From President elect: Hon. Bob Kerrey, United States Senate, Washington DC

 

 

June 6th, 2000

Mr. John L. Tishman

Chairman Board of Trustees

New School University

Tishman Corporation

666 Fifth Avenue

New York, N.Y. 1 01 03

 

Dear Mr. Tishman,

I have been acquainted for a good number of years with the great teachers and students from the Parsons/New School Print Atelier. The dialogue established between the students, the printmaking instructors from the University and myself has been one of mutual enrichment.

After having been a Printmaker in Switzerland and Paris for a good ten years, I do not give compliments easily, especially on Printmaking today, but the results I have seen produced at the Parsons/New School Print Atelier are not only beautiful, but are of the highest standard technically, under the excellence and guidance of'the teachers there. It was a wonderful experience to visit and find the incredible team of students and instructors, working together, producing lithographs, intaglio prints and silkscreens.

Our Gallery, as you might know is the exclusive agent of the Marina Picasso collection (enclosed some documents and articles) and has the largest collection of prints by Picasso. We give loans to virtually all the Major Picasso exhibitions around the world. We have had students and instructors from the Parsons/New School Print Atelier visit and engage in lively, informed discussions at the Gallery whenever we have had a special exhibition of Picasso as a Printmaker.

I recently learned that Dean H. Randolph Swearer was considering closing this marvelous printmaking Atelier and that a Committee has been formed to determine its fate next year. May I urgently ask you to carefully consider this decision. Printmaking has always been a Major medium in Art History: from Schongauer to Durer, from Rembrandt and of course to Picasso (who always wanted to make differences between his-prints, drawings, paintings and sculptures) to Diebenkorn or to Jasper Johns. Perhaps the print studio

Finally it is perhaps necessary to remind every one that Parsons/New School Print Atelier has a rich history and is a magnificent resource for artists, designers, i Ilustrators and photographers. It offers a tremendous avenue of art expression and a place to come together.

Thank you for your consideration.

Sincerely Yours,

 

Emmanuel Benador

Director of graphics

 

 

The New York Society of Etchers, Inc.

Stephen A. Fredericks President

Andy P. Hoogenboom Vice President,

'Thomas R. White Vice President

Anne-Rose van den Bossche, Esq. Secretary

 

New School University June 21, 2000

University Commission on Printmaking Room 800

66 West 12th Street

New York, NY 10011

Dear Commission Members:

I am writing on behalf of the New York Society of Etchers, Inc. to express our concern regarding proposed changes in the Printmaking Studio at Parsons/New School University.

For us, it seems incredulous that any institution offering a world class fine arts education could consider scaling back, let alone do away with, a print program as large, successful and historically significant as yours. There is a renaissance afoot throughout the art world involving works on paper, and in particular prints done in traditional and new technologies. Our society was founded, in 1998 to exhibit and record this activity not chronicle its decline. If anything, we would encourage you to strengthen and even expand your printmaking curriculum

With all due respect, were we all amidst a severe economic downturn, where all Of LIS were being asked to take our lumps in turn, that would be one thing. But ill light of these remarkably productive times, with the cadre of talented people at your disposal, surely an acceptable accord for all concerned can reached. We hope so.

 

Steven A. Fredericks

President

cc J. L. Tishman

H. R. Swearer

W. L. Phipps

 

120 West 86th Street - Suite 7A - New York, NY 10024

 

 

Date: 10/19/2000 2:11:06 PM !!!First Boot!!!

From: mpascale@artic.edu (Mark Pascale)

To: printcom@newschool.edu

To the Commission:

It has come to my attention that the administration at Parsons is once again trying to close the printmaking department in your School of Art. As a curator of works on paper for a major institution, this comes as a shock.While I have no specifics for your plans, I must weigh in on this issue of whether or not it is worthwhile to continue with a traditional approach to print media. In fact, it is highly desirable to make high tech digital imaging facilities available within the structure of a traditional print/photography curriculum. At The School of The Art Institute of Chicago, the computer lab is within the overall studio, as well as a copy camera, and offset and hand presses. The Photography Department has for many years been in close proximity, and these departments went "on-line" at a very early moment. After many years of continuous blending of processes, I am happy to report that by conjoining these areas, we have managed to create richness in our students' education and therefore in their work. This tendency echoes what is happening in the vanguard of print publishing as well. Before you eliminate your print facility and replace it with an all digital studio/classroom, I urge you to consult with faculty at The School of The Art Institute, and some of the more informed print publishers, like John Cone in Vermont (even Pace Editions would provide you with a useful outlook, as they are still publishing a broad mix of print and photography processes). In fact, I wonder if you have considered the almost bizarre trend in publishing to return to ancient processes like daguerotype, photo-gravure, pigment transfer printing, etc. As I said, all processes make for a richer aesthetic prognosis, and if I may so bold, I suggest that closing down your current facility will make you look foolish, not smart or bold.

With my sincere concern and respect, I remain,

Very truly yours,

Mark Pascale

Mark Pascale

Associate Curator of Prints and Drawings

The Art Institute of Chicago

111 S. Michigan Ave.

Chicago, IL 60603

312-857-7168 (Phone)

312-443-0085 (Fax)

 

 

Subj: Parsons printmaking STILL in trouble!

Date: 10/19/2000 4:56:47 AM !!!First Boot!!!

From: OmriB

To: SOUTHERNGRAPHICS-L@CLEMSON.EDU

I am posting this at the request of a group of printmakers at Parsons. Those of you who read my posting in the spring of this year will remember that student action forced the Dean to back off from a unilateral closure of the printmaking facility. Of course once administration policy is decided they don't back off. The present approach is a "fact finding commission" appointed entirely by the administration with no student or faculty input as to membership. At present it has zero credibility in the school. Please send your views to the commission at printcom@newschool.edu. The Only thing they fear is a public scandal. Please help create it. CC to me at omrib@aol.com would be appreciated: Marion and Omri Behr

PS: New memoranda by the administrations and responses thereto will be posted shortly on http://www.electroetch.org/dontstrike.htm

This message comes from the Hearts and Souls of the students and faculty of the Parsons Printmaking Program

We are touched by and appreciate your expressions of support. We are still, however, in the throes of staying ALIVE! The same administration that decided to shut down Printmaking last spring, has now decided to try another angle to justify closing us down. They have formed a "commission" which purposely excludes all BFA students and Parsons printmaking faculty from membership in the commission. Such rubber stamp actions do not fool us. We are asking that all students, faculty , artists and all interested people contact their local museums and cultural institutions and write testimony in support of the importance of keeping hands on printmaking not only alive but flourishing. We would also appreciate readers of this message to send a similar message directly to the commission either by e mail to printcom@newschool.edu or by mail to:

The University Commission on Printmaking, 66 West 12th Street, New York NY 10011

Prompt action is essential. Testimony must be in the hands of the commission no later than November 6th, 2000.

Thank you Sgd "Staying Alive"

 

Subj: Printmaking at Parsons

Date: 10/20/2000 3:03:03 AM !!!First Boot!!!

From: kamprint@gol.com (Peter Miller)

Reply-to: kamprint@gol.com

To: printcom@newschool.edu

To: The University Commission on Printmaking

I have followed the controversy surrounding the proposed closure of the Printmaking Department at Parsons and would like to offer some observations as an artist and printmaker. Being uninvolved in this matter, and with no knowledge of the principals, and living overseas (in Japan), perhaps I can bring an objective perspective.  There is little doubt that printmaking is an essential element of the artistic tradition, has been so for at least half a millenium, and will continue to be so regardless of what happens at Parsons. It is really a question of whether Parsons wishes to remove itself from a vital part of contemporary artistic practice. For those who administer budgets, the question is not 'Can we afford this?' but rather 'Can we afford not to do this?' It may be that other departments have more powerful constituencies, but that would not diminish the profound loss that would occur were printmaking not to be practiced at Parsons. Printmaking offers opportunities found in no other artistic endeavor to try out new ideas, to develop new aesthetic concepts, and to disseminate the results through exhibitions and publications. It is a fundamental source of creativity which enlivens all the other graphic arts.   It seems to me that no institution of artistic education can afford to do without the practice of printmaking. From there, it becomes a matter of how to finance it. While I disagree with the notion that every academic department must be made to 'pay for itself,' whatever that may mean, nevertheless that is a trend that must be addressed. Many universities have struck profitable deals with industry in the area of scientific creativity, and there is no practical or ethical reason why similar things cannot be done in the arts. The arts in America are overly dependent on government funds anyway, and need to diversify their sources of support. Designs and technical innovations can be licensed, consulting on design problems or on building corporate art collections could be done, mid-career internships could be offered to executives in need of creative thinking -- there are myriad ways of financing printmaking if the will is there. But if you don't have the printmaking resource, none of that will be possible. Why not keep it? Think of it as a pipeline to the wellsprings of creativity, as well as a practical resource of tremendous value.

With best regards,

Peter Miller

The Kamakura Print Collection > http://www.kamprint.com

Kamakura, Japan

 Date: 10/20/2000 3:39:08 AM !!!First Boot!!!

From: hexen@plateautel.net (CLC)

To: printcom@newschool.edu

Dear Colleagues,

I have been informed that a Commission is considering the dissolution of the Printmaking Program at Parsons. I find it a great irony that an institution of higher learning devoted to communication through image would consider such a thing. I am an intaglio printmaker who teaches the art form as well as the History of Graphic Art courses at the University of New Mexico. Since the fifteenth century, Graphic Art has been the tool with which artists, scientists, theologians and politicians have fought intellectual and aesthetic battles against mediocrity and ignorance. Visual literacy would not have been possible without the Graphic Arts. The very concept of an image that could be, at once, original and repeatable, became the inspiration for printed books, Luther's broadsides and radical newspapers, not to mention Rembrandt's etchings, Photography, and Kathe Kollwitz' woodcuts. It is unfortunate that the present day urge for ever-new technology can create an environment that is inherently anti-preservationist. We can learn from our transgressions in the past. Penn Station is the best architectural example of the twentieth century. The Regensburg Synagogue, preserved only as an etching by Albrecht Altdorfer, is the best architectural example from the sixteenth century. Tearing down a single building that is representative of a community, is a sin. The felling of a workshop that practices a venerable, old art form that is still alive and kicking in the present is an act of vandalism. Please reconsider even considering that.

Sincerely,

Catherine Clinger 

 

(Subj: printmaking at Parsons

Date: 10/20/2000 2:23:03 AM !!!First Boot!!!

From: lynser@voicenet.com (Lynne Allen)

Reply-to: lynser@voicenet.com

To: printcom@newschool.edu,

It has come to my attention that a fact finding committee has been formed at Parson's to decide the future of the printmaking facility. Having just returned from a conference in Minnesota, where all the buzz was concern for the printmaking program at Parson's, I can say that most professionals in the printmaking field are quite upset and perturbed by this development. From my own experience, where printmaking is housed within other fine art disciplines, I can say that I feel the support of my colleagues concerning the worth and validation of printmaking. They realize that prints, being probably the most democratic of art mediums, can bridge just about every discipline, and in this age of 'interdisciplinary' education, printmaking finds itself crossing over into painting, photography and even sculpture. Our department feels that printmaking adds to the entire program, and it is distressing to find that other visual art schools, especially the caliber of Parson's, isn't considering the power that prints hold in contemporary image making. Students artists can make major works in prints, just like Louise Bourgoise or Kiki Smith, or any other artist who has something to say. I am writing to urge the committee to look at other printmaking departments who make a difference before they decide that printmaking is just an old fashioned medium. I would be happy to give a tour of our facility if anyone is interested and to discuss what I believe are the benefits of a well rounded, interdisipliary education to anyone who is interested.

Sincerely,

Lynne Allen

Director, Rutgers Center for Innovative Print and Paper

Professor of Art

Mason Gross School of the Arts

Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey

 

 

Date: 10/22/2000 1:05:24 PM !!!First Boot!!!

From: dhusto@hotbot.com (doug huston)

Reply-to: dhusto@hotbot.com

To: printcom@newschool.edu

It seems a bit drastic and old school to consider eliminating a field of academic study which is perhaps the most "cutting edge" of all. Printmaking no longer needs to be a bastion of 19th century thought. In today's environment, with just a little experimental tradition and an open eye to the future, Print is the most current and forward looking of most art disciplines. Consider the idea that command-P is used millions of times a day. With any eye on the future and a grasp of the past each art student has everything to gain from studying within a Print Department.

Check out the "statement of attitude" at the Printmedia Department at the University of New South Wales if you still believe Print is nothing but old/dead processes.

http://www.cofa.unsw.edu.au/units/art/print/PhilosophyPrint.html

Doug Huston

Chair, Print Department

The School of the Art Institute of Chicago

 

 

Date: 10/19/2000 2:57:28 PM !!!First Boot!!!

From: mibob@attglobal.net (Mimi Cazort / Bob McLarty)

Reply-to: mibob@attglobal.net

To: SOUTHERNGRAPHICS-L@CLEMSON.EDU

>I think it would be a great shame for Parsons to close down their printmaking facilities. Printmaking continues, after some six hundred years, to constitute a vital part of artistic communication. It is alive and well especially in New York, given the half dozen printmaking workshops in lower Manhattan alone that produce everything from stunning graphics statements by artists to fine book printing. So would Parsons cast the students back into the medieval practice of apprenticeship in order to learn this complex craft? Bye-bye, tuition revenues.

Mimi Cazort

Curator Emerita, Prints and Drawings

National Gallery of Canada

 

< Date: 10/23/2000 1:31:07 PM !!!First Boot!!!

From: goddard@falcon.cc.ukans.edu (Steve Goddard)

I sent a note to Parsons.

Steve

Stephen Goddard

Curator of Prints and Drawings

Professor of Art History

goddard@ukans.edu

http://www.ukans.edu/~sma/prints.html

 

 

Dear Randy and "Fact Finding Commission"..

Your former colleague, Tim High, here. Remember me, printmaker, UT-Austin? I beseech you and your sense of 'academic equity and freedom' tocease your efforts to erase "Fine Art of Printmaking" from the memory and experience of your students, faculty, and public supporters. Believe me, such a rash move will only come back to haunt your long-standing credibility as a key arts education insititution in New York City, the veritable "Art Capitol of the Free World". Though it is now true that Digital Imaging Technology has moved in through the 'backdoor' of the disciplines of both printmaking and photography, it would be very shortsighted and reactionary, in my opinion, to assume that the 'new technology' offers sufficient capabilities to replace or render obsolete the 'nuance' and 'touch' afforded by hands-on printmaking applications. The legacy of Parson's School of Design to the Visual Arts Community should continue to cultivate and, unquestioningly, celebrate the intimate vitality and the touch of the artist's own hand in the enterprise of creative expression. I urge you to rethink your position before serious and lasting philosophical damage to the reputation and image of your fine institution is sustained.

respectfully and soberly,

Tim High

Associate Professor - Studio Art

Department of Art and Art History

University of Texas at Austin

 Austin, TX. 78712

Office Phone # (512) 471-012

 

 

Subj: Closure of Printmaking Facility

Date: 25/10/2000 9:10:07 AM Eastern Daylight Time

From: SSEARS@howdy.com (Sarah Sears)

To: Printcom@newschool.edu

To The Commission:

Regarding the proposed closing of the Parsons printmaking facility, I find it unbelievable that the administration would willingly cut off this arm of its visual arts program.

I would never refer a prospective art student to a school that didn't offer printmaking. The skills and thought processes a printmaker develops are vastly different from those used in painting or drawing, but they are invaluable. Combined with the immediacy of painting, they give the artist a profound knowledge base that cannot be gained through drawing and painting alone.

As a printmaker and painter who has worked in New York for 20 years, I can attest to the fact that printmaking is the only fine art medium through which I earn any substantial income. It puzzles me that Parsons would not consider this practical aspect of printmaking important to its students.

Some of my "day jobs" have been in private industry. I have watch many short-sighted business decisions (made in the interest of immediate gain) flounder and fail. I once saw a satellite office emptied out and its employees moved upstate, only to be moved back down to the city a year later, after management discovered there was still a great need for an urban presence. It is just this sort of decision that I believe the Parsons administration to be making.

I urge you to listen to the voices of the artists of New York. Please do not close your printmaking department!

Sincerely,

 Sarah Sears

 

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