Don't Print Yourself Into A Corner

When I decided that I wanted to focus on printmaking for my art degree, I received the same comment from several of my professors - "You better start painting, because you can't make it as a printmaker". Really?

Some still see prints as being low on the artistic totem poll due to its main function of being a cost effective way to bring multiple copies to the masses who are largely too broke to buy a painting. Today, prints have been elevated to a status that can monetarily rival paintings. Yes, it is challenging to have an artistic career that is supported solely by production of prints. And yes, it is hard to command thousands of dollars for a single print, but there are some ways around that problem:

1. Make Epic Prints.
Make them huge and fill a space installation style. Start out small, like your bedroom wall, then gradually work your way up to a football field.

2. Make Only One.
Make monoprints or make only editions of 1. That alone will make it more valuable.

3. Expensive, Long and Laborious.
Take a REALLY long time to make one print and while you're at it make it as formally complicated as you can and use REALLY expensive materials whether the image warrants it or not. Do that and someone might be having this conversation in the future:
Margaret: "Wow, Dean! That is a fantastic print!"
Dean: "I know! It took the artist 47 years to make it. He used laser-cut, diamond-treated plates, flew in chemical specialists from Germany to assist with one run, buried it in the remote grounds of the Tristan de Cunha islands in order to utilize it's specific oxides for 5 years, gave it to Tom Friedman who stared at it for 1,237 hours, burned it and then used the remaining ashes for flocking."
Margaret: Amazing! (She says this as she ponders the piece in front of her - a 22" x 30" sheet of stained Rives BFK paper containing a 12" square next to a circle with an 8" diameter. Both flocked with ashes.)

I personally will always use some sort of print technique in my art practice. Whether I am painting, sculpting, molding, drawing...I think in terms of multiples and repetition and approach my projects with a printer's sensibility. It's a great time to be a printmaker. There is more artistic discourse surrounding printmaking, more artists who are known for working in other medias are making prints. There are numerous sites for printmakers and those who love prints ranging from blue-chip auction houses to DIY spots.

I do greatly appreciate all the advice given to me from past instructors warning me not to print myself into a corner. However, I'm doing more than that. I'm printing the corner, the walls, the floor and the ceiling.