Golden Grove, 2004 Original Fine Arts Print by Stacy Stewart Smith

Golden Grove is a work made of quiet accumulations — layer upon layer, each one adding depth, warmth, and the particular luminosity that only the hand can give.

This artist proof intaglio etching — 8" × 8", printed in sepia on cotton paper — is a study in the beauty of process. The technique is chine-collé: thin metallic and decorative papers are bonded to a grainy cotton backing before the impression is taken, so that the final print carries within it a subtle topography, a surface that rewards close looking. The sepia palette gives the work the feeling of something retrieved from time — warm, amber, enduring.

Over the printed surface, Smith has added his own hand in gold metallic polymer, drawing directly into the image. The grove of the title is not merely depicted; it is inhabited by the artist’s mark, the gold threading through the composition like light through leaves. It is a print that is also a drawing, a mechanical process made singular by touch.

Each impression is signed by the artist. Five are available — artist proofs, meaning they were pulled outside the numbered edition, traditionally reserved for the artist’s own collection. To acquire one is to hold something the artist kept for himself.

The watermark visible in digital images does not appear on the actual print.

Intaglio Etching, Sepia with Chine-Collé and Gold Metallic Polymer · 8" × 8" · 2004
Signed artist proof. Unframed. Shipping insurance is strongly recommended; please add it to your purchase.