Rachel Mentzer
Artist, Printmaker
Lorain County, OH
@rachelmentzerart
“I have been using Conrad presses since purchasing my E-12 etching press in 2024. My favorite aspect of the press is its ability to deliver the precise pressure required for my process. I create my collagraph plates from recycled medicine boxes, which are exceptionally thin. With other etching presses, I often had to set the pressure to the maximum and still struggled to achieve a complete ink transfer. With my Conrad press, this has not been an issue.
I also appreciated that Conrad invited me to their facility in Whitehall, Michigan, to test the press before purchasing it. Being able to print my own work on the press gave me confidence that it would meet the specific demands of my process. Since then, features such as the micro gauges and registration grid have helped me achieve consistent, precise results, allowing me to focus more fully on the creative process.”
– Rachel Mentzer,
Artist/ Printmaker
Bio
Rachel Mentzer is an Ohio-based printmaker whose work explores sustainability, environmental renewal, and nature’s resilience. Her work critiques overproduction and waste while highlighting nature’s ability to reclaim human-made spaces. Working primarily in collagraph and intaglio processes with chine collé, she transforms discarded cardboard packaging into hand-carved printing plates, creating textured prints that reimagine overlooked materials through a fine art lens.
Mentzer received an Individual Excellence Award from the Ohio Arts Council in 2025 and was awarded Best in Show at the Ohio State Fair Fine Arts Exhibition in 2023. Her work has been exhibited nationally and internationally, including at Powerhouse Arts in Brooklyn, New York and Ironbridge Fine Arts in the United Kingdom. She exhibits regularly at nationally juried art festivals throughout the United States where she connects directly with collectors.
She has completed an artist residency at Port Austin AIR in Michigan and will serve as a 2026 Suzanne Wilson Artist-in-Residence in Glen Arbor, Michigan. Mentzer lives and works in Lorain County, where she maintains a home printmaking studio and continues to investigate sustainable approaches to contemporary printmaking.
Artist Statement
In our consumer-driven world, overproduction and waste have left a lasting mark on the environment. I use discarded materials, such as packaging, as both subject and medium, transforming them into collagraph plates that reflect nature’s capacity to reclaim and renew human-made spaces.
Through printmaking, I critique cycles of consumption while celebrating environmental renewal. My non-toxic techniques minimize harm, and the incorporation of Kozo and washi papers through chine collé introduces delicacy and transparency, emphasizing themes of impermanence and transformation. The contrast between industrial remnants and organic paper mirrors nature’s reclamation and adaptability.
My work encourages reflection on our engagement with the environment. While human overproduction damages the earth, nature’s resilience offers hope. My prints trace the journey from waste to renewal, revealing resilience in unexpected forms.
Prints
“Skybound Over Steel”
– 14”x11”
– Collagraph with chine collé
– Printed on a Conrad E-12 etching press
– Lorain, OH
“Static Marsh“
– 11”x14”
– Collagraph with chine collé
– Printed on a Conrad E-12 etching press
– Lorain, OH
“Where the Power Lines Sing”
– 14”x11”
– Collagraph with chine collé
– Printed on a Conrad E-12 etching press
– Lorain, OH
“Where Pines Meet Power”
– 14”x11”
– Collagraph with chine collé
– Printed on a Conrad E-12 etching press
– Lorain, OH
“Between Sky and Earth”
– 8”x10”
– Collagraph with chine collé
– Printed on a Conrad E-12 etching press
– Lorain, OH
“Pylon Birds“
– 8”x10”
– Collagraph with chine collé
– Printed on a Conrad E-12 etching press
– Lorain, OH
“Building Homes”
– 8”x10”
– Collagraph with chine collé
– Printed on a Conrad E-12 etching press
– Lorain, OH
“Above the Static”
– 14”x11”
– Collagraph with chine collé
– Printed on a Conrad E-12 etching press
– Lorain, OH
“Still Standing”
– 8”x10”
– Collagraph with chine collé
– Printed on a Conrad E-12 etching press
– Lorain, OH
“Rooted Below”
– 8”x10”
– Collagraph with chine collé
– Printed on a Conrad E-12 etching press
– Lorain, OH
