Pyre X, from the "Pyre" portfolio
Maker
Ficek-Swenson, Bernice
American, b. 1951
Date2001-2006
MediumPhotogravure
Dimensionsimage: 6 3/4 in x 4 1/4 in; paper: 16 1/2 in x 12 1/2 in
Credit LineMuseum purchase
Object number2007:7.6
About the ArtistThe photographs in Bernice Ficek-Swenson's Pyre portfolio (2001-2006) capture the ephemeral and continually varied forms of burning fires in a series of close-up views. In some of the images, regimented rows of smooth, round stones determine the path of the flames and affirm the fire's presence in a concrete world. In other images, the flames are captured against a backdrop of darkness, the dynamic forms verging on abstraction or, in the case of a few longer exposures, appearing as hazy clouds of light. The portfolio is printed as a set of twelve photogravures, a printmaking process widely used in the 19th century that yields a soft but grainy quality in the overall image and an almost velvety sense of tactility. Ficek-Swenson earned a BA and an MFA at the University of North Dakota, Grand Fork, and an MA at the State University of New York, Oswego. She is Professor Emeritus of Art at the University of Wisconsin at River Falls.
