FRANCOIS LAMOTHE

ARTIST BIO

Francois has been drawing for most of his 78 years. After decades of working in pastels, oils, and acrylics, he has returned to a form that combines history, precision, and craftsmanship: etching in the tradition of scrimshaw.

Francois is drawn to etching for many reasons. It preserves an ancient and increasingly rare art form, it relies on the fine motor skills he developed over 50 years in dentistry, and it allows him to create work that is intimate, detailed, and manageable in scale

Historically, scrimshaw was practiced by mariners, especially whalers, who etched images into bone or ivory during long voyages at sea. Francois uses many of the same classical techniques, but instead of ivory, he works on recycled Corian, a countertop material salvaged from sink cut-outs by a local contractor. Remarkably, Corian responds much like ivory when etched, making it a beautiful and sustainable surface for this ancient art.

His process begins by transferring a drawing onto the Corian with carbon paper. He then etches the image by hand using a sharp stylus made from imported sailmaker’s needles. Fine shading, detail, and line work are added gradually, drawing on Francois’s many years as a painter. The etched lines are finished with acrylic ink, a modern counterpart to the lamp black once used by scrimshaw artists.

His current pieces include etched Corian works, knives with camel bone handles and Damascus blades, and bookmarks and earrings made from recycled piano keys.