#2. A Path to the Printmaking Studio
I had already sensed that Imero Gobbato was a very private man, but I was determined to get to know him, and it has been one of my greatest fortunes to have had the opportunity to do so. I told him of my discovery of his intriguing Humbravana print ‘The Transformative Force’, and how it affected me, and I offered to print for him in his studio just one day a week. Coincidentally, I had majored in printmaking in art school and had the necessary interest and experience, so I could relieve him of the time and physical exertion needed to produce his editions of multiple prints-and get to know him at the same time! Our mutual satisfaction was immediate, and our years of friendship and work together began.
Humbravana Map | Buy this digital print.
The first image I ever printed for Imero, which still hangs on my wall at home, was ‘Molussa’, which is one of the Seven Ports of Southern Humbravana. There were many more graphic depictions of locations, characters and aspect of the environment that would follow. I would go on to find other printing plates he had carved and scribed his images into that he had never even run through his press. The more involved I became in the work, the more Imero revealed to me the multiple dimensions of Humbravana. Through paintings, prints, drawings, carvings, maps, notes, stories, musical compositions and our wonderful tea-time conversations. The information was endless!
Molussa
“It is difficult to talk about these images, which came for the most part from the subconscious. I don’t remember doing them and I can still discover parts in the image which I have never seen before.”
-Imero Gobbato