Living Water

"Living Water" refers to water that is moving and nourishing. Water is used in many rituals to suggest the life-giving aspects of water as well as the cleansing ability of water and the thirst-quenching aspect of it. This symbol is relevant in today's world where many people thirst for more meaning in their lives.

This is a watercolor monotype created with color and dribbles of water poured onto the plate before it was run through a press.

Trees for Peace

"Trees and Twilight" is a watercolor monotype created for an exhibit focusing on peace and the environment. The beautiful colors of twilight along the Ohio river created the backdrop for trees at the river's edge. Trees benefit the environment during their leaf stage when they utilize carbon dioxide and give off oxygen and during their dormant stage when they safeguard the ground from erosion. They also provide striking shapes against soothing colors as this monotype shows.

This watercolor monotype was created with paint layered onto a plate and printed. After it dried, branches from an evergreen were pressed to the paper and enhanced with touches of the brush.

Trees for Peace

"Morning Moon" is part of the series: "Trees for Peace." It is one of three images for an exhibit with the theme of peace and the environment. This image silhouettes trees in their skeleton state. They provide restful shapes as well as helping the earth to remain stabilized during winter storms.

"Morning Moon" is a watercolor monotype based on a morning event. It was then translated to art by painting, wiping, spraying and painting again onto a plate before the image was hand pressed to damp printmaking paper.

Trees for Peace

"Frost and Fog" is part of a series titled "Trees for Peace." The series will be entered in an exhibit which is dedicated to improving awareness for peace and the environment. Trees were chosen as the images in the series because of their benefit to the atmosphere by ustilizing carbon dioxide and giving off oxygen plus offering the peacefulness that trees give to humanity.

Thie is a watercolor monotype where the tree was pressed from an arbovitae shrub as the plate was printed onto damp paper.

Mountain

"Mountain" is following the theme of Lenten images since many spiritual and scriptural events take place on a mountain. Getting away to the mountains offers many the chance to reflect on life.

This image is a watercolor monotype. It was created by painting with watercolor on a frosted plate. The image is then transferred to damp paper using either a hand device or an etching press. This image was made by rubbing with a wooden spoon.

"Saturday's Mail" begins a series of social commentary and/or spiritual themes for the Lenten Season. This collage of stained paper and paper from mail order catalogs suggests the dangers of overconsumption and environmental issues related to paper waste. It was exhibited at the Marianist Environmental Education Center exhibit in Dayton, Ohio in 2007.

Marilyn Bishop’s Art Blog features watercolor on paper, using monotype, rice paper plus collage and experimental techniques for social commentary, spiritual themes, typical images and more.