Under $250 Archives - Lyell Castonguay

Fire Belly Bear
8″ x 14″ Woodblock Print | 12″ x 18″ Japanese Paper
Edition 27 | Proofs 6
2025

I combined the physical characteristics of a banded woolly bear caterpillar and an American black bear to create this hybrid animal. The ornamentation and color palette give the piece a storybook quality, reminiscent of an image found in an ancient manuscript. The rigid pose evokes an earlier time when artists drew fantastical interpretations of creatures from faraway lands. My favorite element of this piece is the long, swooping back, which guides the eye along the color gradient.

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Arctic Helix
I was inspired to create this artwork after learning that scientists have limited knowledge about narwhals and only recently recorded their vocalizations at length. My piece depicts two narwhals entwined, one framed by ice and the other by water. It is a poetic interpretation of the ongoing impact of climate change on marine wildlife.

Lyell Castonguay designed, carved, and printed this original artwork. Ink is applied to a carved wooden block and hand-pressed onto Japanese Moon Peach paper. Multiple carved blocks layer colors, resulting in a dramatic effect. The artist signed, titled, and numbered the edition in pencil below the image.

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First Flight
Release: 2023
Edition: 16
Proofs: 1
Size: 24″ x 18″ (including margins)

This piece illustrates a fledgling Catbird plunging headlong into the unknown. It captures the moment the bird leaps from its nest, legs outstretched, beak open. The bird is off balance and waiting for its flight instinct to kick in. The bird puts its life on the line by defying gravity but gains the world in return.

Lyell Castonguay designed, carved, and printed this original artwork. Ink is applied to a carved wooden block and hand-pressed onto Japanese Moon Peach paper. The artist signed, titled, and numbered the edition in pencil below the image.

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Theory of Mind
I was inspired to create this work after reading that Magpies recognize their reflection in a mirror. Their ability suggests the theory of mind, which attributes mental states such as beliefs, intents, desires, emotions, and knowledge, among others, to oneself and others. Magpies join an elite group of animals, including Elephants and Dolphins, admired for their brains and beauty.

Lyell Castonguay designed, carved, and printed this original artwork. Ink is applied to a carved wooden block and hand-pressed onto Japanese Moon Peach paper. The artist signed, titled, and numbered the edition in pencil below the image.

Select options This product has multiple variants. The options may be chosen on the product page
Dual Nature
This woodblock print is inspired by the theme of opposites: black and white, night and day, ying and yang. The idea took several drawings to refine. The concept was brewing in my subconscious after receiving several requests for a Loon image from clients. I wanted to make an image where the viewer dwells on harmonious opposites. It is signed on the back to hang on the wall in either direction.

Lyell Castonguay designed, carved, and printed this original artwork. Ink is applied to a carved wooden block and hand-pressed onto Strathmore 300 Series paper. Multiple carved blocks layer colors, resulting in a dramatic effect. The artist signed, titled, and numbered the edition in pencil below the image.

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Desert runner, the sea awaits
Date: 2022
Edition: 10
Proofs: 2
Size: 19 1/2″x11″ (excluding margins)

A piece written in the Portland Press Herald titled “Beep beep! This roadrunner hitched a ride from Las Vegas to Maine” inspired the creation of this woodblock print. The article explains how a roadrunner traveled as a stowaway in the back of a moving truck traveling from Nevada to Maine. By my calculations, the bird crossed 11 states and covered 2,800 miles! Long-distance travel is no big deal for migratory birds, but that’s quite a feat for the flight-averse roadrunner. The roadrunner was in good shape after having no food or water for days. Maine wildlife rehabilitators worked with the Game and Fish Department to file the necessary papers to send the bird back South. Now he’s back chasing lizards with one heck of a story to tell his friends.

Lyell Castonguay designed, carved, and printed this original artwork. Ink is applied to a carved wooden block and hand-pressed onto Strathmore 300 Series paper. Multiple carved blocks layer colors, resulting in a dramatic effect. The artist signed, titled, and numbered the edition in pencil below the image.

Select options This product has multiple variants. The options may be chosen on the product page
Low Rider
Low Rider features a snail cruising along the forest floor. Leaves, sticks, and camouflaged insects surround the subject. Snails have beautiful swirled shells. I wanted to highlight the elegance of this form by carving it in detail. I also enlarged the snail shell to a comical degree. Size matters in the animal world. No one will mess with this plucky mollusk! The Sound of a Wild Snail Eating by Elisabeth Tova Bailey inspired this piece. A snail takes up residence on the author’s nightstand. Bailey chronicles snail behavior and relays facts about these unusual creatures. It’s an excellent book.

Lyell Castonguay designed, carved, and printed this original artwork. Ink is applied to a carved wooden block and hand-pressed onto Strathmore 300 Series paper. Multiple carved blocks layer colors, resulting in a dramatic effect. The artist signed, titled, and numbered the edition in pencil below the image.

Select options This product has multiple variants. The options may be chosen on the product page
Luna
Release: 2021
Edition: 9
Proofs: 3
Size: 14″x12″ (excluding margins)

“Luna” allowed me to use semi-metallic silver ink in a piece. The woodblock print has a subtle glow when light hits the surface of the image. The technical challenge was to create textures that flowed with the rabbit’s form. The contour of the moon holds the scene together and frames the subject. The piece conveys a sense of fleetingness, like the quickness of a rabbit in a moonlit moment.

Lyell Castonguay designed, carved, and printed this original artwork. Ink is applied to a carved wooden block and hand-pressed onto Strathmore 300 Series paper. Multiple carved blocks layer colors, resulting in a dramatic effect. The artist signed, titled, and numbered the edition in pencil below the image.

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Hybrid One
Date: 2017
Edition: 9
Proofs: 2
Size: 22″x20″ (including margins)

Lyell Castonguay designed, carved, and printed this original artwork. Ink is applied to a carved wooden block and hand-pressed onto Stonehenge paper. Multiple carved blocks layer colors, resulting in a dramatic effect. The artist signed, titled, and numbered the edition in pencil below the image.

Select options This product has multiple variants. The options may be chosen on the product page
Hybrid Two
Date: 2017
Edition: 15
Proofs: 1
Size: 22″x20″ (including paper size)

Lyell Castonguay designed, carved, and printed this original artwork. Ink is applied to a carved wooden block and hand-pressed onto Stonehenge paper. Multiple carved blocks layer colors, resulting in a dramatic effect. The artist signed, titled, and numbered the edition in pencil below the image.

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Hybrid Three
Date: 2017
Edition: 12
Proofs: 1
Size: 22″x20″ (including margins)

Lyell Castonguay designed, carved, and printed this original artwork. Ink is applied to a carved wooden block and hand-pressed onto Stonehenge paper. Multiple carved blocks layer colors, resulting in a dramatic effect. The artist signed, titled, and numbered the edition in pencil below the image.

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Maiastra
Date: 2015
Size: 12″x12″ (excluding margins)

I was inspired to create this piece after viewing Brancusi’s bird sculptures. The word maïastra means “master” or “chief” in Brancusi’s native Romanian, but in Romanian folklore, the title refers specifically to a magically beneficent, dazzlingly plumed bird.

Lyell Castonguay designed, carved, and printed this original artwork. Ink is applied to a carved wooden block and hand-pressed onto Japanese Kitakata paper. Multiple carved blocks layer colors, resulting in a dramatic effect. The artist signed, titled, and numbered the edition in pencil below the image.

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Golden Maiastra
Date: 2015
Edition: 18
Size: 12″ x 12″ (excluding margins)

This print combines burnt sienna and metallic gold inks, creating a crisscross of finely carved textural elements. What results is a 100% Harpy Eagle attitude! The term Maiastra was inspired in part by the famous Brancusi sculpture series. Four hand-carved woodblocks, printed in five colors, were used to create this image.

Lyell Castonguay designed, carved, and printed this original artwork. Ink is applied to a carved wooden block and hand-pressed onto Japanese Kitakata paper. Multiple carved blocks layer colors, resulting in a dramatic effect. The artist signed, titled, and numbered the edition in pencil below the image.

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Midday Rambler
Date: 2012
Edition: 10 (varied)
Size: 4″x30″ (excluding margins)

This original artwork was designed, carved, and printed by Lyell Castonguay. Ink is applied to a carved wooden block and hand-pressed onto Masa Japanese paper. Multiple carved blocks layer colors, resulting in a dramatic effect. The artwork is signed, titled, and numbered in pencil by the artist.

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Midnight Rambler
Date: 2012
Edition: 10 (varied)
Size: 4″x30″ (excluding margins)

This original artwork was designed, carved, and printed by Lyell Castonguay. Ink is applied to a carved wooden block and hand-pressed onto Masa Japanese paper. Multiple carved blocks layer colors, resulting in a dramatic effect. The artwork is signed, titled, and numbered in pencil by the artist.

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