Stephen Rock: "The Gardener's Journal V"

Stephen Rock: The Gardener’s Journal V

Jeffrey Moose Gallery extends a warm welcome for the return of artist Stephen Rock, an artist who has worked in ink, paint, steel and wood sculpture, printmaking and even scrimshaw. Mr Rock will show a new group of floral images made with pigmented inkjet on paper, hand watercolored, mounted to board, entitled “The Gardener’s Journal V”, part of a popular series he began exhibiting at the Seattle Art Museum’s Rental/Sales Gallery. A reception will celebrate the show on First Friday, November 5th from 6 to 8 PM. A Facebook Livestream will broadcast before the show from roughly 5:30-5:50. The exhibit will run through December.

Rock, who has called Seattle home for over twenty years, is originally from the Rodeo town of Ellensburg where his father taught art in the high school. His roots have been a strong influence on his work with some sculpture made in collaboration with his brothers, who own a saw mill. He is a plant lover and avid gardener. This new series combines his love of gardening with his expertise as a digital printmaker. His business, Rock’s Studio, produces high quality pigmented inkjet prints for artists, galleries and businesses throughout the Northwest, enjoying a strong reputation.

The new series combines his expertise in printing with his skills as a painter and craftsman: huge atmospheric landscapes are bombed with explosions of abstract flowers and flower parts, boldly hand-colored with watercolor and mounted to board. The addition of the floral elements seems casual and almost random, as if they were dropped in front of a fan to distribute them. In the last couple of years, these images have been wildly popular at SAM Rental/Sales with both collectors and businesses.

Though he lacks the fine art school diploma that many elite artists possess, his skills and perspective are no less erudite than many Blue Chip talents. His list of awards and accolades is most impressive. His work has been honored by The White House and added to their permanent collection as part of the “The Year of the American Craft”, purchased for the Public Works Collection of King County, received a PONCHO Artistic Merit Award and, most interesting to me, Mr Rock was honored with a Morris Graves Foundation Residency, granting him a two-week solo retreat at Morris Graves’ studio at the Lake in Northern California where he focused on paper and canvas works, using tools and media from Graves’ personal collection.

Images:

1. “Magnificent Decay”
40” x 72”
Pigmented inkjet, watercolor On mounted paper

2021

2. “Rarely is it just a garden III”

20” x 26.5”
Pigmented inkjet, watercolor On mounted paper

2021

3. “Rarely is it just a garden IV”

20” x 26.5”
Pigmented inkjet, watercolor On mounted paper

2021

4. “The edge of the field”
30” x 36”
Pigmented inkjet, watercolor On mounted paper

2019

5. “At the garden’s gate”
36” x 30”
Pigmented inkjet, watercolor On mounted paper

2020