Randy Burman

Serigraphs


Could easily be one of my favorite all-time projects. The new Center for Fine Arts, later to be re-named Miami Art Museum, had a pre-opening show of the works by Matisse. It was during that show that I learned that Matisse would paint paper with the ink he was going to silk screen his prints with and then cut-out shapes from the painted paper to create the design. I loved the idea of not drawing the idea first, of having to draw with a scissors. Anna Reville, an arts administrator suggested we do a project together where we would each create four Christmas cards, for a total of eight, which we would silk screen together and sell at local museums and design stores. I followed Matisse’s technique and painted the paper with the four colors we were going to print with red, yellow, blue and black. The process was, I can only say, magical. I sat down with a scissors and the painted paper and began cutting, having no pre-conception of what the four-designs were going to be. I laid out all four designs at once, just snipping away until at one point sensed that the designs were complete. I slowly rose from my chair, and step by step walked around the desk till I was 180 degrees from where I started, essentially looking at the four works upside down. It was then I realized the compositions worked upside down as well and knew I was finished. Anna and I printed all eight cards on one large sheet, cut out the cards, boxed them in packages of ten, and sold them at the old Metropolitan Museum, Rex Art and Arango Design store.

”I remember displaying stacks of these card sets during the holiday season at Arango, where I worked for many years. And your designs were everyones favorite. In fact, for years Judith personally used your cards as her personal stationery.”

– Laz Lmnoq