Rabbit with Crust Blank Card from Artists to Watch

This 5" x 7" card is printed on an uncoated, smooth recycled paper with soy based inks. It comes with a color coordinated envelope.

Inside is blank for your personalized message.

This card features an image from an original hand water-colored etching by C. C. Barton of Denver, Colorado. Printed by Artists to Watch in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

My imagination is the most important tool in my kit.  It informs every aspect of my work, from the elements of composition to the choice of colors on my palette and finally, how I choose to portray my chosen subject. 

I primarily choose animals and flowers and nests for my subjects. Luscious fruits and vegetables are often given walk-on roles on the stage of my creations, adding vibrant color and an element of surprise to the compositions. 

Much of my work is done in a series format.  Using my imagination, I develop a concept and continue creating new editions of work under the umbrella of that thematic concept until I no longer feel I have anything more to say about it.  I generally have a lot to say about a subject so, for me, this is an ideal way to work.  My collectors seem to enjoy it as well.

My work and ideas come from a desire to make something beautiful.  The humor that creeps in from time to time can’t be helped.

I hope that my work will in some way enrich your life.

"My great interest and joy is to explore the impact and the mystery of line, color, light, negative space and shadow in order to coax a sense of spirit onto the paper. It is not my intent to depict total realism in my images, but rather to find a way to portray the singular essence and attitude of each thing I draw or paint."

An etching is produced today in much the same way as it was when Rembrandt brought the medium to such a state of perfection.  It is a hand worked process that takes time to complete, and the finished product ~ hand-pulled and watercolored by hand, is an original work of art with all the intrinsic value the word "original" implies.  I limit my editions in order to maintain the highest intaglio print quality, as well as to offer you artwork with enduring value. 

The traditional etching method begins with a copper or zinc plate, coated with an acid resistant wax.  The drawing is done with a needle, which cuts through the wax, exposing the metal plate.  When the plate is immersed in an acid bath, the acid 'etches' a line where the metal is exposed while the waxed areas are protected. The length of time a line is bitten determines how deep it is and subsequently, how light or dark it will reproduce.  The deeper the line, the more ink it will hold and the darker it will print.  When the acid process is completed, the wax is removed and ink is applied. The bitten lines will hold the ink while the rest of the plate is wiped to achieve the effect the artist wants.  A dampened piece of acid-free paper is placed over the plate and run by hand through a flatbed press under great pressure (I use a Griffin Series EO-2) which transfers the image to paper.

More recently, the process of solar etching has evolved, which is my personal method of choice in creating an etching plate.  This technique requires the use of a thin steel plate covered with a layer of photo emulsion.  The intaglio, or etching plate, is created by laying a transparency made from an original drawing over the UV sensitive plate, placing it in the sun or under special UV lights for controlled exposure and subsequently developing it in water.  The process of inking and wiping the plate must be repeated for each etching, as in the traditional method using a copper plate.  For my work, I then hand watercolor, sign and number each etching with the impression number over the total number of prints in the edition (Example: 35/100).  This is used to ensure the truly limited quality of the numbered pieces. The final step for me is to emboss the paper next to my signature with my personal chop.

A Printmaker’s Chop is a mark or seal made with an embossing tool in the margin of an etching or lithograph. It is a symbol used to indicate where the print was made, or more specifically, on whose press the inked plate with the dampened printmaking paper on top of it was "pulled" through. A printmaker may pull their prints on their own studio press, or they may have a master printmaker at a commercial press pull their editions of etchings or lithographs for them.

The chop is customarily a symbol that holds particular meaning for the printmaker or owner of the commercial press.

I pull my etchings on my own press and emboss each one with my personal chop, which is the small raised cluster of four stars you see just under my signature at the right in the lower margin of the etching. The cluster of four stars represents the Southern Cross, a constellation seen only in the Southern Hemisphere.

Find more of C. C.'s work here.

Artists to Watch is an award-winning company working directly with independent artists to craft high-quality products that meld visually intriguing images with thought-provoking words. Our line is carefully curated to publish several exclusive collections from independent artists - each with a different look, feel, and voice. The result? A unique collection of products that inspire, celebrate, sympathize, and encourage those we love and support.

Life is busy, but we can never underestimate the power of a handwritten note. All the little social media “Likes” in passing will never compare to receiving a lovely handwritten message from a friend or loved one. When paired with amazing art & perhaps a perfect quote, it helps us to feel grounded, connected, and part of the whole.

We believe that a sustainable environment requires everyone to be conscious about the consumption of non-renewable resources while finding ways to reduce waste. Therefore, we only print on recycled paper! Each printed product we create has the highest post-consumer content available in a sheet that will still produce a high-quality reproduction. By printing with vegetable-based inks our products are less harmful to the environment. All our paper mills and printers are Forest Stewardship Council certified. We respect our environment by recycling, reusing, and reducing our waste at every opportunity.

Find more work from Artists to Watch here.