Meet the Printer – Manneken Press
Q1. Where is your print studio based? (town/city, country)
Bloomington, Illinois, USA.
Q2. When was the print studio established?
2000.
Q3. What is the history of the print studio?
My involvement with printmaking comes from a love for the medium as an artist. Later I began printing for other artists. Before starting Manneken Press I had previously worked at print studios in New York City, Maine and California and owned and operated another fine art press with a partner in NYC. I established Manneken Press in 2000 with a desire to focus on publishing editions, unique prints, portfolios and artist books by contemporary artists. This has evolved over time to include other works on paper, sculpture and photography to better represent the full scope of our artist’s creative output. We started out small with a shoestring budget, working with just a handful of artists, and we depended at first on the artist’s galleries to sell the work we produced. Now, twenty two years on, Manneken Press represents more than thirty artists. We showed at our first art fair in 2008 and since then we do several fairs per year. We often publish multiple projects by an artist over time with an eye to creating a unique body of their work in the medium of printmaking.
Q4. Over the years, who are some of the artists you worked with?
Mel Chin, Kiki Smith, Judy Ledgerwood, Alison Saar, Jose Bedia, Robert Indiana, Anna Kunz, Jill Moser.
Q5. What printmaking techniques does your print studio specialise in?
Specialties of Manneken Press are intaglio, including photogravure, and relief printing.
Q6. If you could invite any three artists (living or no longer alive) to a dinner party, who would they be and why?
Leonarda Da Vinci, John Cage and Buckminster Fuller. I think the conversations with/between them would be fascinating.
Q7. If you could own any one particular artwork, regardless of value, what would it be (title, artist), and why?
A print by Richard Serra, one of the ones that are deeply etched and full of ink- because I would enjoy both looking at it and smelling it!
Q8. Who is your favourite artist of all time, and why?
I don’t have favourites.
Q9. What are some of the recent prints made by your gallery?
“Bugs”, “Plugs” and “Drugs”: three aquatints by Matt Magee, monotypes by Anna Kunz, monotypes by Judy Ledgerwood, “Chroma Six” suite of aquatints by Jill Moser. We have projects currently in development by Kate Petley and Jill Moser, and upcoming projects with Carlos Andrade and Lorraine Peltz.
Q10. What advice would you offer print collectors in building a collection or simply buying prints?
Buy what interests you, inspires you and draws you in. Look beyond the “usual suspects” and discover some of the many amazing artists making prints today. Follow your heart (and your eye!).
