One of the highlights of Kingston’s September art walk was the exhibition of large-scale linocuts at D.R.A.W.’s new Neighborhood Print Studio – they capitalize its first letters — which opened in June on the ground floor of a former factory at 49 Greenkill Avenue. The eye-catching two-foot-by-two-foot black-and-white prints, whose beautifully rendered images of birds, plants, insects, animals, human figures, mystic ceremonies, sci-fi landscapes, boats, buildings, feet, etc., were among the first artworks to be produced at the D.R.A.W. studio, the arts education program of Kingston’s Midtown Arts District (MAD).
The studio invited 28 artists and members of the community to participate in five sessions designing and carving the blocks, which were printed on the street at the third annual D.R.A.W.-a-Thon street block party on August 12. An actual steamroller was used/
The prints were sold as a fundraising initiative for the new print studio, with the artists getting a portion of the sale price. The print studio has enabled D.R.A.W., based in two storefront rooms at Energy Square, to dramatically expand its facilities and programming dramatically. D.R.A.W. offers popular artist’s workshops, classes, a summer program for elementary- and middle-school students, and a youth workforce training program called PUGG for Kingston High School students and recent alums.
PUGG interns are paid to work with artists, curators, photographers, and other arts professionals as well as assist in D.R.A.W.’s programs. Founder and director Lara Giordano is constantly putting out feelers for new collaborations with other local arts organizations.
With so many projects afoot, “we were growing out of our space and seeing a lot of demand for printmaking,” Giordano said. The three presses used in the Sunday printmaking class had to be moved each week to make room for other classes.
When she learned that the Metro, the maker space currently in development in an abandoned factory on Greenkill Avenue, would focus on life skills such as sewing and woodworking and not include printmaking, she began eyeing the industrial space across the street as a location for a printmaking studio. She and Lisa Barnard Kelley, executive director of MAD, successfully obtained a grant from the NoVo Foundation which is being matched by MAD, funds in a two-year pilot program that covers rent, utilities, and renovation costs.
A lot of equipment
The 3000-square-feet, high-ceilinged, brightly lit studio is equipped for both fine-art printmaking and graphic publishing. “We have graphic design capacities. We can do transparencies for silkscreening. And we have a computer hooked up to a printer as well as a perfect binder [a machine used to bind soft-cover books] and a stack cutter, so we can do publishing” for catalogs, posters, and the like, said Giordano.
Starting in January, the print studio will offer memberships enabling space to be rented out on an annual, monthly, weekly or daily basis, with the cost including all supplies except for paper, which will be sold separately at wholesale prices. The facility will provide training to PUGG interns. It will also serve as an entrepreneurial incubator/
Aurora Brush, owner of Cosmic Doghouse Press, which produces zines, books, and other collaborative print projects, rents out a room at the print studio and provides employment to the interns.
“I have access to their presses and silkscreening and publication equipment, while I offer Risograph printing as an accompaniment to their workshops,” said Brush. (Risograph printing utilizes a machine that allows artists to create multi-layered prints quickly.) “Moving here has allowed me to expand the scope of my projects and meet my clients in person. There’s a lot of synergies.”
Cosmic Doghouse Press has produced its own publications, including a book on tarot cards, a free community zine, and an annual themed calendar featuring the work of a dozen artists.
The labyrinth of nooks and crannies that complement the central loft-like space may explain why the landlord previously had difficulty renting the unit.
The layout perfectly suits D.R.A.W.’s multifaceted needs. There’s a washout room used for screenprinting, a room housing the stack cutter and perfect binder, a kitchen, storage room; and separate offices for Brush and Kelley, who previously rented space at 721 Media Center. Minor renovations included the addition of a floating wall, moving the sink, and replacing the floor in the main loft space. Artist and MAD treasurer Jason Mones laid plywood sheets over the existing worn, fraying linoleum and painted them battleship gray. The D.R.A.W. space at Energy Square is now primarily dedicated to community programs and a gallery.
Starting out small
While proud of receiving the NoVo money and doubling it, Giordano is constantly shaking the money tree. When it comes to applying for grants, persistence, and a strategic approach has paid off. MAD’s annual budget is now $500,000, more than a fourfold increase over five years ago. MAD covers the salaries of its two directors, the PUGG interns, and two other employees, Beth Humprey and Chris O’Neal. MAD produces the annual arts expo and Kingston’s First Saturday gallery guide. Among other activities, it serves as a fiscal sponsor for numerous events, organizations, and individual artists.
The print studio provides D.R.A.W. with ways to generate income other than by teaching. The memberships, sales of paper, and publishing capabilities will help the studio become financially sustainable. Equally important, however, is D.R.A.W.’s commitment to equity. Its sliding scale of fees ensures that no interested community member is prevented from participation in its programs.
Giordano’s approach of starting out small and developing a program organically has proven an effective way to grow. “If we’re starting something new, we do a pilot to see if it has legs,” she said. Programs are built on the success of former projects.
Civic engagement is another component of D.R.A.W. This summer’s two-week intensive workshop for middle-school students called City Look Lab, had the children walking and taking public transit around Kingston in the quest to test and suggest improvements to the city’s infrastructure. The kids designed signage, constructed bus shelters, and visited and research library outside Rhinebeck to models of dozens of buildings designed by architect Steven Holl.
Communications Village, which trained local youth to make prints by top artists visiting from New York City, is a model D.R.A.W. has sought to emulate. The actual press from Ben Wigfall’s printmaking shop has found a new home at the print studio. It was donated to the facility by artist Andrew Lyght, whose home and studio is located in the building that once housed Communications Village. The large rollers that came with the press, which costs about $1000 each, according to Giordano, were used to make the linocut prints for the August D.R.A.W.-A-Thon.
“The Neighborhood Print Studio will become a common space for all creative energies in the community,” concluded treasurer Mones. “It’s a place for conversation, ideas, and classes. It’s a printmaking studio and so much more — a creative melting pot for possibilities.”
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