Free to Be Whether You See
Free to Be Whether You See marks Goldstein's return to printmaking after nearly a decade and exemplifies the possibilities of collaborative experimentation. Created alongside JAC artist-instructors Rosemary Burns and Karen Dolmanisth, this linocut edition was printed on-site through two meticulous runs on the press: the first pass— a vibrant red-to-blue rainbow roll-lays down a chromatic field, while the second pass overlays the linocut drawing in stark black ink. The substitution of black for white in this reimagining of the red, white, and blue is intentional. For Goldstein, black stands for "pain, suffering, difficulty" — a deliberate shift that speaks to the current political moment.
The imagery is dense with symbol and suggestion: storm clouds and lightning bolts split the sky, birds break from captivity, a series of steps lead toward a darkened threshold. Oceanic currents swell across the composition. Each form floats in relation, never entirely resolved. "I use symbols in my work intentionally," Goldstein notes, "to create some ambiguity but also to create choice so people can project their own narrative on the work."
The edition's title reflects its thematic ambition-freedom not as a fixed condition but as a continual negotiation. The work speaks to the double-bind of freedom: how it is shaped by intersecting forms of oppression, how it is sustained through conscious, collective choices. "This is a response to the state of the country," Goldstein reflects. "How do we hold on to our voice as artists and free people in a way that makes that untouchable?"
The collaborative process was itself a practice in freedom. "[Women] tend to be very generous and communicative with each other," she says of working with Burns and Dolmanisth. "That is a strength with the three of us." This edition not only embodies Goldstein's experimental ethos but also demonstrates the JAC's commitment to nurturing dialogue and creative risk-taking through our printmaking facilities.
*Free to Be Whether You See was created and produced for the Jamestown Arts Center in Jamestown RI in the spring of 2025 as part of their distinguished artist of the year award.
