CEDAR FALLS - Quiet, carefully composed and beautifully colored, Mary Huber describes etchings in John Page's "The River Series," as "precious gems."

"The series records the ambiance of the Cedar River as it was 40 years ago. He captures a sense of the river, the buildings, dams, bridges … the river was his inspiration, and the coloring and aesthetics are beautifully done," says Huber, executive director of the Hearst Center for the Arts.

The 20-piece series of color reduction etchings was presented to the Hearst Center's permanent collection nearly 10 years ago by Bob and Rosemary Beach. The series is being exhibited for the first time now through March 16.

Page, a University of Northern Iowa professor emeritus, will speak at an artist's reception at 2 p.m. March 9 at the Hearst Center.

Bob Beach was given one of the Page prints in the 1960s, and really enjoyed it. "I discovered he'd done a series, so I started picking them up one by one until I had the rest of them. John made those prints with copper plates and did it all freehand. I thought they were unusual," says Beach.

He finds the nostalgia appealing. "Many of the buildings and bridges Page depicted are gone, including the Broom Factory now, and the old river bridge that used to go across Franklin Street. It doesn't look the same now."

The Beaches offered the series to the Hearst Center 10 years ago, with the condition that they would keep possession until downsizing their residence this year. "We felt they were really part of Cedar Falls and should go to the center," Beach explains.

Page taught at UNI for 33 years and has classical training in painting. In graduate school at the University of Iowa in Iowa City, he studied printmaking with the famed Mauricio Lansansky. He now lives in Green River, Arizona, where he continues to create and exhibit his artwork — and indulges in his passion for golf.

Page recalls "The River Series" began with a printmaking class project in the summer of 1964.

"On a trip to the site, 14 students and myself drew on the plates that later made a book of etchings that all received a copy of," Page says. "From that start, I made the plates for 19 more etchings and printed them in an edition of 20 for the sepia ‘River Series. Then over the next year I made 20 color prints in a possibly unique manner."

Huber briefly describes the etching process. "He used a metal needle to scratch away the surface right on the plate. Ink is spread on the plate and wiped away, leaving behind ink in the scratched grooves and lines. That is put through a press and the image is transferred to paper."

The color reproduction process itself is laborious. In simple terms, it is the cutting and printing of each desired color from one plate until only the last color remains.

"It's a rather unusual technique for this kind of printmaking," she says.

Interestingly, the images appear "backwards from reality," so the buildings in Page's First Street Bridge scene are, for example, on the opposite side of the street. "That's because the drawing was needled onto the plate as he saw it, and when it is transferred to paper, it is printed backwards," Huber explains.

Page made four complete sets of "The River Series." He owned one set himself, but it sold from Page's Tucson gallery to a man from New York. Another set is owned by a Waterloo couple, and "I don't know more," he says.

"They really are gorgeous," Huber adds. "We thrilled John is coming back for the reception. He's such a charming man. I don't think they've been back to the area for 10 years, so its a chance for everyone who knew him, his former students and friends, to see him again."

Go & do

What: John Page "The River Series"

When: Now through March 16

Where: Dresser-Robinson Gallery, Hearst Center for the Arts, 304 W. Seerley Blvd., Cedar Falls

Details: Artist's reception at 2 p.m. March 9