KRESCO-TCH
Cassandra Newton-Miller

"The need to produce this fine detailed effect comes from a place deep in my being, and often I have no idea what the piece will look like or even the subjects that it will contain. When I "really get lost" in a piece, something takes over , and seems to guide my hand. Trees and faces come from the subconscious, and often an acquaintance may appear in a multi-character piece. My belief in past lives comes from the fact that I have wondered if I may have learned this craft in a different time and place. Having been compared to Albrecht Durer even in the juried shows many years ago. The skill was there the first time I tried "scratchboard". There was very little learning process.

Kresko-tch is a term suggested by a Polish friend when I was bothered by the demeaning term "Scratchart". For forty plus years, I have been fascinated by this technique. Eventually discovering gourds, anodized aluminum, and canvas as a variety of good etching surfaces, although the oil is worked wet, which led to the sculpting in soapstone.

Be sure and look for "hidden pictures" in several of my creations!