I met Charlotte artist, Daniel Allegrucci, at Artspace in Raleigh during a recent Gallery Crawl similar to our very own in NoDa.I was immediately struck by the intricacy of his woodcut prints and had the opportunity to catch up with him and ask a few questions about his work.

Meet Daniel Allegrucci:

Interviewed by Huy Ngo

Where do you live?

Charlotte, NC

Do you have a studio we can visit?

You are welcome to come by my home studio and see my giant press.

Are you currently showing anywhere?

I show regularly at Artspace in Raleigh and my work is available at Lark & Key in NoDa. I also participate in juried shows around the country.

Tell us about your educational background.

I graduated from UNC-Charlotte in 1998 with a BFA, printmaking concentration. Then I went to grad school at Wichita State.

How did you start in printmaking?

I was taking an introductory printmaking class in college and we were given an assignment to create a woodcut print. I remember fighting with this woodblock for hours on end with a dull tool meant for linoleum, not wood. It was a real physical struggle and I even shed some blood in the process. When the print was finally done, it seemed like all that energy and effort was somehow embedded in the image. I did a few more woodcuts and my professor, Heather Hoover, took notice and even bought one of my prints. At that point, I knew that I had found my natural medium.

How long have you been making prints?

About 13 years.

What is it about printmaking that interests you?

I love woodcut printmaking’s ability to transform a drawing. I’m always excited by what happens when the drawn line becomes a cut edge. There is an uncompromising directness that comes through in the cut marks. It sort of simplifies things and makes them clear and bold.

Tell us a little about your process.

I usually start with some sort of reference material and draw directly onto the block. Then I start to cut, mostly using a small V-gouge. If it’s a color print, I’ll proof that first block and transfer the image to additional blocks that are then cut for colored areas. I used to print by hand on Japanese papers, but I recently acquired a large etching press that allows my work (to be) larger and faster.

What is the inspiration behind your work?

I see art making as a way to ask questions and attempt to make sense of the world.

Is there an underlying theme to your work?

Fighting and family are two themes that come up a lot. The overarching theme, though, is identity - what does it mean to be a man, a father, an American, a person living in the digital age?

What influences do you use in your work?

Some of my influences are German Expressionism, ancient art, Egon Schiele, Leon Golub, Alex Katz, Lucian Freud, Goya, the news, literature, and music.

How important is color in your prints?

Very. I use color to add a layer of meaning to the content. In some of my recent work I depict Mesopotamian artifacts in a color scheme derived from he US Army’s new battle fatigues.

Do you work in any other medium?

I like etching and silkscreen. I like to paint too.

In a perfect world, where do you see yourself taking your art?

It would be pretty cool to be collected by museums before my time’s up.

If there were one venue that you’d like to show at, where would that be?

International Print Center of New York.

Are you working on any other projects at the moment?

I have 3 or 4 different series that I’m currently working on. The most recent are these explosions that are a lot more spontaneous than my usual work. I just start drawing freely on the block with the idea of an explosion in mind. I react to whatever comes out until it feels done, then cut and print.

Where can we find your work online?

danielallegrucci.com