True North Letterpress has collaborated with Washington State Arts Commission, ArtsWA to create a commemorative print for the completion of an incredible restoration project.
Late artist Richard C. “Dick” Elliott's colorful outdoor art installations can be seen throughout Washington, including a public work in nearby Pateros. Thirty years ago this year the artist installed one of Washington State's largest works of public art featuring his signature medium – round, industrial grade highway reflectors. Titled Circle of Light, the work comprises more than 48,000 reflectors surrounding the exterior of the Yakima Valley SunDome in Yakima, WA.
ArtsWa completed the restoration of Circle of Light which had been damaged by UV and weather. In honor of the occasion, ArtsWA commissioned poet and friend of the artist Xavier Cavazos to write a poem and I was asked to design and produce a commemorative print featuring the poem.
An Abecedarian for Circle of Light is a 26-line poem; each line begins with a letter of the alphabet. It echoes the landscape of Eastern Washington and its inhabitants and pays tribute to the patterns that influenced Elliott's work.
