The LeRoy Neiman Center is a non-profit printshop at Columbia University for use by students as well as professional artists. Associate Director Samantha Rippner showed us a sample of the more than 600 editions that have been published in collaboration with 60 artists since 1996. Recent editions we saw were by Sanford Biggers, Cecily Brown, Susanna Coffey, Y.Z. Kami, Sarah Sze and Kiki Smith, among others.
The LeRoy Neiman Center for Print Studies was founded by a generous endowment from LeRoy and Janet Neiman in 1996 to promote printmaking through education, production and exhibition of prints. In their academic programming, they encourage undergraduate and graduate students to explore various printmaking media through a wide array of classes, fellowships, and studio work. In addition to strong technical instruction, they also support the students in creating work that challenges the established conventions of printmaking, moving print into new and innovative territory. Through a fellowship program, students have the opportunity to gain first-hand experience in a professional printshop by assisting the master printer and visiting artist with the production of an editioned print.
Throughout the year, the Center hosts a variety of exhibitions showcasing the work of invited artists, Visual Arts faculty, undergraduate and graduate students and work produced in the professional printshop. The exhibits give students’ work public exposure in a professional setting and bring outside voices to the Neiman Center, creating a rich environment of display and dialogue.
As part of its goal to bring a professional element to Columbia’s printmaking community, the Neiman Center invites artists to produce editioned prints in the professional printshop. This includes emerging artists who have not yet had a chance to investigate the print medium; mid-career artists who have specific projects that match the Centers capabilities; established artists who are interested in exploring new and exciting directions for their work in a less commercial environment. The projects produced by artists in collaboration with the Neiman Center provide financial support for the Center’s mission. These funds specifically sustain future artist and student collaborations, exhibitions, equipment upgrades, and fellowships.