Harness the Wind is a series of three related screen prints that reference the way plants use the wind to disperse seeds. The various silhouetted shapes showcase the different parts of a Continus coggygria shrub, commonly known as smokebush or smoke tree. This fabulous plant shows off its smoky appearance all summer long before its tiny seeds, held on plumy panicles, float through the air at summer’s end in search of a new home separate from the original plant.

 

The stencils for the silhouetted shapes began with pressure printing and direct scanning of the plant’s leaves and panicles. The resulting imagery was then used to create layouts in photoshop before being printed onto clear acetate, the 1st step in the photo emulsion process. This digital component is a new addition to my screen printing process. It was a challenging and rewarding excursion away from the comfort of my usual approach to making prints.

 

Landscape and figure artist Mary Ellen Riell received her art training at the Art Student’s League in New York City, the Fashion Institute of Technology, and Brooklyn College, where she studied with painter Sam Gelber and sculptor Sylvia Stone, before receiving a Master’s Degree in art education with a concentration in screenprinting from the College of Saint Rose in Albany, NY. 

 

Mary Ellen was the recipient of top awards in both watercolor and pastel, including Grand Prize in Cooperstown Art Association's 79th Annual National Exhibition, Best in Show at the Laffer Gallery’s Annual Upstate Artists Exhibition in 2014, and the Adirondack Pastel National Silver Award. Most recently, Best Depictional of the Human Form at the Schenectady Stockade’s 68th Annual Outdoor Art Show. 

 

Exhibiting since 1995, Mary Ellen has participated in over 100 exhibitions throughout the Northeast. She is a current member and former co-director of the Oakroom Artists. Her pastel landscapes, watercolors, and prints are found in private and corroborate collections. 

 

Mary Ellen maintains a painting studio in Schenectady, NY and has been a studio mate at the Ragged Edge Printmaking Studio in Cohoes, NY since 2015.