What do Alcohol, Printmaking and Photography have in common? How do they translate into a unique art form?
For the past ten years, Scottsdale artist Judith Rothenstein-Putzer has been putting a new spin on her love of photography by creating Alcohol Transfers with Pen and Ink. The process involves printing an original photograph onto a transparency which is then transferred on to alcohol- soaked printmaking paper. Depending upon the concentration of alcohol and the type of printmaking paper, the results vary from the softness of watercolor to the boldness of acrylics. When the transfer is completed, Rothenstein-Putzer enhances the negative space with pen and ink, making the image more vibrant and alive. “Sometimes I take pleasure in capturing the moment for its form or color. Other times, I try to expand the boundaries of reality.”
Rothenstein-Putzer majored in art at Brooklyn College (CUNY) with honors courses in architectural design. There is where she also discovered the “magic of photography”, taking classes with Walter Rosenblum. She went on to do graduate study in Occupational Therapy at Columbia University. As an Occupational Therapist, she always included art as a therapeutic tool. When not at work or tending to her family, her camera was always in hand.
Relocating to Arizona from New York about 19 years ago, Rothenstein-Putzer decided to rekindle her need for a creative outlet by taking art workshops in Scottsdale and Phoenix. She explored collage, mixed media, alternative photographic processes and printmaking, but always came back full circle to photography. While transitioning from a film camera to digital, she discovered the alcohol transfer process and has been expanding on the technique ever since.
The artist and her husband love to travel, which provides many photo opportunities (She’s been known to pack more camera equipment than clothes!), but admits that some of her best subjects can be found in her own backyard.
