Fall Internship

The deadline for applications to the fall internship program at Pyramid Atlantic is quickly approaching. (July 26!!!!)

This internship provides an excellent opportunity to learn new skills and interact with a variety of artists.

Directions for submitting an application can be found on Pyramid Atlantic's main page.

Catherine Cole in the Bathroom Gallery

Take advantage of Pyramid Atlantic Happy Hours!

Note: We've added several new happy hours--see the schedule below!

Pyramid Atlantic Art Center offers twice monthly group open studios (aka happy hours) for those wanting to work in printmaking, papermaking, and the book arts. For a nominal cost, the group (depending on the studio selected) has access to Pyramid Atlantic studios’ equipment including: guillotine, board shear, Vandercook presses, etching press and exposure units. This is a great opportunity for experienced participants* to come together to create work, discuss ideas on technique and content, brainstorm alternative methods, and critique each others work. Come in and interact with other artists and get some work done!

* Please note: Instruction is not provided. Participants must have experience using the equipment. If you are a beginner you'll need to get started with individual instruction or workshops.

All groups are $10 for members and $20 for non-members each. Please RSVP if you plan to attend.

Letterpress Happy Hour on the first and third Wednesdays of the month from 7 – 9pm. For information and to RSVP, please contact our Letterpress Associate, Moira McCauley at letterpress@pyramid-atlantic.org.

Screenprinting Society on the first and third Thursdays of the month from 7 – 9pm. For details and to RSVP, please contact Screenprinting Associate, Rebecca Katz at screenprint1@pyramid-atlantic.org.

Papermaking Society on the first and third Thursdays of the month from 6 – 8pm. For details and to RSVP contact Beth Parthum at Elizabeth.parthum@gmail.com.

Book Circle every Wednesday from 7- 9pm (Note adjusted summer schedule= July 7 & 28 and Aug. 18 & 25. Regular schedule resumes in Sept.) . Contact Bookbinding Associate, Patty Lee for more details and to RSVP at bookmakerpa@gmail.com.

New* Print Shop Happy Hour on the first and third Wednesdays of the month from 6:30-9 pm. Begins July 7th. For details and to RSVP contact Printshop associate Jake Muirhead at jakemuirhead@rcn.com.

New* Block Print Happy Hour on the first and third Thursday of the month from 7-9 pm. Begins July 15th. For details and to RSVP contact Relief printmaking associate Sabeth Jackson at blockprintpa@gmail.com.

Interview with Laura Kinneberg

1. When did you first consider yourself an artist?
I consider myself something between an artist and a designer. I don't know when...it's always been important for me to make things.
2. Can you describe your work in one word? (Two if you really have to)
printlike
3. What is the role of process in your work? Is it important to its content and/or meaning?
Very important. I like unpacking and dismantling processes and thinking about the bits and pieces. Language is one way I get at it, translating terms to get to pared-down meanings. For instance, a stencil is something that blocks/unblocks in screenprinting. But, you can more easily translate the idea of block/unblock to another process. Whereas a stencil seems more grounded in screenprinting. Language can loosen things up.
4. What artists influence you?
Anni Albers and how she wrote about material-as-metaphor and struggling with obstinate materials. (materials should inform the shape of the work. Obstinate materials make you a better craftsman.) I also like really pared down work, and artists who also seem to rely on language and/or literal experiences and forms, like Donald Judd, Richard Long, Sol Lewitt, Josef Albers, Piero Manzoni, Richard Serra, Eve Hesse, Mel Bochner, Callum innes, Ad Reinhardt.
5. Why did you want to be an artist in residence at Pyramid Atlantic?
So many fun pieces of equipment and the freedom to come and go. There's a lot of activity in this shared studio that is refreshing to me.
6. Have you ever worked on a collaborative piece? If so, can you describe the experience and the resulting work?
My final project in grad school was a collaborate installation event called CMYK Day (documented on my website LauraKinneberg.com). It was the largest project I've ever undertaken and involved planned and unplanned components. Basically I wanted participants to learn about cmyk printing without using standard tools but by using surrogate tools-- colored gravel stood for ink, steel hand tools for squeegees, a parking lot was the substrate. It was really interesting to put my ideas into other people's hands and then have it all open up and change and linger after we'd all gone home.
7. How do you evaluate the success of a work of art?
My most successful works are the ones with which I struggle the most. It's true for me that I learn the most from mistakes. If it's someone else's work, then I gauge success on how their intentions line up with what I see, the strength of the ideas, craft, innovation, and, frankly, if it's something that interests me.
8. Do you have any mantras you live by when working in the studio?
Measure twice, proof five times, remix that color that doesn't seem quite right, cut once, double check a couple times. Not the most inspirational stuff, but if i'm not focusing, I usually waste a lot of time and material.
9. What do you hope to achieve during your time at Pyramid Atlantic?
Finish a handful of editions and perhaps one installation, a good head start on new material, and meet some new people.

Graham Boyle in Sunday's Post

Cesar Maxit, Graham Boyle, other artists inspired by community activism

Membership has its Privileges

Your membership to Pyramid Atlantic provides us with the critical support we need to promote and nurture artistic excellence, educational enrichment and community development. This year, memberships have allowed Pyramid Atlantic to foster educational programs in schools, libraries and community centers throughout the DC metro area.

Our basic membership starts at $40, and in addition to that fuzzy feeling that you'll get, you will receive:

• Special rates for studio, workshops and gallery rentals
• Free once a month "members only" nights featuring free hands-on activities such as screen printing or bookmaking
• Free once a month VIP tours of the current exhibition led by Annie Turner, Director of Washington Printmaker's Gallery
• A 10% discount at Art Spring- The Pyramid Atlantic Community Arts Store in Downtown Silver Spring
• A 10% discount to live music and theatre events at Pyramid
  
• Subscription to the Pyramid Atlantic Newsletter and Members only newsletter
  

How can you pass all that up??

Our June members only night is Fabulous Paper Hat making!

Details: June 25th, 6-8pm
Please bring your Pyramid Atlantic membership card.
We will supply Pyramid handmade papers, but bring other textural or funky items to add to your hat.
No art experience necessary, but a good imagination is welcome!

Want to come? It's simple, become a member!

Maxine Worthy in the Bathroom Gallery!

Call for Entries

In February 2011, The Jerusalem Fund Gallery ( www.thejerusalemfund.org/gallery) will hold a juried exhibition tentatively titled “Kitab, the Art of the Book,” featuring small scale artist-made books with the theme of peace in the Middle East.

The show will be juried by Watergate Gallery Director Dale Johnson, artist Helen Zughaib, and curator Dagmar Painter.

The Jerusalem Fund Gallery is a non-profit organization, specializing in contemporary art by American, Arab-American, and Arab artists.

More information to follow.

Call for Artists

Fall Keyholder Residency, September 13-November 17, 2010
Application due date, July 2nd, 2010.


Current Keyholder Artist-in-Residence Cara Hunt

Keyholder Residency

A program that provides concentrated work time for artists to explore new ideas in one of Pyramid Atlantic's studio disciplines.

Pyramid Atlantic is proud to offer a two month residency opportunity for artists working in the field of printmaking, papermaking, book arts, or digital media. Artists of all career stages are encouraged to apply for this residency. Two artists per session are selected by Pyramid Atlantic’s artistic staff. Resident artists work in a productive community atmosphere alongside other artists, and are expected to be in the studio at least 15-20 hours per week. Technical assistance is not included in the residency, but is available at an additional cost.

Keyholder Resident Artists receive:

• A $200 artist’s stipend
• 24-hour studio access
• Storage space
• Inclusion in Pyramid Atlantic’s permanent collection
• Promotion through Pyramid’s e-newsletter, blog and website

More Information
Application

Video of Ethan Sherman's Installation

Graduate School Panel

Last Thursday, Pyramid Atlantic held a graduate school panel, where past and current graduate students shared information about the factors to consider when choosing an MFA program, and how you can fund your studies once you've been accepted. The panelists offered a variety of view points, encompassing many of the challenges and rewards of pursuing work at the graduate level. 

Ethan Sherman in the Bathroom!

Critique at Pyramid Atlantic

Sabeth Jackson, Hunting Rabbits, Linocut and Paper Lithograph, 2010

Pyramid Atlantic will be hosting a critique on Tuesday, June 29th at 7pm. The event will take place in the 1st floor classroom area. Please bring work that you would like to get feedback on. Each person will be allotted a wall to pin up their work and 15 minutes for discussion.

If you have any questions, please email megan4pyramidatlantic@gmail.com.

Intaglio Workshop

Here are some pictures from our intaglio workshop with Jake!

Interview with Artist in Residence

I recently interviewed one of our artists in residence, Cara. Here is what she had to say about her work as a designer...

1. When did you first consider yourself an artist?

I consider myself to be more of a designer/creator than an artist. I first assumed this role around the age of five when I began experimenting with the boxes of fabrics we always had in our house growing up (my mother was a Textiles teacher).

 

2. Can you describe your work in one word? (Two if you really have to)

Er, no. At this point my designs don't have a specific identity as the designs vary so much depending on the project I am working on. Ask me again in a couple of months...

 

3. What is the role of process in your work? Is it important to its content and/or meaning?

The development  and exploration of an initial concept is an imperative part of my design process, the further I push the experimentation of an idea the better the outcome. Typically I will start putting together a workbook filled with any kind of inspiration that may include photographs, color pallets, designers/artists work that I may draw elements from such as line work, color or scale. From there I can begin to draw out motifs and start playing scale, colors, fabrics and putting images into repeating patterns for print, by hand as well as digitally. I always have an end use application for the fabric in mind and tend to keep sampling until I am satisfied that my designs are resolved enough to print on larger scale fabrics to be made into a finished piece.
 

4. What artists influence you?

Florence Broadhurst, Eley Kishimoto, Suzy Hoodles, Samantha Hahn, Kara Walker, Basso and Brooke. All amazing pattern designers/artists!
 

5. Why did you want to be an artist in residence at Pyramid Atlantic?

Since moving to the states over a year ago I have continued to design independently but have not yet translated any of my ideas into print. I saw being an artist resident as not only a means of executing my designs, but as an amazing opportunity to develop creatively and share an environment with other designers/artists. Having creative people around to bounce ideas off and learn from is of huge benefit. 
 

6. Have you ever worked on a collaborative piece? If so, can you describe the experience and the resulting work?

In 2006 I was part of a collaborative trio made up of a textile designer, a musician and a dancer. The brief was to design a costume piece for the dancer to perform in, which was inspired by a song composed by the musician. This culminated in a live performance at the national museum of New Zealand. Te Papa. It was a great opportunity to work with people studying different creative disciplines as it gave each of us a behind the scenes insight into what goes into preparing a music piece, choreographing a dance, or creating a finished textile piece. 
 

7. How do you evaluate the success of a work of art?

If I can look at a piece of work six months after I have created it and still be happy with the outcome then I think it qualifies as a successful piece (or anything that stays in my portfolio longer than a year!).
 

8. Do you have any mantras you live by when working in the studio?

Have fun with what you are doing, if it isn't working then don't force it- move onto something new.
 

9. What do you hope to achieve during your time at Pyramid Atlantic?

Loads of fresh new designs and prints, getting my own website up and running, networking with other artists at Pyramid and trading creative knowledge. 

Congratulations to Pyramid Atlantic Artists!

Three of our very own Pyramid Atlantic artists are included in the juried exhibition, Fantastic Journeys, at the McLean Project for the Arts.

Rebecca Katz, Pyramid Screenprinting Associate
Lindsay McCulloch, former Pyramid Atlantic Artist-in-Residence, and now Pyramid teaching artist
Amy Yang, former Pyramid Atlantic Artist-in-Residence

Congratulations to all three of you!

We hope that you take your own fantastic journey out to McLean, for the opening on June 17th, 7-9pm.

McLean Project for the Arts
Emerson Gallery
1234 Ingleside Avenue
McLean, VA 22101
Open Tuesday-Friday 10am-4pm; Saturday 1-5pm; and by appointment.

Extra-Extra!

Two of our very own artists, Rebecca Katz and Patti Harden, are featured in a great article in Worn Magazine's Blog

Read it
"Screenprinting 101"

Photos and article by artist (and newbie screenprinter) Joshua Yospyn

Help Us Name Our New Gallery

So, as you can see from our pictures below, our new gallery space is also our bathroom! Now that the first show has been installed, we are brainstorming a gallery name.

Suggestions so far have been:

Le Tub

Le Toilet

Le WC

Gallery Toilet

Flushing Gallery

Flushed

Stallspace

The Lou

The John

The Can

What do you think?

New Gallery Space at Pyramid!

Pyramid Atlantic has a new gallery space and we are proud to present our first exhibition by artist Sarah Eargle. Check out her fantastic work!

Screen Printing Clinic

Over the past few weeks the interns have enthusiastically completed clinics in screen printing, paper making, book binding, and yesterday, letterpress. The tutorials have been fun and informative and we can't wait to explore these mediums further throughout the summer. Additionally, the first of four exhibitions is now up in the bathroom, and we welcome everyone to have a look.

As we begin work on our personal portfolios, we would each like to offer a brief bio along with a selected image...

My name is Catherine Cole and I am a rising senior majoring in Studio Art and minoring in Marketing at the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia.

My artistic experience is mostly in drawing and printmaking, with a more recent progression into painting. I love the look of ink, be it in broad smooth areas or delicate lines, and that’s one of the reasons I am drawn to printmaking as a medium. My favorite method of printmaking so far is woodcut due to the physical nature of carving the blocks and the infinite range of mark making, textures, and surfaces that can be achieved. I find that these qualities offer much for me to experiment with and explore.

I also have a love for type which has been separate from my art thus far, so after learning how to use the letterpress and learning other media such as paper making and bookbinding, I look forward to learning how to use these in combination with my printmaking.

Other goals for this summer include using the printing presses as often as I can, pushing the extremes of my work, building my portfolio, meeting and getting to know other artists, networking, understanding the structure and functions of a non-profit art organization, all while absorbing as much additional information as I can about print and paper media, the DC art scene, the art world in general, and possible careers for artists.

My image is a reductive woodcut self portrait of me using an eyelash-curler titled Morning Routine.

Sarah Eargle earned a B.A. in Art and Art History from St. Mary's College of Maryland in 2010. Her recent work explores how we experience the body through color, texture, and line. Using found objects, she creates biomorphic shapes, which are then printed to paper, resulting in rich and complex surfaces. Her prints often serve as studies for paintings, which explore similar themes.

This summer, Sarah hopes to continue investigating the body through new mediums, both singularly and in combination.


A complete gallery of images can be viewed at: http://students.smcm.edu/seargle

Maxine Worthy first began to create art in Fayetteville, AR where she was born and raised. She currently attends St. John's College in Santa Fe, NM with hopes that its Great Books Program will help inform and deepen her artistic work. The relationship between stories and images has always been a part of her art, she has a made and published several comics and is interested in illustration. She was initially attracted to printmaking was because the flatness of the color, which reminded her of children's books. She hopes to continue creating her own comics and to develop her printmaking skills during her internship at Pyramid Atlantic.

Hey, my name is Ethan Sherman. I just finished my sophomore year at Rutgers, New Brunswick, where I study printmaking and sculpture. This summer seems like it is going to be a great time and I intend on spending as much of it as possible in the studio working on new projects. Some of my interests outside of printmaking include playing music, cooking, rock climbing, skateboarding, and outdoor activities in general. The next thing I have coming up in an installation in the Pyramid Atlantic first floor bathroom, running the week of June 7th.

Graduate School Panel Discussion

Pyramid Atlantic Presents

Graduate School Panel Discussion:

June 8, 2010, 7:00 pm

Pyramid Atlantic will be hosting a Panel Discussion on Tuesday evening June 8th at 7pm. The discussion is going to be focusing on pursuing graduate studies in the arts. This is a great opportunity for recent graduates and current students to get some advice/feedback and an opportunity to start asking questions if they are thinking about pursuing graduate school in the future. The event will be free and open to the public.

Panel Participants:

Jeremy Flick

Fleming Jefferies

Kate Sable

Samuel Scharf

Emily Shaw