Connections: The Artist/Master Printer
18 December 2022 to 5 February 2023
On printmaking: The passion I feel for the way printers can wipe a plate and use ink in the sensitive way to illuminate what I’ve drawn is a real privilege. I learned everything I know about printing from printers, …… I am so aware of how printers realize my images; I’ve learned from every printer I’ve worked with. (A Printmakers Document by Jim Dine p. 63, Steidl, 2013)
There are numerous collaborative print studios around the world and Australia, which have become important sites for artistic exchange and experimentation with print. They play a critical role in supporting and stimulating the creative process and potentialities of printmaking by allowing for dynamic dialogue and exchange between artist and master printer.
The exhibition Connection, Artist/Master Printer, introduces the individual and collaborative practice of Basil Hall, artist and founder of Basil Hall Editions; Michael Kempson, artist and founder of Cicada Press; and Ron McBurnie, artist and publisher of Monsoon Publishing. I have worked with them for many years and have grown to respect them for the sheer talent of their work and the causes that drive them to produce work as artist printmakers and master printers.
My selection of works from their personal archives includes artists they worked with over many years. This tells a story of facilitating and shows that the collaboration between an artist and master-printer can create some of the most exciting, innovative and unconventional ideas to the medium. This not only breaks down barriers between various media and raises the profile of prints in contemporary art but also expands the boundaries of printmaking.
Recognising the works of their own art practice is a natural extension of their existing practices, they have no problem in reconciling the very nature of the creative process. Working with various mediums: drawing, watercolour and print, they engage and combine the two different artistic conversations and see their own work as quite separate from the work they create with other artists.
Through their dedication and innovative approach to printmaking, Basil, Ron and Michael have had a profound impact on Australian printmaking.
Akky van Ogtrop
Curator
Image:Ron McBurnie, Giant Rock Cape Hillsborough (detail) 2020, ink and watercolour on paper, 94.5 x 123cm. Collection of Artspace Mackay.