Artist Julie Prazich’s prints are currently on display throughout the month of October at the West Tisbury library. All of the prints in Julie Prazich’s exhibit were made in spring 2015 and printed in her studio on the Island, and many include natural materials sourced locally. Most of the paper works are monoprints or monotypes, an original printing process that uses a color pigment applied to a plate and then transferred to paper through pressure.
Julie is an artist and a retired hospice physician. She was born in Johnstown, Pa., and currently lives in San Diego and Martha’s Vineyard with her partner, Sara, and the Czarina Alexandra Sofia Prazenthal (their cat). The eldest of four children raised in a community of coal miners and steelworkers; Julie chose a different path that led to a B.S. from the University of Pittsburgh and an M.D. from the Medical College of Virginia.
According to a press release, Julie’s focus as an artist is making monoprints and glass fusion. “The monoprints are inspired by my experiences with people facing life transition and the caregivers, professionals, and family/friends who support them. Glass fusion pieces have more to do with how ethereal glass can be and how exciting it is to design pieces that are beautiful, unique, and stronger when fused than they were before,” says Julie.
“What I love about the monoprint technique is that the result is always a surprise to me. I can start with a plan, but the process goes its own way, and the press or the kiln can do things I didn’t expect — sometimes good, sometimes not so much.”
Julie has had several art shows at San Diego Hospice and individual exhibits in the San Diego County Administrative Building, Solana Beach City Hall, and Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center at Georgetown University Hospitals, and recently had a piece included in the Now & Zen exhibit at Featherstone Center for the Arts. Many of her pieces are currently on permanent exhibit at Howard University Hospital Oncology Unit.
The library will host a reception in Julie’s honor on Saturday, Oct. 17, at 5 pm; refreshments will be served. Prior to the event, Julie and Sara will teach a fish-painting class at the library from 2:30 to 4:30 pm. Basic materials will be provided (wooden fish, acrylic paints, and brushes), and the public is encouraged to bring any personal adornments they may want to include. The exhibit, reception, and class are all free and open to the public.