TZVETIN, Ellen Yamada

Born: Seattle, Washington
Medium: monotypes, solar plate etchings, chine collé on paper and fabric


Ellen Yamada Tzvetin was raised in the Pacific Northwest and later moved to the San Francisco Bay Area. She worked many years preparing visual materials for a firm of architects.  Further printmaking studies in Berkeley, San Francisco and Chicago, has helped Ellen to develop her own unique expression. Primarily her works are nonrepresentational monotype. She has the eye of one trained in close observation with prior work experience, and has expanded beyond that in her artistic career.

Ellen says “visual outlook, whether looking at natural surroundings or man-made environments has always interested me.  Abstract interpretations are my passion and shibui (simple yet refined) is my goal. Luminosity and the play of light are equally important. Color and form, key elements within my work, are influenced by my Asian background and extensive travels.”

She prints on a variety of materials, including papers and Japanese book-binding fabric. Ellen is fond of a deeply-colored soft olive paper for some series which subtly evoke imagined places. She uses different printing techniques, including solar plate etching. In some, the result is a richness akin to a silk brocade fabric, while others are lighter and more gauzy in sensibility. The surface inks are worked differently to create depth, movement and remarkable complexity.

Selected Exhibitions:
San Francisco
Berkeley
Walnut Creek
Sebastopol,
Mendocino
Sausalito
San Jose
Corvallis, OR
Oakland
Santa Clara