Betsy Packard Art Archive

Hand colored etchings, 1975. With Drake University in Florence Italy, 1974-75– I had a class in metalwork/jewelry with Tomaso Fujimura and was introduced at the same time to etching at the Santa Reparata Printmaking Studio with Professors Dennis Olsen and Billy Ray Sandusky. In both settings I was fortunate to work in a uniquely free and casual technical environment, where my experimentation and rule breaking were not only accepted but encouraged. These experiences shaped my evolution as an artist and the way I work intuitively with materials.

Color viscosity etching, unique proof 1975.

1976. Embossing newspaper pulp sheets with objects, handsewing the sheets to create a 3-d pyramid form.

Saved items, buried in the wall. Installation photo from “Louisiana Environments,” Contemporary Arts Center, New Orleans, LA. 1977. Journaling, recordkeeping, history.

Letters, journals, writings-buried in the wall. Installation photo from “Louisiana Environments,” Contemporary Arts Center, New Orleans, LA. 1977.

My 74-75 Clothes. 1978-79. Collection of the Newcomb Art Museum, New Orleans, LA. Journaling, icon-making.

Italian Story 1978. Florentine rag/remnants, embroidered,pieced- then cut stacked, sliced. Collection of the Newcomb Art Museum, New Orleans, LA. Reusing, recycling, fabric as a primary material. Book as object.

The Bhagavad Gita-As it Is 1978. A copy of the Bhagavad Gita was given to me at an airport, and I pulped the pages to create this work. Transforming the physical, retaining the essence, aura.

Continental Shelf. 1978. Stacked and sliced magazines.

30-40 Compacted Artworks. 1978 Saving, recordkeeping, keeping a physical journal.

Newspaper pulp and bottles. 1978. Making art with everyday abundant materials, newspaper pulp as a binder, and a material with sculptural potential.

Restaurant Impressions. 1978. Latex, cardboard. I was beginning to use found objects as molds, a practice I continued!

.0319. 1978. Used restaurant paper napkins, made into pulp and sliced. I was working as a breakfast waitress at the PSA Hotel San Franciscan. I was toasting lots of bread and overwhelmed by paper waste. Compression, conserving, reusing, recycling.

Torn paper and carbon paper collage from a found ledger NYC, and wire. 1979.Paper, found and saved materials, compression. An early example of the emergence of these themes in my work.

The same ledger, collage with wax. A precursor to my paintings in wax of the mid-late 1980s.