DB Dancers

Archive of the Mendocino Heritage Artists

Dorr Bothwell: Three Dancers and other Monotypes

What is a monotype?
A monotype is a one of a kind print, created by painting on a printing plate (a non-porous flat surface), from which a single image is transferred to paper by laying on the paper, and pressing.

Often Bothwell uses her fingers to draw on the monotypes, sometimes on the paint on the plate, more often on the still wet monotype itself. Some In Impressions 2 (1951), she embellishes the printed image with acrylic paint.

Three Dancers
Dorr Bothwell was a dancer, and she loved dance in all its forms. In Straws in the Wind (pp.16-17), Bothwell describes her hilarious ballet audition with Anna Pavlova. In Samoa, unlike Margaret Mead two years earlier, Bothwell learned the dances, and performed them to support herself when she returned to San Francisco. If there was a new dance performance, and Bothwell could afford a ticket, she was there. These small treasures are Dorr Bothwell’s homage to three 20th century icons of modern dance: Martha Graham, Agnes de Mille, and Helen Tamiris. Learn more about the women who inspired Bothwell’s Three Dancers.

Homage to Martha Graham

Homage to Martha Graham by Dorr Bothwell (1950). Monotype (c. 4.3″x 3.3″). Private collection.

Homage to Agnes de Mille

Homage to Agnes de Mille by Dorr Bothwell (1950). Monotype (c. 4.3″x 3.3″). Private collection.

Homage to Helen Tamiris

Homage to Helen Tamiris by Dorr Bothwell (1950). Monotype (c. 4.3″x 3.3″). Lucia Zacha Annex Collection. SKU: DB195003*

Other Bothwell Monotypes
Night Visitor

Night Visitor by Dorr Bothwell (1991). Monotype (18″ x 14″). Private collection.

Stones in the Current

Stones in the Current by Dorr Bothwell (1960), Monotype (9.5" x 7.5"). Peivate collection.
Stones in the Current by Dorr Bothwell (1960), Monotype with finger drawing (9.5″ x 7.5″). Private collection.

Flower

Flower by Dorr Bothwell (1960). Monotype with finger drawing. Private collection.

Impressions No. 2

Impressions No. 2 by Dorr Bothwell (1951). Monotype with watercolor (16.25″ x 11″). Private collection.

The Owl of Minerva

The Owl of Minerva by Dorr Bothwell (1950), Monotype (8.75 x 7). Private collection.

LINKS
The women Behind Bothwell’s Three Dancers
Dorr Bothwell: Artwork
Dorr Bothwell: Straws in the Wind
Dorr Bothwell in Her Own Words
Barebones Bothwell
Mendocino Heritage Artists
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