BIMA and BARN (Bainbridge Artisan Resource Network) are proud to present together this one-of-a-kind workshop by Fred Hagstrom.

High-density polystyrene (HIPS) is an expensive, but highly flexible support for printmaking. It is an opaque, fairly soft material that carves easily using engraving tools such as burins and half tone rakes. Using burins, it is possible to achieve fine detail even at relatively small scale; woodcut tools may also be used for results comparable to wood engraving, and Dremel tools may be used to grind away areas of the surface. The plates generated through these processes will be printed in black and white during this one-day workshop, though they may be easily used at a later time for color printing.

Details:

• Students are advised to come with some basic understanding of printing processes and the ability to generate images independently.
• All materials are included in the cost of the class.
• Please feel free to bring a bag lunch, BARN has a refrigerator to store your lunch in.

Fred Hagstrom is the Rae Schupack Nathan Professor of Art at Carleton College, where he was Director of the Perlman Center for Learning and Teaching and has taught since 1984. His primary areas are printmaking, drawing, and artist’s books, and his work is represented in over 50 collections that include the Library of Congress, the Smithsonian Libraries, the Minneapolis Institute of Arts, and Walker Art Center, among others. Hagstrom has a bachelor’s degree from Hamline University and a graduate degree from the University of Nebraska. He has also worked at Atelier 17 in Paris and taught at the Cleveland Institute of Art. He is a recipient of The Excellence in Teaching Printmaking Award from Southern Graphics International, the largest international print organization.

Hagstrom works (and teaches) in printmaking — all print media, including intaglio, relief, lithography, silk-screen and letterpress — and book arts. Much of his work has been printed in relief, often as large-scale prints from carved wood blocks or plastic plates. He is interested in art about social issues, and draws upon printmaking’s rich history in this area; some of his book projects have become a form of public art, such as editions of hand-printed books that were donated to high school libraries. Hagstrom thinks that every student ought to try to learn how to draw so that they can become visually literate, which is as important a skill as knowing how to read.