Our founder, Jeanne Masel, is extensively experienced when it comes to the selling and collecting of limited edition prints. Her expertise within the trade means that she understands the remarkable nature of a limited edition silkscreen print, and she knows how important it is to share this special knowledge.
In her very own collection belongs the Soup Can Series II by Andy Warhol, the icon and master largely to thank for the popularization of the silkscreen printing process itself!
ART FOR CHANGE was thrilled to work with Brand X for this special limited edition silkscreen project, Let Live by Joel Mesler. Founded by Robert (Bob) Blanton in NYC in 1979, Brand X has placed works in numerous museums including the Metropolitan Museum of Art, NY, the Museum of Modern Art, NY, the Whitney Museum of American Art, NY, the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, the Walker Art Center, MN, the Tate Gallery, London, and many more.
The quality of the materials used by Brand X is exceptional. Studio Director Tamsin Doherty says that Brand X is a “fully oil-based silkscreen shop, so we’re printing with pure pigments in oil medium - exactly like oil painting”.
Let Live consists of 8 different layers of paint, each applied individually. When viewing Joel Mesler’s Let Live print, the viewer sees it as one image. However, each print made through the silk screening process is actually a composite of several images layered on top of one another. Each drawing is then transferred to a mesh screen that has been stretched and secured to a frame.
In the Silkscreen printing process, each layer of paint is created by hand using one color at a time, pushing the paint through a silkscreen using a tool called squeegee.
After each color is printed, the print must be placed on a rack to dry, always keeping the prints separate to ensure pristine condition. This is done using wire frame drying racks.
Roberto Mercedes is the master printer who worked on printing Let Live, and has been a fine art silkscreen printer at Brand X for 23 years. Originally from the Dominican Republic, he grew up in the Sunset Park neighborhood of Brooklyn. At Brand X, Roberto has printed for museum artists including Helen Frankenthaler, Chuck Close, Adam Pendleton, and Deborah Kass, to name a few.
The paper that Let Live is printed on comes from a company called Legion Paper, in a stock named Stonehenge Fawn. The weight of this paper is some of the thickest, highest quality paper material we have ever seen. With a full-bleed image to the deckled-edge, the presentation is spectacular.
Each work is inspected and hand-signed by the artist. The high quality of craftsmanship, exquisite paper quality, coupled with the artistic talent of Joel Mesler make this museum quality piece a fabulous addition to the novice or seasoned art collector.