Viewers expect a high quality of work in the exhibition Printmaking in St. Louis Now at The Sheldon, but the complementary show of 29 student printmakers unexpectedly captured my attention. The talent in this complementary show is especially surprising given the students’ ages. They range from pre-kindergarten through twelfth grade and their work is a wonderful mix of styles and printing techniques.

Fourth-grader Caroline Wedbush created Tulips Delight with potato prints, tempera, and mixed media. She used blue construction paper as the background and white textured paper for the two-dimensional flower vase. The shape of the 11 tulip blossoms comes from a print cut out of a potato; the artist painted the green stems on the blue background. Caroline arranged the flowers in a pleasing composition (four blooms in the top row, three in the middle, and three on the bottom). Her sense of composition and space is impressive for her age.

The beauty of plant life also called to Violet Stopp, a high-school junior. She used a printing technique called collagraph to produce Sabal Mexicana, a quiet and contemplative piece. The print’s title is the same as a species of palm tree native to Mexico and Central America. In this technique, the artist attaches materials such as leaves to the printing plate; then she inks everything on the plate; and finally she presses a piece of paper to the plate. The image left on the paper is called a collagraph print. Violet’s dark-gray image depicts two round leaves, one large and one small. The leaves are dark gray, the same shade as the background, and outlined in black. At the bottom of the print, the gray fades to white. 

Kelly Sykes, a senior in high school, was inspired by nature as well, but decided to feature a praying mantis as the subject of her linoleum print Mantis. She selected a linoleum block and carved out the areas she didn’t want to print, then inked the surface with black ink and pressed it to a sheet of paper. The stylized praying mantis is printed on a soft orange, yellow, and pink background. White lines within the body signify areas cut away in the linoleum block. The depiction of the mantis has a beautiful graphic quality. Kelly captured the “personality” of the insect with its large eyes and cocked head. It almost appears to smile. 

This exhibition is on view through May 7. The Sheldon is located at 3648 Washington Blvd. in Grand Center. Gallery hours are Tuesday, 12:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.; Wednesday – Friday, 12:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m.; Saturday, 10:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.; and closed Sunday and Monday.  For more information, call 314-533-9900 or visit www.thesheldon.org.