Since its inception in 1994, the annual Artists’ Showcase remains one of the most popular and well attended events of the Print Club.
At this event, four or five artists are invited to make a brief presentation in which they discuss their development as artists and show some of their works, followed by questions from the audience. After the presentations, each artist is provided a table to display his or her portfolio and offer their prints for sale to our members. It is a wonderful opportunity for the artist, who meets new collectors, as well as for Print Club members, who can purchase the artwork directly and meet the printmaker.
The concept behind the selection process is to seek artists who are not yet well represented by commercial galleries. Our process begins with visits by members of the selection committee to studios and galleries in the area, including sites such as the Robert Blackburn Printmaking Workshop, the Art Students League, the Leroy Nieman Center, Manhattan Graphics Center, Guttenberg Arts and the Center for Contemporary Printmaking. On the basis of these visits, we invite a short list of artists to submit e-portfolios. Our committee then meets to make the final selection and those artists are invited to present at the annual Showcase event.
Artists who participated in the Showcase can be found here.
It has been rewarding to follow career paths of artists who have participated in the Showcase and to see how successful many of them have become. Highlights of the showcase include the fact that so many different styles and techniques are represented, both traditional and innovative. The artists also have considerable geographical diversity, even though the selection process is based in the New York area. Most come from around the United States, but we have had artists from as far away as Argentina, Chile, Japan, South Korea and Russia.
In March of 2011, we hosted an exhibit of prints from our members’ collections that were purchased from the Artists’ Showcases between 1994 and 2010. It was on view at The National Arts Club.