Laura Wilder: Painter, printmaker, Roycroft Renaissance artisan

What was the first turning point in your career?
I’d say burnout. I had been a commercial artist, and after quitting that, I was trying to figure out what I wanted to do, so I started “following the clues” the universe put out. When my friend Sarah invited me to go with her to an Arts & Crafts conference in Asheville, N.C., I did. And I got excited, because I’d always been interested in prints and posters from the early 20th century.

Laura Wilder’s only vintage design from her career as a commercial artist. Offset lithography, 1985.

What happened next?
Two things. A show called “Elbert Hubbard and the Roycrofters” opened at a local gallery. In addition to showing lots of vintage pieces, they had arranged for Roycroft Renaissance artisans to demonstrate their crafts in the gallery. And I thought, “I want to do portraits of people making stuff by hand!” I asked four of the artisans if I could photograph them doing their work, and they all said yes. So I had my reference photos.

Wilder took this photograph of Janice McDuffie, Roycroft Renaissance potter, in 1994.

How did you develop your Arts & Crafts style?
One day I was leafing through a home decorating book at Borders and came to a page that stopped me cold. It was a big photo of someone’s dining room, with contrasty little prints on the wall. I loved them and thought “That’s the kind of art I want to do!” The caption said “William Nicholson prints,” so I went to the RIT library, looked him up … and discovered block printing. I knew it was the perfect medium for the pictures I wanted to do.

William Nicholson block print, early 20th century

I audited a block printing class at a local college, and the teacher was amazing. I learned to print the traditional way, using a wooden spoon … so my first block prints were: “The Potter,” “The Cabinetmaker,” “The Bookbinder” and “The Silversmith.”

I used the spoon method exclusively for about 15 years. Soon I became a Roycroft Renaissance artisan myself.

“The Potter” and “The Cabinetmaker,” linoleum block prints by Laura Wilder, 1995

Making prints with a wooden spoon sounds very laborious to me. Is that still how you print?
Sometimes, but not exclusively. Two years ago I discovered letterpress. So for my new prints, instead of spoon-rubbing the paper against the inked block, I hand-crank an antique press.

Sometimes I also do paintings that look rather like block prints — posterish, with flat areas of color and sharp edges. And now I work with a local photographer, Michael Hager, who reproduces my paintings as giclée prints.

“Summer” by Laura Wilder, painting in gouache and giclée print, 2009.

Your paintings and prints are so evocative and graciously domestic. Do you know if some of them ultimately get to live in an Arts & Crafts setting?
About a year ago, I received a phone call from the buyer for the Stickley Audi Furniture Company — a call I had wanted for years! The buyer presented samples of my work to Mrs. Audi, who ultimately chose a large block print triptych and nine other prints for resale. Fourteen Stickley showrooms from across the country then placed orders from that selection. We delivered at the beginning of August.

Mrs. Audi selected “Lakeside Wood” for the Stickley showrooms. Linoleum block print, 2010.

And was this a big order for you?
Oh, yes — I think 104 pieces. In addition to producing the prints, I needed to source frames at a price-point suitable for resale. I was delighted to find a supplier who does a beautiful job. And I shipped off my first Stickley reorder last week.

As an independent artist, what is your biggest challenge?
I think it is the [same] challenge for all artists: finding the balance between your heart and inspiration and being a businessperson and marketer. You can’t let one or the other take over, if you are looking to make a living, which is what I am doing. I’ve spent the last couple of years doing more marketing than art. This year so far, I’ve only made five new block prints and a couple of paintings. I’m working on shifting the balance.

Laura Wilder and her family live a “hectic 21st-century life” in their city house in Rochester, N.Y., but when they’re at their summer home in Vermont (below), they live “ye olde simple life.” For Wilder, her favorite Elbert Hubbard quote, illustrated in her “Simplicity” print (above), says it all.

Next summer, we hope Wilder will invite Felt & Wire for a virtual tour!