The collaborative print studio within a Higher Educational Institution and its relationship to the art marketplace

Hoskins, Stephen; Laidler, Paul

Abstract

The British Pop-artist Richard Hamilton has described the benefits of working collaboratively with printers: “Gaining the wide range of technical skills required in many different print media would be absurdly time-consuming, if not impossible. My habit is to go to the craftsmen who can best serve the requirements of any given project”.

The role of the collaborative, independent, print studio is well documented within fine art practice; many examples exist, from the seminal American studios founded in the 1960’s such as ‘ULAE’ (Universal Limited Art Editions) and ‘Tyler Graphics’, to UK examples such ‘Editions Alecto’ founded by Chris Prater.

This collaborative model has also developed further in the USA with studios attached to universities such as ‘GraphicStudio in Tampa’ Florida, (part of the University of Southern Florida) and the ‘Tamarind Institute’, which is part of the University of New Mexico. In the UK this model has not yet been adopted, but when the artist Richard Hamilton approached CFPR in 2003 to print a specific piece of work, it became apparent that there was the potential to develop the USA model at CFPR.

Since that time, CFPR has pioneered a mixed economy model of Pure Research, Collaboration with Artists and industrial development.

With this in mind, this paper will explore the historical role of the master printer, and how the role has adjusted to the digital print era. How we use this role across the different kinds of research that we undertake when working with established artists such as Richard Hamilton, or a younger generation of artists such as Carolyn Bunt who has recently exhibited at Zoo Art Fair, and in a solo show at Room Gallery, London.

• Presentation Conference Type: Conference Paper (unpublished)
• Conference Name: Higher Education and the Creative Economy Conference
• Start Date: Mar 22, 2010
• End Date: Mar 23, 2010
• Publication Date: Mar 26, 2010
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Keywords: print studio, collaboration, the master printer, digital print
• Public URL: https://uwe-repository.worktribe.com/output/980391
• Publisher URL: http://nuke.creative-campus.org.uk/