Cove Gallery

Joan Gitlow

Why collage?  As a painter I always observed and imagined principally  in terms of shapes, organizing main areas and then working within them to smaller elements.  I approach figure drawing the same way.   My first printmaking was etching.  The same impulse led me to cut up my metal plates before printing---again creating my own shapes, discarding the restrictive rectangle .  When I began making monotypes, I started right off printing from cut and assembled papers instead of the more traditional way of developing an image on a bare plate.   It was a natural progression for me to then cut up my prints and re-work them as assembled and collaged shapes.  I’m always intrigued by how formerly separate pieces from different prints can unexpectedly enhance each other when juxtaposed in a new way.  Again, always from big shapes to small; as in painting, sometimes the tiniest added element will change the whole.     It has been a great pleasure for me to see my daughter, KATE GITLOW BRAMANTE and my granddaughter, NIKI BRAMANTE develop as artists in their own way.  As little children they had all kinds of stuff with which to explore, experiment , draw, paint and build always available to them.  I still have examples and vivid images of their work from maybe four years old and on.