Southern Graphics Council Conference was held this year in conjunction with Philagrafika (formerly known as the Philadelphia Print Collaborative), in Philadelphia, PA. Peregrine Press members Chris Beneman and Sissy Buck attended the event — the result of 5 years of planning, “celebrating the role of print in contemporary artistic practice.” For more information on philagrafika check out their website: www.philagrafika.org
Chris and Sissy stayed at the Loew’s Hotel in center city, which was the center for the SGC, with lectures and presentations, and a vendor’s fair on Friday and Saturday. There were more than 80 venues, and over 300 artists participating all around Philly. Philadelphia is totally immersed in printmaking right now, through April 25 in most venues.
The City of Brotherly Love lived up to its name….everyone was very friendly and helpful. Especially the gentleman in the picture below who helped Chris, Sissy, Annie Silverman, and April Vollmer (that latter two are printmakers who have visited the Peregrine Press as part of the Kate Mahoney Memorial Fund Lecture program), find their way to one venue, even though he’d never heard of it!
the printmaking women, from left to right include: April Vollmer, Chris Beneman, Annie Silverman, and Sissy Buck
For a lot more about the various workshops, many links, and more pictures….
Wednesday: On our first night (a balmy spring evening), we went to the Print Center www.printcenter.org/ Latimer street was closed off, and the Drive By Press (yup, the same one that was in Portland for the first Friday artwalk this month) was set up outside printing t-shirts, while people looked on, strolling in and out of the Print Center – where there was an exhibit called “the Graphic Unconscious.” Check out this great youtube video of their process: www.youtube.com/watch?v=gBr3WG8txQk
Thursday:
1. Carl Pope slide show and lecture at Loew’s Hotel Ballroom. There’s an interview with Carl on the Philagrafika blog
2. Artists’ Books at the Philadelphia Atheneum (an historic and beautiful gem). A small show, with 5 book artists choosing a book in the Atheneum’s collection, and creating their own book in response. We met Annie Silverman (Abrazos Press in Somerville, MA) and April Vollmer, Moku Hanga master, at the conference and went to this show with them (see the photo above). Both April and Annie have done workshops for Peregrine Press.
3. Tyler School of Art at Temple Universtiy (www.temple.edu/tyler/) — an amazing art college with a new, state of the art, arts building.
-monoprint marathon for 5 mornings, with 9 visiting professors collaborating on each print…FUN! mostly screenprints, relief prints and monotypes, resulting in “Semographics II Monotypes” traveling exhibit.
-Exhibit by Rochelle Toner (amazing etchings) www.rochelletoner.com
-Drumleaf binding with Joseph Lappie (professor at St. Ambrose Univ., Iowa)
4. University of the Arts… www.uarts.edu (they have a Masters program in Book Arts/ Printmaking.) — demonstration for printing and binding an offset artist’s book experimental broadsides on the Vandercook press, we each got to print and take home our own poster (check us out printing on the Vandercook here)
6. Univ. of Penn., Meyerson Gallery, “New Prints: Part II”
a beautiful campus on a warm afternoon. April Vollmer had a piece in this show
7. Institute of Contemporary Art www.icaphila.org “Maira Kahlman” a wonderful show.
Friday:
1.Tyler School of Art, demos in gelatin printmaking, non-toxic electro-etching….more demos that we didn’t get to…limited time and space.
2. Moore College of Art www.moore.edu – Japanese stab binding with Melanie Mowinski and Tara O’Brien
It was great and a little overwhelming to be immersed in PRINTMAKING! We didn’t go to as many lectures as we wanted in order to participate more in the hands-on offerings, and see the print exhibits. There are so many new techniques available to printmakers, it made my head spin a few times. All in all it was great to be back on college campuses where printmaking is alive and well.
Report from the SGC Conference March 24-27
Southern Graphics Council Conference was held this year in conjunction with Philagrafika (formerly known as the Philadelphia Print Collaborative), in Philadelphia, PA. Peregrine Press members Chris Beneman and Sissy Buck attended the event — the result of 5 years of planning, “celebrating the role of print in contemporary artistic practice.” For more information on philagrafika check out their website: www.philagrafika.org
Chris and Sissy stayed at the Loew’s Hotel in center city, which was the center for the SGC, with lectures and presentations, and a vendor’s fair on Friday and Saturday. There were more than 80 venues, and over 300 artists participating all around Philly. Philadelphia is totally immersed in printmaking right now, through April 25 in most venues.
The City of Brotherly Love lived up to its name….everyone was very friendly and helpful. Especially the gentleman in the picture below who helped Chris, Sissy, Annie Silverman, and April Vollmer (that latter two are printmakers who have visited the Peregrine Press as part of the Kate Mahoney Memorial Fund Lecture program), find their way to one venue, even though he’d never heard of it!
the printmaking women, from left to right include: April Vollmer, Chris Beneman, Annie Silverman, and Sissy Buck
For a lot more about the various workshops, many links, and more pictures….
Wednesday: On our first night (a balmy spring evening), we went to the Print Center www.printcenter.org/ Latimer street was closed off, and the Drive By Press (yup, the same one that was in Portland for the first Friday artwalk this month) was set up outside printing t-shirts, while people looked on, strolling in and out of the Print Center – where there was an exhibit called “the Graphic Unconscious.” Check out this great youtube video of their process: www.youtube.com/watch?v=gBr3WG8txQk
Thursday:
1. Carl Pope slide show and lecture at Loew’s Hotel Ballroom. There’s an interview with Carl on the Philagrafika blog
2. Artists’ Books at the Philadelphia Atheneum (an historic and beautiful gem). A small show, with 5 book artists choosing a book in the Atheneum’s collection, and creating their own book in response. We met Annie Silverman (Abrazos Press in Somerville, MA) and April Vollmer, Moku Hanga master, at the conference and went to this show with them (see the photo above). Both April and Annie have done workshops for Peregrine Press.
3. Tyler School of Art at Temple Universtiy (www.temple.edu/tyler/) — an amazing art college with a new, state of the art, arts building.
-monoprint marathon for 5 mornings, with 9 visiting professors collaborating on each print…FUN! mostly screenprints, relief prints and monotypes, resulting in “Semographics II Monotypes” traveling exhibit.
-Exhibit by Rochelle Toner (amazing etchings) www.rochelletoner.com
-Drumleaf binding with Joseph Lappie (professor at St. Ambrose Univ., Iowa)
4. University of the Arts… www.uarts.edu (they have a Masters program in Book Arts/ Printmaking.) — demonstration for printing and binding an offset artist’s book experimental broadsides on the Vandercook press, we each got to print and take home our own poster (check us out printing on the Vandercook here)
5. Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts www.pafa.org–The SCG International Panel Philagrafika Exhibit and “Theme Portfolios”. This video was playing in the exhibition. It’s all woodcuts! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M7wuw9MlE4s&feature=player_embedded.
From the NYT, here is a link to a slide show of images from the various Philagraphika exhibitions: www.nytimes.com/slideshow/2010/02/05/arts/20100205-PHILA_9.html
6. Univ. of Penn., Meyerson Gallery, “New Prints: Part II”
a beautiful campus on a warm afternoon. April Vollmer had a piece in this show
7. Institute of Contemporary Art www.icaphila.org “Maira Kahlman” a wonderful show.
Friday:
1.Tyler School of Art, demos in gelatin printmaking, non-toxic electro-etching….more demos that we didn’t get to…limited time and space.
2. Moore College of Art www.moore.edu – Japanese stab binding with Melanie Mowinski and Tara O’Brien
It was great and a little overwhelming to be immersed in PRINTMAKING! We didn’t go to as many lectures as we wanted in order to participate more in the hands-on offerings, and see the print exhibits. There are so many new techniques available to printmakers, it made my head spin a few times. All in all it was great to be back on college campuses where printmaking is alive and well.
For a few more pictures, click here!
Thanks to Sissy and Chris who wrote and submitted all the material for this entry.