The Art of Cynthia Woolever Molinari
Biography
Oklahoma’s flat prairies and immense sky framed Cynthia Woolever Molinari's visual sense of the world. Smooth planes of color divided by lines or spaces mimic level landscapes and empty skies. She uses heavy lines, transparency, and bold contrasts to describe what she sees: a tension between tight and loose composition. Based on personal experiences, Molinari's images render the visual memories that persist.
Molinari’s work merges abstract, representational, and expressive elements. Creating ambiguity—what is intentional vs. unintentional—motivates her as an artist. In all her work, she respects the material—wood, paper, ink—and sees it as a gift.
Molinari creates on the Viceroy Press, which is named in honor of her friend Deborah Bruce (1955-2012). The viceroy butterfly became the Kentucky state butterfly in 1990—three years before Deborah moved to Kentucky.
Education
Hartford Art School, University of Hartford, Hartford, Connecticut
Etching I, Etching II, Monotype, Monotype II, Advanced Monotype, Experimental Printmaking, Book Arts, Lithography I
Art New England, Bennington, Vermont (Massachusetts College of Art and Design)
Layered Colored Woodcuts (Jim Lee - 2008, 2012, 2013, 2014)
Water-Based Printmaking (Susan Rostow - 2011)
Collagraph (Fred Liang - 2010)
Skidmore College, Saratoga Springs, New York
Advanced Printmaking
University at Albany (State University of New York), Albany, NY
Advanced Etching
Phillips University, Sociology, Bachelor of Science, Enid, Oklahoma
Indiana University, Sociology, M.S. and Ph.D., Bloomington, Indiana
Exhibitions
14th Biennial International Miniature Competition (2023)
Center for Contemporary Printmaking, Norwalk, CT
Governor's Derby Exhibit (2022)
Capitol Rotunda, Frankfort, KY
Biennial FOOTPRINT International Competition (2022)
Center for Contemporary Printmaking, Norwalk, CT
Unknowns (2022)
Kore Gallery, Louisville, KY
Art in the City (2021-2022), two monoprints and three relief prints
City Center, Louisville, KY
Black and White (2019) (2021) (2022)
Kore Gallery, Louisville, KY
Extreme Prints (2019)
Kore Gallery, Louisville, KY
Fence Show – Select (2018, 2015)
Fence Show (2017, 2016, 2014)
Troy Art Center, Troy, NY
Student/Artist/Instructor/Friend: Collection of Michael Shortell (2012)
Silpe Gallery, Hartford Art School, University of Hartford, CT
Mirror Mirror (2007)
Silpe Gallery, Hartford Art School, University of Hartford, CT
Out of the Blue (2003)
Regalo Gallery, Louisville, KY
Resurrection Fine Arts Exhibit (2003)
Presbyterian Center, Louisville, KY
The Woman’s Club of Louisville Art Show (2003)
The Woman’s Club, Louisville, KY
AquaVenture – Kentucky Watercolor Society (2002)
Artopia Gallery, Louisville, KY
Towers IV (2002)
The Chapel Gallery, Louisville, KY
Kentucky Watercolor Society (2002)
Huff Gallery, Spalding University, Louisville, KY
Grants
Great Meadows Foundation: Artist Professional Development Grant (2022)
Met with Swedish printmakers, Stockholm, Sweden
Publications
"The Wheat Harvest," multiple-block, color woodcut, The Hand, Issue 32, April 2021​
"Louisville Bridges," multiple-block, woodcut, The Hand, Issue 34, November 2021