Oregon-based artist John Maddin shares his interpretation of “Power” in the year 2021 for Issue Nº6 of Ensemble Magazine. Maddin has been creating freelance illustrations since the mid-1990s on Scratchboard and in pen & ink.

When interpreting “Power” now in 2021, my thoughts immediately went to politics – especially as the subject of everything in the news throughout the last year. Instead of trying to get TOO political by focusing on political parties or partisan issues, I tried to think of power in the abstract, focusing on how each generation or election cycle transfers power to the next round of politicians. Exactly what is politics? Power is made up of many things, but much of this boils down to money, law, the military, and the political process itself, so I tried to think of symbols that reflected this – hence, the Capitol Dome, the Supreme Court building, the tank, a stack of money bills, and finally, a group of hands all reaching out for these things or handing them off.

“Power” is my take on the transfer of power structures in government. Scratchboard is my medium of choice: I love the old-school engraving look you can achieve, and this appeals to my sensibilities. Since we see engravings of governmental images and figures on our money all the time, it’s a natural fit with this subject matter.

A graduate of the Pacific Northwest College of Art in Portland, Oregon, I’ve been doing freelance illustration in this area since the mid-1990’s, mostly in Scratchboard and pen & ink.  In 2014, I published my first children’s ABC book, “Letters of the West,” co-authored with my wife Michelle Walch, and was happily surprised when it was nominated for the Oregon Spirit Award in 2015. 

My main artistic medium is Scratchboard, which I’ve been working in for some time now. My influences are some of the great modern sScratchboard artists like Mark Summers, Douglas Smith, and Scott McKowen, as well as traditional woodcut or engraving artists like Albrecht Dürer, Barry Moser, and Fritz Eichenberg. If you’re interested in seeing more of my work, I have a small website where you can take a look: www.johndmaddinart.com. 

John Maddin is graduate of the Pacific Northwest College of Art in Portland, Oregon, and has been doing freelance illustration since the mid-1990’s. His first children’s book, "Letters of the West," co-authored with his wife Michelle Walch, was published in 2014 and subsequently nominated for the Oregon Spirit Award in 2015. You can find more of his work here: www.johndmaddinart.com