Abigail Rorer

Eye of Rhino
wood engraving

Wood Engraving

Abigail Rorer was born in Norristown, Pennsylvania in 1949, received a BFA in Printmaking from the Rhode Island School of Design in 1971, and taught art for several years before concentrating on her own work: pen and ink book illustration and making etchings.

Drawn to the woodcuts and wood engraving of the German Expressionists and especially the work of Leonard Baskin, she was introduced to the basic tools and techniques of wood engraving by Barry Moser. Self-taught in her approach to wood engraving, she pursues a technique of “practice, practice, practice”, and “keep looking at the work of other engravers”.

In 1989 Abigail established The Lone Oak Press, a sole proprietorship publisher of limited edition, letterpress-printed broadsides illustrated with her relief engravings and etchings, in Petersham, MA. Imagery is printed by Abigail from original blocks and plates with many of the images being multi-block color engravings incorporating reduction printing and sometimes hand coloring. Abigail exhibits at book arts fairs and festivals both in the U.S. and the U.K. She has published a number books, the bindings of which are collaborations with others more knowledgeable in bookmaking.