Wendy Orville

Wendy Orville’s monotypes explore the beauty and emotional complexity of the Pacific Northwest landscape. Her spare monotypes internalize and recreate an experience of the landscape that captures a sense of space, movement and drama.

Before coming to the Northwest, Orville earned a BA in Fine Arts from Yale University and an MFA in Painting from American University. Leaving the East Coast for Taos, New Mexico, she discovered an openness of horizon and sky that has inspired her work ever since. In Taos, Orville was introduced to monotype and fell in love with the medium, experiencing a newfound freedom of expression and creative possibility.

In 1996, Orville moved from New Mexico to Seattle and was inspired by the lush, veiled atmosphere of the region. She began making tonal monotypes exploring the subtle and evocative light of the Northwest focusing primarily on trees, water and sky.

To build the multiple layers in her images, Orville uses both additive and subtractive printmaking techniques. She often begins the process by rolling out a gradient of black and transparent etching ink on a plexi-glass plate and then wiping away cloud forms with sticks and soft cloths. A dampened sheet of printmaking paper is placed on top of the plate before running it through the press. The second layer is additive: blocking in the landscape shapes on the plate with rollers and manipulating the black ink with cut up credit cards, brushes and rags to create the sharp, specific quality of the landscape. This layer is printed on top of the more atmospheric layer, merging the two worlds.

Orville’s monotypes have been exhibited widely including at the Tacoma Art Museum, Museum of Northwest Art, Bainbridge Island Museum of Art, Bellevue Arts Museum and Davidson Galleries in Seattle. Her prints are featured in the book SINGULAR AND SERIAL: Contemporary Monotype and Monoprint.

Watch Wendy Orville: Inside the Artist’s Studio.

Watch a short Instagram reel of her process.

Click here to read more about Orville’s printmaking process