Our printmaking instructor Nikki Barber has been printing posters in her basement for protest rallies and marches. “I feel responsible to stand up for my friends who are Black and my friends who are Brown, since I white-pass so easily, but am not white.”
Nikki Barber, printmaking press
Nikki has been active in the social, political, and art in Seattle for years. She helped write this statement for racial justice with the Seattle Print Arts board. Any time there is a need for social justice or reform, Nikki thinks about this quote by 20th century American journalist A. J. Why: “Freedom of the press is guaranteed only to those who own one.” (New Yorker, May 14, 1960, p. 109, paywall)
Nikki Barber, edition of posters
Nikki also named José Guadalupe Posada for his influence in shaping print arts for the people, by the people [There will be a V. Note about Posada tomorrow]. When asked about applying her print arts as activism for the people, Nikki said “I believe printmakers have an obligation to deliver information and agency to the people – especially to those who cannot access or give it to themselves.”
“Intersectionality is often overlooked when talking about racial and social justice. It should not be.” Nikki continued, “Black lives matter. Black trans lives and Black women’s lives fit into this as well. Women often get spoken over, looked over, or forgotten about, so I chose Breonna Taylor and Charleena Lyles to highlight their murders that happened before George Floyd’s. Breonna Taylor was 26 when she was murdered. Charleena Lyles was pregnant when she was shot in North Seattle two years ago.”
“I believe printmakers have an obligation to deliver information and agency to the people – especially to those who cannot access or give it to themselves.” – Nikki Barber, League Printmaking Instructor
The most recent V. Notes post had some personal favorites from the many Seattle Artist League Portrait Awards submissions we received. One of the artworks featured yesterday piqued my interest, so I contacted the artist, and raided his website and Instagram for images. Akira Ohiso recently moved to Seattle from New York. He paints …
Rainy Moments in Art Edited from http://blog.orangecarton.com/famous-rain-moments-in-art-painting/ Rain has been one of the most popular subjects of art painting. Artists like Monet, Van Gogh, and many others found rain as perfect subject for their paintings. Here are some paintings to celebrate this rainy season. Paris Street; Rainy Day Paris Street; Rainy Day Gustave Caillebotte was a French …
Recently I posted about our family of New York Studio School influences, and Tina Kraft. I found a few more drawings that show aspects of a process that changed the way I draw. These portrait sketches by Tina Kraft demonstrate a technique of using marks to activate the white paper. The marks are both in …
“Creative people make more use of their mental raw material and practice less intellectual regulation.” So says this blog. A lot of attention is put into how to create great ideas. But what about the dumb ones? Today’s challenge is to draw something inspired by the phrase “Well that was a dumb idea.” Yup. And …
Print Arts and Activism
Portrait of Charleena Lyles
#saymyname
Our printmaking instructor Nikki Barber has been printing posters in her basement for protest rallies and marches. “I feel responsible to stand up for my friends who are Black and my friends who are Brown, since I white-pass so easily, but am not white.”
Nikki has been active in the social, political, and art in Seattle for years. She helped write this statement for racial justice with the Seattle Print Arts board. Any time there is a need for social justice or reform, Nikki thinks about this quote by 20th century American journalist A. J. Why: “Freedom of the press is guaranteed only to those who own one.” (New Yorker, May 14, 1960, p. 109, paywall)
Nikki also named José Guadalupe Posada for his influence in shaping print arts for the people, by the people [There will be a V. Note about Posada tomorrow]. When asked about applying her print arts as activism for the people, Nikki said “I believe printmakers have an obligation to deliver information and agency to the people – especially to those who cannot access or give it to themselves.”
Say My Name
Portrait of Breonna Taylor
Portrait of Charleena Lyles
“Intersectionality is often overlooked when talking about racial and social justice. It should not be.” Nikki continued, “Black lives matter. Black trans lives and Black women’s lives fit into this as well. Women often get spoken over, looked over, or forgotten about, so I chose Breonna Taylor and Charleena Lyles to highlight their murders that happened before George Floyd’s. Breonna Taylor was 26 when she was murdered. Charleena Lyles was pregnant when she was shot in North Seattle two years ago.”
“I believe printmakers have an obligation to deliver information and agency to the people – especially to those who cannot access or give it to themselves.” – Nikki Barber, League Printmaking Instructor
Hey you.
Printmaking class starts June 16.
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Related Posts
Akira Ohiso
The most recent V. Notes post had some personal favorites from the many Seattle Artist League Portrait Awards submissions we received. One of the artworks featured yesterday piqued my interest, so I contacted the artist, and raided his website and Instagram for images. Akira Ohiso recently moved to Seattle from New York. He paints …
Rainy Moments in Art
Rainy Moments in Art Edited from http://blog.orangecarton.com/famous-rain-moments-in-art-painting/ Rain has been one of the most popular subjects of art painting. Artists like Monet, Van Gogh, and many others found rain as perfect subject for their paintings. Here are some paintings to celebrate this rainy season. Paris Street; Rainy Day Paris Street; Rainy Day Gustave Caillebotte was a French …
Tina Kraft: drawing the head and the wall
Recently I posted about our family of New York Studio School influences, and Tina Kraft. I found a few more drawings that show aspects of a process that changed the way I draw. These portrait sketches by Tina Kraft demonstrate a technique of using marks to activate the white paper. The marks are both in …
Dumb Ideas
“Creative people make more use of their mental raw material and practice less intellectual regulation.” So says this blog. A lot of attention is put into how to create great ideas. But what about the dumb ones? Today’s challenge is to draw something inspired by the phrase “Well that was a dumb idea.” Yup. And …