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The atelier or artist’s workshop in the basement of USC’s art department isn’t very large—but art department chair Phil Dunn hopes it will acquire a sizable reputation among artists who want to convert their work into prints.
Through the University’s Centenary Plan, the art department has hired Gene Speer, a master printmaker who will work with visiting artists and students to turn paintings, drawings, and other artistic creations into limited-edition prints for sale. The initial project last year produced a set of lithographs of four Jonathan Green paintings; one-third of the prints belong to the art department, which will use revenue from their sale for further development of the printmaking program.
“The atelier is an outgrowth of the art department’s strategic planning,” Dunn said. “We felt like we could become more entrepreneurial, and this printmaking project is very much in that vein.”
New York-based artist Sig Abeles will come to the atelier for a week in September. He’ll work with Speer and art students to select the best technique—silk screen, lithography, etch plate, monotype, or wood block—for printing his realistic drawings and etchings. Like the Jonathan Green project, a portion of the prints will belong to the art department and will be made available for sale.
“This allows us to enhance educational opportunities for our students by bringing in artists with international reputations,” Dunn said. “They are learning from the visiting artist and getting hands-on experience with printmaking at the same time. This ongoing process will become a recruiting tool for top graduate students.”
Brian Rutenberg, a painter born in South Carolina and now established in New York, will visit USC for three one-week sessions in the spring semester.
“I think we can help him pick a process that will best translate his paintings into prints,” Speer said. “He’s been announced as one of the top 12 American painters to be collected, so there should be an immediate market for prints.”
The full complement of prints from the atelier—Green’s, Abeles’, and Rutenberg’s—could be made available on the Web by the end of the spring semester, Dunn said. The portfolio will expand each year with the arrival of more visiting artists and printmaking projects.
“Prices for these limited-edition prints will range from $500 to $5,000 and will support the atelier and future printmaking projects,” Dunn said. “Our plan is for the atelier to be self supporting within three years.”
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