Tom Huck

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Tom Huck
Printmaker Tom Huck at work on a block in the studio
Born
Thomas Andrew Huck

(1971-12-09) December 9, 1971 (age 52)
EducationSouthern Illinois University at Carbondale, Washington University in St. Louis,
MovementOutlaw Printmakers
AwardsPollock Krasner Foundation Grant 2011
Websitewww.evilprints.com

Tom Huck, also spelled Hück, (born 1971), is an American printmaker best known for his large-scale satirical woodcuts.  From 1999 to 2020 Hück's studio, Evil Prints, was located in downtown St. Louis, Missouri. In 2020 he moved Evil Prints to Park Hills, Missouri.[1] 

Hück’s Illustrations have appeared in BLAB! from Fantagraphics Books as well as The Village Voice, The Riverfront Times, and the Minneapolis City Pages

Biography[edit]

Tom Huck was born on December 9, 1971, in Farmington, Missouri, and grew up in nearby Potosi. He received a BFA in drawing from Southern Illinois University at Carbondale in 1993 and an MFA in printmaking from Washington University in 1995. From 2000 to 2010 he was an instructor in printmaking at Washington University.[2]

"The Great War-Madillo" woodcut by Tom Huck

Style and influences[edit]

Huck draws his influences mainly from Northern Renaissance masters, such as Albrecht Dürer whom he cites as a "print hero".[3] Other influences include José Guadalupe Posada, Honoré Daumier, and Francisco José de Goya y Lucientes. Huck's work is also known for his delicate and intricate method of carving and use of cross-hatching in the print medium. It has been described as having "a real delicacy of touch" and "an extraordinary landscape of marks".[4]

Work[edit]

Huck is best known for creating large-scale woodcuts acting as both satirical narratives and social criticism.[5] He says in his artist statement: "My work deals with personal observations about the experiences of living in a small town in southeast Missouri. The often Strange and Humorous occurrences, places, and people in these towns offer a never-ending source of inspiration for my prints. I call this work 'rural satire'".[6]

From 1995 to 2005, Hück  created two woodcut folios: 2 Weeks in August: 14 Rural Absurdities  (1995-1998) and The Bloody Bucket (1999-2005).[7] After these portfolios, Hück has turned to a series of monumental works collectively called Booger Stew. The first of these, "The Transformation of Brandy Baghead Pts. 1, 2, & 3", is a triptych and was completed in 2009. Since then, two more pieces in the series have been completed, The Tommy Peeperz (2009-2013) and Electric Baloneyland (2013-2018).[8][9][10][11] While working on these large prints, Hück has produced smaller works, such as the portfolio titled The Hillbilly Kama Sutra (2012), and the chiaroscuro woodcut The Great Warmadillo.[12]

Electric Baloneyland

Hück’s latest work, A Monkey Mountain Kronikle: A Devotional Woodcut for the Ages, is a Medieval altarpiece on paper.  Inspired by the famous altarpieces of the Middle Ages by Jan van Eyck and other Flemish painters of the late Middle Ages.[13] Aside from creating woodcuts, Huck has also designed logos, posters, and apparel for musicians and organizations. Huck has created the artwork on posters, t-shirts, and ephemera for bands such as Motorhead, The Roots, and A Perfect Circle among others. In 2002 he designed the cover of The Roots' album Phrenology,[14] and in 2009 he designed the poster for the band Motörhead and their show at The Pageant in St. Louis.

Collections[edit]

Hück's woodcut prints are included in the collections of the Metropolitan Museum of Art;[15] Whitney Museum of American Art;[16] the Library of Congress;[17] the Lambert International Airport,[18] Saint Louis Art Museum,[19] and Laumeier Sculpture Park[20] among others.

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Evil Prints and Spiderhole Studios". Tom Huck's Evil Prints. January 26, 2024. Retrieved January 26, 2024.
  2. ^ "Tom Huck 2008". Matrix Press. 2008. Retrieved January 5, 2024.
  3. ^ Froeb, Ian (17 January 2007). "Evil Ink". River Front Times. 31 (3).
  4. ^ Gibson, Allison (2009). "Tom Huck". Beautiful Decay. Book 2 (What A Mess!): 116–130.
  5. ^ Owing, Jes (January 5, 2006). "Tom Huck at the Sherry Leedy Contemporary Artr". St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
  6. ^ Huck, Tom. "Artist's Statement". Retrieved May 18, 2011.
  7. ^ Kessler, Greg (2022). Tom Hück: The Devil is in The Details, Prints 1995–2020 (1st ed.). St. Louis, Missouri: Fine Print Small Press. p. 35. ISBN 9798986827407.
  8. ^ Hill, Daniel (February 2, 2023). "How Tom Huck Paired a Depraved Imagination and Medieval Technique to Make Magic". Riverfront Times. Retrieved January 26, 2024.
  9. ^ Kessler, Greg (2022). Tom Huck: The Devil is in the Details, Prints 1995-2020 (1st ed.). St. Louis, Missouri: Fine Print Small Press. p. 182. ISBN 9798986827407.
  10. ^ "Flatbed Press". 4 February 2019. Retrieved January 26, 2024.
  11. ^ "Booger Stew: The Monumental Triptychs of Tom Huck (I–III)". C.G. Boerner. Retrieved January 26, 2024.
  12. ^ "Rival Cuts: Process and Technique in Prints by Tom Huck and Albrecht Durer". Printed Editions. February 11, 2019. Retrieved January 26, 2024.
  13. ^ "The Gallery". A Monkey Mountain Kronikle. Retrieved January 26, 2024.
  14. ^ Kessler, Greg (2022). Tom Huck: The Devil is in the Details, Prints 1995-2020 (1st ed.). St. Louis, MO USA: Fine Print Small Press. p. 294. ISBN 9798986827407.
  15. ^ "A Monkey Mountain Kronikle". The Met. Retrieved January 26, 2024.
  16. ^ "Thomas Huck 1971–". Whitney Museum of Art. January 26, 2024. Retrieved January 26, 2024.
  17. ^ "The great war-madillo (for A.D.) / T. Huck". Library of Congress, Washington, D.C. 20540 USA. Retrieved 2024-02-17.
  18. ^ Keaggy, Diane (December 7, 2012). "Lambert Airport introduces local art to its concourses". Saint Louis Post Dispatch. Retrieved January 5, 2024.
  19. ^ "Bed of Bones, from the portfolio "2 Weeks in August: 14 Rural Absurdities"". Saint Louis Art Museum. Retrieved 2024-02-06.
  20. ^ "Tom Huck". Laumeier Sculpture Park. Retrieved 2024-02-06.

External links[edit]