Nathan Holman
A primarily-self-taught artist with an acerbic wit that shows
throughout his work, Nathan Holman is truly a renaissance man. He
paints, he sculpts, he whittles, he even plays and sings. We've never
seen him dance, but he can probably cut a fine Irish jig, too, if you
asked him to. But don't let his down-to-earth persona fool you:
Nathan's work has found its way into the art collections of some very
prominent places and people: Tom Brokaw, Robert Redford and Rambin'
Jack Elliot are but a few of his celebrity patrons. He even has a
piece in the Smithsonian - sort of. A logo he designed for his
brother's bat company (Sambats) graces the bat that Barry Bonds used to
hit is world-record-breaking 756th major league home run! Nathan in
his own words:
Dreams, ideas, whimsy, image, form and craft
form the foundation of my artwork. I started doing woodcuts in 1980
when I met Carl Grupp and have found them to be a wonderful, low-tech
medium. I start with a sketch that I transfer to a woodblock with
carbon paper. For my plates, I use basswood, a light-colored wood with
consistent grain. Because I keep my tools sharp, I am able to get a
fine line necessary for detail in the print. I use a traditional
Chinese method of rolling ink on a stone slab until it’s a nice, thin
viscosity, then ink the design carved into the wood plate. After I
cover the plate with a piece of paper, I rub the back with a
traditional bamboo plate spoon.