A person can choose to pursue many industries as their life’s work. While a career in the arts might seem ephemeral, there are very hands-on, and many specific jobs involved in that broad field allow a worker to make a living. This includes the lesser-known field of printmaking. Here are three facts about the career.
What Do Printmakers Do?
A printmaker is responsible for making original prints of paintings and drawings. This might seem like a fancy term for someone making print outs of a photograph or similar item. However, the printmaker uses a set of specialized techniques and equipment to transfer images from their original medium to several other kinds of surfaces. While earnest amateurs can accomplish the work, pursuing a degree, such as an MA in printmaking, will open up more job opportunities.
Is Printmaking Its Own Art Form?
Actually, printmaking is its own art form. Its origins stretch back to days when it was the sole method to reproduce religious texts for distribution. Over time, printmaking then aligned with the form it takes today, which is to create high-quality facsimiles of artworks for distribution. Quite a bit of care and consideration goes into the printmaking process, including the selection of materials and methods for best reproducing the original artwork.
Are There Specializations for Printmaking?
As with individual arts themselves, the field of printmaking can be divided into several specializations. In fact, printmaking consists of several major categories, including relief, intaglio, lithography, woodcut, and screen-printing. There are often overlaps between the categories, so specialized printmakers are not found in abundance. However, attaining an MA in printmaking can go a long way in familiarizing a printmaker with different aspects of the art as well as several categories.
Although it is often overshadowed by the arts it reproduces, printmaking is an exciting vocation for an artist to pursue. If you have any questions about this field, please contact the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. We are happy to provide you with the answers you are looking for.
