Biography
Claire Havenhill is a printmaker, lithographer, and mixed-media artist from Southern California who currently lives and works in Fort Collins, Colorado. Though a lover of all printmaking processes, she has special intrigue in traditional stone lithography, toned cyanotype processes, and combining printmaking with her natural dye practice. Claire is a recent graduate from Colorado State University, holding a BFA in Printmaking and Certificate of Art History (2025). In coming years, she intends to continue her education and pursue an MFA in Art, aspiring to teach printmaking at the college level or work at a limited edition print publishing studio. In the meantime, Claire is working to build her oeuvre and continues to exhibit her work in regional and national art exhibitions while working as a (printmaking) teaching assistant and assistant manager for a local art gallery.
Artist Statement
Creating art has always been my personal outlet for processing complex emotions, using it to communicate my inner monologue, especially when unable to synthesize thoughts into words. Conceptually, my work tends to initially catalyze from internal struggles, often addressing issues of self-perception, sense of place, and personal evolution in the context of the world around me. I frequently take an iconographic approach to storytelling, using unique arrangements of universal motifs, commonly from the natural world, to communicate my message to a wider audience. My work often mirrors widespread idioms, expressions, and folklore, which I use as means of connecting my internal conscience to the universal human experience.
Though I also utilize textiles and mixed media approaches, printmaking is where my core artistic passion lies. I have a deep appreciation for the endless possibilities of print media and am continuously entranced by its process-based nature. Though printmaking is known as a method of producing identical multiples, I often create variable editions to give each print an individual, unique touch. I choose to work primarily with traditional stone lithography, drawn to its technically complex and procedural nature that is equally challenging, frustrating, and rewarding. Visually, I gravitate to printmaking because of its unique textural capabilities, in which I often overlap with iconographic and illustrative scenes. Working with this craft requires me to practice trust, resilience, and adaptability in my making process, forcing me to accept my failures and persist nonetheless. These core aspects of printmaking appropriately mirror my purpose in making art, which exists as my main means of processing every corner of my life.