The Arts & Crafts printmakers of the early 20th century have had a strong artistic influence on me. My work is strongly influenced by early 20th century woodblock printmakers, including Gustave Baumann, J J Lankes, Norma Bassett Hall, Margaret Jordan Patterson, and Walter Phillips. Although I've developed my own unique approach to this old medium, which incorporates contemporary tools toward a similar end, I owe these kindred souls a good deal. From them I learned not how to do it, but the essentials of how it should be done.
I discovered a primer on printmaking by Lankes in the art library of the Farnsworth Museum in 2001, which piqued my interest in the subject. Lankes was primarily a wood engraver, a process of creating woodcut prints that can be described as white on black.
All roads lead back to Dow. His influence can be traced directly or indirectly to just about anyone working in the medium 1900-1930. His textbook, Composition, is still relevant and well worth studying.