotional draw to these nature “portraits” as they would a human subject. Every image is named based on the character or the place it depicts and/or the effect of the environment on the subject.

Yvette’s formal training culminated with a BFA from The Cooper Union, in NYC and supplemented by additional studies at Mason Gross School of the Arts, NJ and The School of Visual Arts, NYC. Yvette has participated in solo, curated, and juried exhibitions and has extensive relationships with community art centers and commercial galleries. She has served the local arts community for 16 years on the board of Studio Montclair and teaches art classes at JSDD’s Wae Center. Yvette is represented by the Sohn Fine Art Gallery in Lennox, Massachusetts and The Old Print Shop In New York City, NYC.

Photo Intaglio: These intaglios are printed from Solarplates™, steel plates coated with a light sensitive polymer. The plate is exposed with a film positive using sunlight or other form of UV light to burn the image onto the plate. The processed plates are then inked, hand wiped, and printed on an etching press in small editions. In this series I use raw sepia for its large tonal range and warm brown color. Some of the prints shown using extra color are printed using the a la poupée method. This technique is executed by applying different colored inks to the plate before wiping and printing.

Why small?

“I began making miniature photo intaglios in response to a call for artists to exhibit at the Center for Contemporary Printmaking in Norwalk Connecticut in 2011. I was curious to see how I would feel about my images printed in a small format and was excited by the result. When I went to see the exhibit, I was enthralled by all the work I saw there. There is an intimate feeling when coming very close to an artwork and really seeing it. I love making these little gems and enjoy seeing what others do with the format.”