Anna Moore and her block print "Orbit," part of the Small Expressions show at Jeanette Best Gallery  

PORT TOWNSEND ARTIST ANNA MOORE won the 2024 Small Expressions Jurors' Choice prize for "Glacier Rocks," a Risograph-printed book she made after an extraordinary trip north. We talked with Anna about this piece as well as her other entry in Small Expressions, a block print titled "Orbit." This interview is lightly edited.

What inspired you to create "Glacier Rocks" and "Orbit"?

"Glacier Rocks" is one of several projects inspired by an artist residency called The Arctic Circle that I participated in this last summer. The residency consisted of myself and 27 other artists traveling by tall ship along the west coast of Svalbard, an archipelago within the arctic circle above Norway, for two weeks, led by an incredible group of guides and cared for by a wonderful crew. We walked on sea ice, listened to icebergs crackling, and hiked across glaciers. The images in “Glacier Rocks” are all photos of rocks I saw emerging from glaciers on various excursions during the residency. In a place as striking and beautiful as the Arctic, it would have been so easy to never look down and to never look at the small things underfoot, but these dark spots of rock emerging from huge white glacial expanses felt like little treasures that were best collected through photos.

"Orbit" was inspired by my love of the work of M.C. Escher and my love of all things space, specifically a visit I had to NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) last fall. All of the satellites in “Orbit” are real JPL satellites currently in Low Earth Orbit, and they have all allowed us to learn more about our planet and the universe. I wanted to be an astronaut as a kid (and still hang onto that as an adult!) so everything related to space just fascinates and enchants me, and I often try to hold onto that awe and share it in my space-related work.

Can you tell me a bit about your experience with Risograph printing?

I only started experimenting with Riso printing earlier this year when I took one of Northwind’s own classes with the wonderful Shannon Kidd! I wanted to try out the medium because there are so many people making beautiful Riso work in the book/zine community, and the method can give so much more life to an image. I’ve now completed a few projects with the help of Shannon’s printing expertise and have ideas for many more. Riso animation is something I’m particularly interested in, and while I’ve now dabbled in it I hope to experiment with it more in the future.

What motivates you to make art?

I make things as a means to learn: about new subjects, new ways of constructing something, new ways of organizing ideas, new mediums, etc. As a graphic designer I love to problem solve and puzzle away at things, and process is the fun part for me. I often start a project wanting to learn something for myself, and then it ends up as a way to share what I’ve learned with others. I believe that engaging with tactile objects that encourage curiosity and a sense of play is a great way to teach people new things. Seeing as I learn by doing and making, I try to carry that physicality and exploration over into the audience experience of what I make. I want to make art that is approachable, tactile, and brings out curiosity in others like it does in me.

Can you tell me a bit about yourself, such as what else you like to do, how long you've lived in Port Townsend, and/or what your art education has been?

I grew up here in Port Townsend and took lots of classes with local artists throughout my childhood. In college I majored in Graphic Design and minored in Fine Art and Environmental Studies, and most of my work combines those three subjects and disciplines. If I’m not making things, I’m usually outside hiking or foraging or looking for weird things growing in the woods. The best weird thing I've found growing in the woods lately is a Fluted Bird's Nest Fungus — they're very cool.

Visit again soon!

This season, we will feature short articles about Northwind Art's exhibiting and teaching artists on this page, titled A Closer Look. We invite you back to this space to learn more about the brilliant makers in our midst.