Photography and graphic design: Printmaker Bryan Dahlberg will be exhibiting his work in a show titled “Realism Revisited,” at the Gilpin County Library from December 17 through February 3.[/caption]

When Bryan Dahlberg was eight years old, his parents allowed him to choose his own Christmas present for the first time. Among the thousands of items in Muirhead’s toy store in Dearborn, Michigan, he chose a small printing press. Neither then nor now could he explain his choice, but he never regretted it. A love of making marks on paper has stayed with him ever since — as an art major in college (BA in Fine Arts), editor of the yearbook, photographer, and fine art printmaker.

“Because I have spent so much time in both photography and graphic design, I long ago subconsciously began combining the two disciplines. The pictures in this show include both handmade traditional woodcut prints and photo-derived intaglio and relief prints. For the latter, I worked from my own photographs, printing the images onto clear film and then creating polymer plastic printing plates. I printed those plates using several different presses, my favorite being a 120-year-old iron hand press. I find myself strongly drawn to making modern prints with equipment that most people find obsolete — doing the most with the least — especially utilizing fundamental technologies no longer available with today’s touch screens.”

The Gilpin County Library is located at 15131 Highway 119, BlackHawk. For more information go to www.GilpinLibrary.org or call 303-582-5777.