In the studio with printmaker Josy Wright

The Jamestown artist’s work is the subject of “Prints: Naturally Inspired,” a retrospective of etchings and woodcuts recently on view at the Jamestown Arts Center

Photos by Dave Hansen

The studio is tidy and sunlit, full of small objects, artworks, framed photos, potted plants, shelves of books, containers of pencils and paintbrushes. A trio of tabletops is gathered in the center, all different heights, a few stools nearby. A desk with a laptop lines one wall, a flatbed file another, while a long counter stretches in front of a big window overlooking the backyard and a small press stands next to a sink around the corner.

The artist, who is apologizing for what she considers a mess, keeps saying all she’s been able to do lately is work on getting her show together. As a result, she hasn’t been able to make any new prints, which
is all she really wants to do.

She’s usually in her studio carving into a wood block, mixing colors, bringing a scene to life. She’s not usually hosting people to talk about an upcoming retrospective at the local arts center.

The artist is Josy Wright, and she is 95.

As she wrote in an email the day before our visit: “My work for the show is right here, all prints. They’re old, I’m old, it’ll be interesting to hear what you and [the photographer] think.”

Every day, she enters her studio and spends time working on one project or another. Most recently, that project has been assembling pieces for an upcoming solo exhibition at the Jamestown Arts Center. Titled “Prints: Naturally Inspired, A Retrospective of Etchings and Woodcuts,” the show opens in JAC’S small gallery on Nov. 22 and runs through Jan. 4, 2025, in conjunction with the center’s 2024 Members’ Show.

“I’ve never had so much to do before a show,” says Wright, as we look through the works, recently framed. “I like the wood — I like the idea of the wood frames and the wood cuts. It’s simple.”

The solo exhibition is a result of Wright’s etching “Fog Lifting,” which was named Best in Show during last year’s Members’ Show, juried by Toby Sisson.

The director of studio art, visual and performing art at Clark University in Worcester, Mass., described Wright’s work as having “outstanding technical skill, elegant line quality and visual texture.”

“It’s a delicate yet powerful portrayal of nature’s complexity, [and] a wonderful example of printmaking’s enduring beauty,” Sisson noted. “I looked at this for a long time and kept going back for more.”

The works selected for the upcoming retrospective include scenes inspired by Jamestown and its environs: lighthouses (“there are a lot of lighthouses in here,” says the artist), beaches, nesting birds in
the shape of osprey and egrets (“I love doing birds”), and the “house on the rocks,” which, Wright says, is one of her favorite prints. It portrays Clingstone in shades of brown, blue, and cream.

There are also pieces from a series exploring the similarities, complexities, and inherent beauty of different religions, including Judaism and Islam. A large piece from the series hangs on Wright’s studio wall like a patchwork quilt. Each square shows a different scene — a mosque, a synagogue, Hebrew letters, Arabic script, a Hamsa, people in prayer, people in pain.

It’s a reflection, she says, of how the two religious groups have fought, it seems, her entire life. They share so much, she says, at least from her perspective, which reflects muted shades of gray along with vibrant hues of purple, turquoise and blue.

“I love trying different colors, different backgrounds,” Wright says, noting she especially loves the carving element required of block printing. “You have to think backwards all the time,” she says.

One piece, from what she calls her Totem Series, shows a trio of prints formed of delicately carved hands, all gestures of sorts. In this series, she says, you can see the influence of her background as an illustrator.

Wright thinks she may have worked on the piece ten years ago, although she can’t quite recall. “It doesn’t seem like it’s been ten years,” she says.

The nature scenes offer a quiet meditation on the world around her, one textured, where the sky is always shifting, sometimes mercurial, and other times bright and blue.

“Somehow, I don’t like doing the same thing over and over,” she says, laughing. “You’re supposed to when you print.”

Wright often begins a project by sketching an image on plywood or some other surface. As she carves, she knows intuitively where the white space will be and is aware of her ability to change colors, add colors. “I just experiment — it’s fun,” she says, “you just roll a color… sometimes it doesn’t work out at all… you have to be so precise.”

Wright is in her studio every day and usually spends a couple of weeks working on a print. “It depends on whether I’m happy with what I’ve done,” she says.

Her favorite place to draw inspiration is on the grounds of Horsehead, where the landscape hasn’t changed since the house, also known as Marbella, was built in the 1880s. Her husband, Harry Wright, is the great-grandson of its original owner, Joseph Wharton, a noted industrialist and founder of the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.

The Jamestown property, now in the care of the Wrights’ five children, overlooks Narragansett Bay and features a rocky shoreline that includes two small beaches. In summertime, Wright leaves her studio to work outside. “It all started with painting,” she explains. “I still love to go out painting.”

Jamestown has been her home for most of her adult life. She and her husband, also 95, bought their current home in 1994, and converted the garage into an art studio.

Wright’s five children were born within a nine-year span, and she didn’t get serious about her art until the youngest, James, went to kindergarten. In 1971 she enrolled in a printmaking class at the Community Arts Center in Wallingford, Pennsylvania, not far from Swarthmore College, where her husband was a longtime professor.

The class, in a way, marked Wright’s return to artmaking. She was born in Brooklyn, New York, and has childhood memories of visiting museums with a beloved godmother. Wright attended the Rhode Island School of Design in Providence, where she earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in illustration in 1952.

It was at RISD that she met John “JHB” Benson, a lecturer and patriarch of the prominent stone carving family in Newport. “He was one of the best teachers I ever had,” Wright recalls. “I was just enthralled by him.”

Over the years since then, Wright has taken classes and attended workshops at the JAC and the Newport Art Museum. She has been involved with the Conanicut Island Art Association since 1975, serving as a board member from 1996–2004, and as president from 1998–2002. Back in Pennsylvania she remained involved with the Community Arts Center in Wallingford for nearly two decades, serving on the board and the faculty in the ‘80s and ‘90s.

“I love teaching classes,” she says.

Wright and her husband have ten grandchildren, and she’s anticipating a strong family showing at the opening of her show on Nov. 22 (Editor’s Note: the reception for the show was packed!), when a reception is planned from 5:30-7:30 p.m. She meets with friends, most of whom are also her relatives, every week for “frunch,” also known as Friday lunch, and laughed when recent visitors prepared to leave so she wouldn’t be late.

“I’ve talked more than I’ve ever talked about anything!” she exclaimed.

Soon, Wright’s studio will again be quiet and all her own, and she’ll be back doing what she loves, one carving and printing at a time.

“Original Prints” with Josy Wright & Casey Weibust

Saturday, January 4th 10am—1pm (In-person, One-day workshop) Ages: 16+ Instructor: Josy Wright & Casey Weibust Fee: $200 (Members $180)

Join printmaking experts Josy Wright and Casey Weibust for a one-day relief printing and mono-printing workshop. Josy’s diverse techniques and themes are currently on view in a solo exhibition at the Jamestown Arts Center.  Casey is the Art Director of Out of the Box Studio and Gallery and has a well-established practice as an artist, a printmaking instructor, and a curator.

 In this engaging and instructive workshop, students will learn the fundamentals of printmaking, including inking, wiping, and paper tearing techniques, how to prepare a printing plate, and how to operate the etching press. Josy will share the inspiration behind her exhibit and explain the techniques used in her work. Participants will use Styrofoam as a relief printmaking medium, drawing and carving into the surface. Styrofoam is an accessible and forgiving surface that can be inked with a roller and printed using the etching press. Students will experiment with various ink application techniques, incorporating the use of stencils on their plates and prints.

 All experience levels are welcome! Best practices will be emphasized as students work in the shared space of the JAC Printmaking Studio. All materials will be provided.