Latest / philly has heART / BYO Print feat. Kate VanVliet and Lisa Imperiale

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BYO Print feat. Kate VanVliet and Lisa Imperiale · philly has heART

0:18
Happy season two, Lucinda. What accomplishments.
0:21
Absolutely love it. So happy. Did you think we'd
0:24
take it to season two or to episode 30 something?
0:29
Yeah. Why not? We're champions. Yeah. Very seldom
0:37
do I start something and don't see it through,
0:40
like, a solid year or two. Exactly. And we have
0:46
an incredible lineup. of people that we still
0:48
want to talk to. And just think, like, all of
0:52
the stories that we've already heard that are
0:54
just gracing the surface. They have then built
1:00
maybe something entirely new by the time we talk
1:03
to them again. It's so exciting. But do I have...
1:08
I have a bone to pick. Would you have with me?
1:12
No. With this particular institution. Okay. Okay.
1:18
You have been trying to manifest opening ceremony
1:24
tickets to the Calder Gardens. And guess what
1:29
I got? An email from Calder Gardens saying, celebrate
1:36
Calder Gardens grand opening with us. What? I
1:41
opened that email so fast. I was like, yes, this
1:45
is the moment. We finally made it. We're going
1:48
behind the velvet rope. We are going to opening
1:52
day. There's a but. What's the but? Because this
1:57
is not opening day. This is a parade to Calder
2:04
Gardens the day before opening day, which you
2:10
don't even end up inside. Chaos and Kisses, grand
2:14
opening parade for Calder Gardens. I highly recommend
2:18
everybody go. It's going to be Saturday, September
2:20
20th, noon to two at Love Park, with a concert
2:25
starting at one o 'clock. Huh. Absolutely love
2:30
it. You know, created by an artist. Free and
2:34
open to all. While supplies last, parade goers
2:38
will receive a voucher for free admissions to
2:40
come back and visit. and their opening day is
2:43
supposed to be September 21st, the next day.
2:46
I thought this was like, whip out that tuxedo,
2:50
get that gala look ready. You're going to Calder
2:53
Garden's opening. But instead, no. It's still
2:58
behind the curtain, Lucinda. Robert, are you
3:01
okay? No, I'm not. Why have we not received an
3:06
invitation yet? I might be booked. he's booked
3:10
in busy boys sorry i just had to get it off my
3:13
chest i understand i've had a lot of frustration
3:16
lately as well that's neither here nor there
3:21
bringing us back first friday's old city i mean
3:24
it never ceases to amaze how many people you
3:28
get out on First Friday in Old City to just celebrate
3:33
artists and the artwork. I mean, we stopped into
3:37
Jane Gallery, who was celebrating their one -year
3:40
anniversary. It was packed. It was a party. We
3:45
ran into Dominique, who had amazing artwork on
3:50
the wall. Highly recommend everybody go see that
3:53
at Jane Gallery. We went down to paradigm, but
3:56
unfortunately I got a late start due to a back
3:59
to school yoga workshop that I took my oldest
4:02
to. And yes, I am aware of how annoying that
4:05
sounds. It's understandable. It's that private
4:08
school life. We're practicing mindfulness in
4:11
our house. We tried to hit paradigm, but they
4:16
were already closed. But we were able to get
4:19
to Two Street Club, which I think is the sleeper
4:23
institution of Old City. People don't know it's
4:26
there still. would be amazed from what they were
4:32
able to do. They were also celebrating or at
4:35
least expanding on what First Fridays are for
4:38
them by including like a secret garden in the
4:43
back, which had a bartender. There's a downstairs
4:47
speakeasy that is not to be missed. It was so
4:51
cool with another bartender down there mixing
4:53
cocktails, having drinks while upstairs They
4:58
had partnered not only with two artists for this
5:01
month that can be seen at their gallery, but
5:04
they also partnered with the super fun girls
5:09
that were making those like Eagles bags that
5:11
are the right shape and size to like bring into
5:14
the game. That was genius. Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah.
5:17
Because everything's got to be, like, clear,
5:20
and you have to have it a certain size, but,
5:22
like, you still want to, like, root for your
5:24
team. You could do it with these bags. So, I
5:27
mean, check out 2 Street. Check out their Instagram
5:32
as well. Up in the show notes. Absolutely amazing.
5:38
Let's move on to the conversation. On to the
5:41
conversation. This is Robert Marsh and you're
5:58
listening to Philly Has Heart podcast. In this
6:01
podcast, we sit down with artists, gallerists,
6:04
educators, curators, and other creatives who
6:07
comprise the Philadelphia art world to discuss
6:09
upcoming performances, exhibits, and other events
6:12
and initiatives that are not to be missed. The
6:16
art scene in Philadelphia is so rich that it
6:18
can seem daunting. Consider this your weekend
6:21
cultural recommendation. With me always is my
6:24
producer, Lucinda Diderlund. Hello, hello. And
6:28
today we have Katie Van Vliet and Lisa Imperial
6:32
from BYO Print. Welcome, ladies. Thanks for having
6:36
us. Hi. So as always, we wanted to kind of dive
6:41
into what brought you to BYO Print to begin with
6:45
or what brought you to the city itself. Should
6:48
your origin have started outside of Philadelphia?
6:51
Lisa, do you want to start? Sure. I came to Philadelphia
6:56
to go to college a long time ago and I went to
7:00
Moore College of Art and Design where I actually
7:02
met Katie and we were in printmaking courses
7:06
together. So how I got to BIO print, I was two
7:11
years behind Katie and the daunting fact of losing
7:15
my printmaking studio space at Moore had me worried
7:19
so I was extra friendly to the art shop girl
7:23
I knew who graduated and uh Katie kind of let
7:27
me know that she was gonna buy a press and I
7:30
was like oh yes if you buy a press I will print
7:34
on that press and and be my best friend and also
7:39
be your best friend as you know Katie was a little
7:43
bit ahead of me I graduated and she had some
7:45
studio space that kind of started out like that
7:50
Lisa's right, like the daunting aspect of like
7:53
losing the facilities that you have in a university
7:57
or in a college is so huge because as artists
8:00
and art students, like where we have all of these
8:02
state of the art facilities available to us and
8:05
we become experts in our craft. Well, as much
8:07
as you can be as a 21 year old. And then you
8:10
finish and you lose that access. And so one of
8:13
the things I thought was very, very clever was
8:16
I took a job at More College of Art basically
8:18
the day after. graduated to run their gallery
8:21
store called the art shop and I thought that
8:23
as a staff member that would mean that I could
8:25
go use the print shop yeah and it did not which
8:32
is fine it's not a huge print shop it's important
8:35
that the students have primary access but what
8:37
it did mean was that I had a full -time job in
8:41
2007 and then by 2008 I had bought a house like
8:46
basically a month before the recession and with
8:50
a full -time job and like a little bit of comfort
8:52
and a place to call my own I decided I would
8:56
make a facility for people like me so another
8:59
classmate of mine Lauren Fisher and I got together
9:02
and we decided to open a print shop together.
9:05
So I bought this little etching press and it
9:08
was a new press. It was the largest small professional
9:12
press I could afford at the time. And I put it
9:14
in my living room. And that was like the beginnings
9:20
of the idea. Eventually, Lauren and I joined
9:23
six other classmates of ours from Moore and we
9:27
rented a really big warehouse space up in Port
9:29
Richmond at the time. I think it was Amber Street
9:31
Studios or maybe Richmond Mills, but it's called
9:34
The Loom now. And so we were there for about
9:38
about a year and about three quarters of the
9:41
way through, Lauren and I. we're pretty certain
9:44
that we wanted to open this community space and
9:47
the other artists that were there weren't as
9:49
interested and so we broke off and they kept
9:52
the space and we moved into a motorcycle shop
9:55
off of frankfurt avenue back in the day frankfurt
10:00
avenue was called the arts corridor yes the frankfurt
10:04
arts quarter so we were like in the thick of
10:07
where this was 2009 so we moved in to a loft
10:11
above a motorcycle shop which was really great.
10:13
My dad was a motorcycle rider and repair person,
10:16
so it felt very homey to me. 100%. It felt really
10:21
punk rock to me. It was very punk rock. I didn't
10:25
realize it at the time, but it was very punk
10:27
rock. Printing on leather now? You can. Anyway,
10:32
so it was just me and Lauren and Lisa kind of
10:35
chasing our skirt tails, you know? I was. I was
10:38
there. You know, I did print once at the Loom.
10:40
Yes, you printed. And another former classmate
10:46
had printed in my living room and we had some
10:49
parties like it was just a big space with a 15
10:51
-inch etching press in the middle of it. Wow.
10:54
The first thing I printed was a Christmas card
10:58
for my family members. It was really bad. But
11:02
I was like determined. I was like, you know what?
11:04
You just have to keep printing. You just have
11:06
to figure out how to keep doing it or else you
11:09
won't. It's going to go away your skills. They
11:11
need to be honed just like anything else. Anyway,
11:14
in the motorcycle shop, Lauren and I kind of
11:17
set it up that we would have a little personal
11:19
space on one side and the print shop would be
11:21
on the other side. And this was within 500. square
11:24
feet so pretty small. We put an ad out on Craigslist
11:27
to get new members and got two members aside
11:31
from Lisa and that was Ted and Chad and they
11:37
had belief in our dream, I guess. Nice. Nazi
11:40
real killers. Ted is still a member. So Ted is
11:43
one of my co -directors. We love Ted. Ted is
11:46
awesome. Lisa, Ted, and I are on the board of
11:49
directors with Lauren and another member, Jen,
11:51
and we all steer the ship. Chad stayed a member
11:54
for a long, long, long time. And he was so great
11:58
and, and, you know, can't say anything, anything
12:03
but good things about Chad. Anyway, they had,
12:06
they had support of the idea. So we were there
12:08
for a little under a year and then moved the
12:11
whole shop back into my row house. Full disclosure.
12:17
There was a lot of like crazy personal incidents
12:20
in between, including like bad construction and
12:24
waiting games and stuff, but I moved in with
12:27
my partner, with my husband, and so we moved
12:30
the shop into the house. It's kind of a temporary
12:32
space. Well, we looked for a better space in
12:34
an art studio building. It was a great space.
12:37
It was. Yeah, we had three etching presses in
12:39
the living room. pop some plumbing down to make
12:44
a sink, and when I sold that house, I advertised
12:47
it as ready for a wet bar. That's perfect. The
12:52
second floor was a silk screen, and we washed
12:55
screens out in the bathtub, and I built an exposure
12:57
unit in the linen closet. Wow. And blew a wall
13:01
out, so it was like an open floor plan. Nice.
13:04
Here's something not everyone knows. Katie is
13:06
really handy. It seems like it. Really, really
13:10
handy. The third floor was still my studio and
13:13
Lauren's studio. We were just an artist collective
13:16
at that time, and this was in Kensington and
13:19
just on the outskirts of Fishtown. Probably wasn't
13:22
the best thing to have in a row house, but it
13:25
was fine for a short time. Now that we're older,
13:27
we realize that we were one insurance claim away
13:31
from being destitute. But hey, we made it. Yeah,
13:35
you did. And Lauren and I, we didn't... make
13:38
the print shop a non -profit until a couple of
13:40
years ago. So we were really running as an artist
13:43
collective until then and we got some advice
13:47
from a lawyer early on that we weren't really
13:51
moving enough money to bother becoming a non
13:56
-profit or becoming an entity at all, which in
13:58
hindsight again is like really bad advice. The
14:02
first thing we did was LLC up. That said like
14:06
the the idea of like collaboration between artists
14:09
is part of our core mission and like how we are
14:12
all in this together is It's a big part of what
14:15
the print shop is about and so I mean, it's still
14:17
very assuming trust is there Still just very
14:21
much run by the members like yes if you want
14:24
something to happen in the studio You talk about
14:27
it. You make it happen. Yeah And at what point
14:31
did you move to your current location? Was it
14:33
after the second stint in the house? No, we spent
14:37
12 years at our space in Sharktown Studios at
14:41
Masher & Cecil B. Moore. That's an interesting
14:43
story because I feel like that was our first
14:45
really big leap. It was a huge leap to move in
14:49
there. Because we had at that point a kind of
14:51
core group of like 10 members, right? Yes, it
14:54
was 10 members. We each paid $90 a month and
14:57
spent the rent. Nice. space that was an actual
15:01
artist space in a artist building like was gonna
15:04
increase our rent pretty drastically and like
15:08
we needed everyone on board to make it work.
15:10
And I remember us walking over to this space
15:12
and looking at it and you know we're such a collaborative
15:16
group that it was kind of like, are we all in?
15:19
And we all kind of had that moment of like, yeah,
15:21
let's do it. And everybody being all in is like
15:24
really important. So when we decided to move
15:26
into Paradigm, that was another big moment for
15:30
us where we all had to be in because it changed
15:32
a lot of things. Like we knew that if we were
15:34
going to move into Paradigm Arts building at
15:37
12 North 3rd, where we are right now, we would
15:39
have to become an entity. and that we would have
15:43
to agree to a lot of new things and try to seek
15:47
out outside funding to make it work. So that's
15:49
when we decided to apply for non -profit. And
15:52
we did have everybody on board. And by that time
15:55
we were at 18 members. And getting 18 people
15:58
to agree on anything is so hard. So hard. It
16:03
took a long time. How many people do you have
16:09
now? two or 23. Wow. Yeah. So we think we're
16:15
getting close to capacity. Is this a happy place?
16:16
25 is our capacity and we have two people that
16:20
are approved to be members but they're just kind
16:22
of waiting for a couple things in their own practice
16:25
to to suss out before they they start with us.
16:28
Wow. That's an incredible journey to get to where
16:32
you are today. I know. I know. Time flies. Yes
16:36
and to still have friendship through that. Is
16:39
incredible as well. Yes. Well, I am kind of a
16:42
hard ass so It's really important to me that
16:47
I can wear different hats and compartmentalize
16:50
so that like my friendships are Really intense
16:54
when they're also shared in this this workspace.
16:58
So like all my favorite people are at BYO print,
17:01
but Yes. Yeah, if you fuck up. You'll find out.
17:07
I know. No, no, no, no, no. I am very I try to
17:15
be really accommodating because I know that especially
17:18
for artists we're all just trying to make our
17:20
lives work you know without giving up things
17:22
that are important to us and everybody's journey
17:25
is different so if you have something going on
17:28
in your life and that affects your membership
17:30
I never want the print shop to become a hardship
17:33
for someone so we always just have a conversation
17:36
and and And I hope that anybody that's ever printed
17:40
at the print shop knows that they're always welcome
17:42
to come back. We have kind of an alumna. Alumni.
17:49
Sorry, it's habit going to an all women's college.
17:53
We have alumni that show up every now and then.
17:55
Oh, that's amazing. And we love that. On our
17:57
Instagram, we mostly just like share what our
18:00
members are doing. And so every now and then
18:02
I'll see something that an alum from the shop
18:04
is up to and I'll be like, yes, I'm going to.
18:07
want that really hard. But to scoot really back,
18:12
Lucinda, we moved into our current space in Old
18:15
City in November. of last year, so just under
18:18
a year. Just under a year coming up to that anniversary.
18:21
There's not a freight elevator in that. There
18:23
is a freight elevator. There is a freight elevator.
18:25
There was no freight elevator at Sharktown and
18:28
I will never do that to us again. What level
18:31
were you at? We were on the third floor at Sharktown.
18:33
That was a trial for sure, but like Lisa said
18:36
when we moved in there we had a lot less stuff
18:39
and so we brought things in slowly and getting
18:43
everything off of the third floor was Definitely
18:46
like a planning project that took a whole year
18:49
to kind of figure out all the logistics. It is.
18:50
This is a long process to move us and thank I
18:53
mean not thankfully. Thankfully the building
18:56
took a while to get ready for us to be there
18:58
and so it actually was I think a good thing when
19:02
we had to pause and be like oh wait how are we
19:05
actually going to do this? It turns out we had
19:07
to raise a whole bunch of money to hire movers
19:10
because it was like we cannot we can't actually
19:12
do this by ourselves. I mean We can't carry presses.
19:17
We're not 25 anymore. Also my husband who moved
19:23
us before said no. Also mine too. They learned.
19:29
My husband gets injured when he helps me. So
19:32
we're not allowed. But anyway, it's all a strategic
19:35
plan that's up in my brain. So like we became
19:37
a nonprofit so that we could apply for grants,
19:40
do fundraising, raise the funds to move, and
19:42
then raise more funds to sustain us ongoing.
19:46
At a bare bones budget, cause you know, I have
19:47
all of this volunteer. It's astounding when you
19:52
think like, you know, 10 years ago we'd have
19:54
a fundraiser for like 500 dollars, we need 500
19:59
dollars guys. How much did we end up raising
20:02
for our move? It's like $20 ,000. We needed $20
20:06
,000 to move. We raised a little bit more than
20:09
that so that we would have the seed money for
20:12
the full year. Oh, that's incredible. I was blown
20:15
away. And a big part of that is Katie's strategic
20:18
planning of how we were going to roll this out
20:21
and how we were going to partner with Paradigm.
20:25
And when I think of that, I'm just really blown
20:27
away that we've come so far. And yeah, it's really
20:32
a lot of Katie's leadership. It really is. I'm
20:36
gonna just dote on her for a minute. She's our
20:39
fearless leader. Can you share with the listeners
20:43
what printmaking is? Yes. Explain it to us like
20:47
we are five years old. Yeah. My five -year -olds
20:49
love printmaking. That's good. Printmaking is
20:54
an avenue of visual arts that... is focused on
20:58
making multiples and typically like works on
21:02
paper. And where the confusion lies in the 20th
21:07
century is that we're in the art, this is art
21:10
in the age of digital reproduction. You can hear
21:13
the word colloquially, the print, and it's a
21:16
copy or a digital archival print of a painting
21:20
or of a drawing or something. And then you hear
21:23
the word, this print, and it's a silkscreen or
21:26
a woodcut or a lithograph or an etching. And
21:30
those four and a bunch of others are fine art
21:33
prints. And those are things that exist only
21:35
as they're multiple. And when you're making a
21:38
print, you're making an impression of a matrix
21:41
and something is being offset from the matrix
21:44
onto another substrate. So to make a piece of
21:48
art. I know that's techie and nerdy sounding
21:51
So like Lisa makes woodcuts so she carves an
21:56
image into a piece of wood and And rolls ink
22:00
onto the surface of the wood Okay, and using
22:03
the equipment at our print shop takes an impression
22:06
of that onto a piece of paper and In addition
22:09
some I like to think about it. It's graphic design
22:12
before computers. So you have to think like we've
22:15
had imagery Illustrations we've had um You know
22:20
published books before there were computers,
22:22
right? Yeah, and so when you think of it, it
22:24
was that technology that kind of spawned printmaking
22:28
right to be able to reproduce Text or images
22:32
and share them and so I often just tell people
22:35
when you think of like ben franklin with the
22:37
letterpress like He's a printmaker too. He's
22:40
a printmaker. Correct. We have kind of taken
22:43
these older graphic technologies and they've
22:48
always been used for fine art but like I think
22:51
contemporary fine art is pushing the limits of
22:55
what these techniques can do. Yeah a lot of times
22:58
something that was used professionally to make
23:01
multiples for communication or whatever. Once
23:03
that tech becomes obsolete, then the artists
23:05
get a hold of it and do all sorts of weird stuff.
23:09
Then you get to play with it. I myself, I make
23:12
etchings, and those are etched with acid or engraved
23:15
copper plates that the image is printed from.
23:18
And the technology really hasn't changed since
23:20
the Renaissance. Wow. I love that my media is
23:25
kind of apocalypse proof in that way. Yeah, wait,
23:27
hold on. I want more info on how from both of
23:33
you, for both of your media. If you wanted to
23:36
start with what type of wood are you using and
23:41
then what are you using to either carve or create
23:45
that edge? So you can use A lot of different
23:49
wood materials. My favorite is called a Sheena
23:53
plywood So it's a plywood with a veneer on it
23:56
to give you that really nice grain And I find
23:59
it kind of easier to carve because you really
24:01
just have to get through a veneer. Gotcha So
24:03
I use Sheena plywood and I use very sharp gouges
24:09
So if you think of like woodworking tools, you
24:12
you've seen people with like the hammer in the
24:14
gouge Those are kind of big. These are hand gouges.
24:16
So you really just like using the palm of your
24:19
hand as the pressure to move the gouge through
24:22
the wood. I have different sizes and shapes of
24:25
those gouges that can help me produce different
24:28
line qualities. I typically work in a process
24:32
that's called reductive printmaking, which is
24:36
when I use one block, but I print it in several
24:39
layers to create a multicolored image. And so
24:44
what you do is you start with carving everything
24:49
that you want to be the color of the paper. So
24:52
white, essentially. And you're starting with
24:54
an image. Yeah, I typically have a drawing that
24:57
I've worked on that I either transfer to the
25:01
block, which is a whole nother process. Yeah.
25:04
Or I draw directly on the block. OK. You have
25:07
to also remember it will be a mirrored image
25:10
because you're. So that's. Something I don't
25:14
like drawing on the block because then it will
25:16
be the opposite But yeah, you carve everything
25:23
you want to stay white print your first color
25:26
then carve away you want everything to say that
25:29
color Print carve away more and print. It's how
25:33
you get multiple colors in a print With one block
25:37
and it also destroys the block as you go. So
25:40
You have to imagine, you have to decide. I want
25:42
to make 20 of these. Right. So you have to print
25:45
like 25 because you're going to mess up a couple.
25:48
Right. And it truly is limited and it can never
25:51
be copied, like it can never be reproduced that
25:53
way. That's kind of why I love it. But also it's
25:55
cheaper because Sheena Plywood is a little pricey.
25:59
Gotcha. Nice. But that's one way that I make
26:04
my images. Okay. Katie's process is a bit more
26:08
involved. Well. I have a sculpture practice and
26:13
a printmaking practice and I went to school for
26:17
sculpture at Moore and I think that is like a
26:20
base one. It helped me learn how to make a print
26:23
shop. because of the building and like seeing
26:26
things in space. Found objects are kind of the
26:30
core of everything that I do. So even though
26:32
I'm making like etchings that are printed very
26:35
traditionally on paper in the end, starting with
26:38
like found things is what I like to do best.
26:42
So I forage and collect. I like push those things
26:49
through the press with my copper and take impressions
26:53
of those objects into the copper and etch those
26:57
as like kind of my jumping off point. And so
27:00
unlike Lisa, I almost never start with a drawing
27:03
ahead of time. I always am kind of like doing
27:06
a thing, seeing what it does and making a response
27:10
to that. And so I call and respond on my etching
27:12
plates. To back up a bit, like the basic process
27:16
of making an etching is taking a piece of 18
27:20
gauge or 16 gauge copper if you have a lot of
27:23
extra money because it's very expensive um so
27:27
you take a piece of flat copper and the idea
27:31
is that you're protecting parts of the copper
27:34
and exposing parts of the copper to acid and
27:40
The acid that we use at BYO print and in my practice
27:42
is called ferric chloride and it's technically
27:45
a corrosive salt solution. It's not really an
27:48
acid, so it's considered the like safer etchant.
27:52
You coat the copper with the waxy stuff, waxy
27:56
stuff called ground. I'm not going to really
27:58
go into all of it. But anyway, you coat the plate
28:02
with ground and then you can, typically you would
28:05
draw into the ground. That removes it. That removes
28:08
it, yes. So it's used a needle and it drags through
28:13
the ground and exposes the copper where you made
28:16
that mark. And the idea is you put it in the
28:18
acid and depending on how long you leave it in
28:21
there, it etches the line so deep. Longer it's
28:25
in there, the deeper the line, the more ink it'll
28:27
hold, the darker the line will be in the image.
28:30
So using that as your basis. You can manipulate
28:32
that in all sorts of ways to make shallow lines,
28:37
to make gradations. There's a process that uses
28:40
spray paint or airbrushing to make tone. What
28:44
I was describing before with the found objects
28:46
is a process called soft ground etching, where
28:49
you're pressing found objects into the wax and
28:52
etching a direct impression of those objects.
28:54
And then there's the erasing part of the copper,
28:58
which people don't always. Accept that you can
29:01
erase it because you have to correct mistakes
29:04
on the copper plate. Okay scrape it off or you
29:07
smoosh it down and It's that physicality of the
29:13
copper that draw me drew me to to etching because
29:17
it felt like sculpture I love making a copper
29:21
plate and I don't always addition them because
29:24
that's a whole other part that it takes just
29:27
forever. Like right now, I have I think 12 to
29:31
15 etchings that are ready to be additioned that
29:34
I had in a show at Fleischer this summer that
29:38
I don't know when they'll be additioned eventually.
29:44
These are plates that you still have. You haven't
29:48
printed yet, or you did the printing already?
29:50
I've printed one. I've printed one final. Gotcha.
29:53
So when you're making etchings, it's an additive
29:56
thing. So you're making a mark. and then you
29:59
print it and then you make new marks and you
30:02
etch those and then you print that. And so you
30:04
build up your image over time. It's kind of like
30:07
making a drawing or making a painting where you're
30:09
starting with an under drawing and you're adding
30:11
layers and layers to get more and more richness
30:13
to the image. And so I'll work on multiple pieces
30:17
at once for maybe six or eight months. And in
30:21
the end, I have a suite of different images that
30:24
all are related to each other, even if they're
30:26
not about the same thing. because they were all
30:29
worked on at the same time using the same materials
30:31
and the same imagery and yada yada. Do you consider
30:35
your copper etchings a piece of art as well?
30:40
Oh yes, yes, and they make it into the sculpture
30:43
work. Okay. Yeah, so as a sculptor one of the
30:47
pieces of advice that our mentor, Moore Shelley,
30:51
it wasn't really a piece of advice but a comment
30:53
she made once. And she said that, your plates
30:57
look better than your prints. And I love her.
31:01
No, no, no. We love her so much. I love her for
31:05
that comment because it sat with me. It was like,
31:07
okay. I know, my plates look really cool. Like
31:11
how do I make the prints that come off of them
31:14
look equally as good? And so that's always been
31:17
a drive for me to master this process as a sculptor.
31:21
So I'm making something that looks cool by itself
31:23
and then the impression of that thing is equally
31:26
as interesting. That's incredible. And because
31:29
I don't make a drawing ahead of time, I'm always
31:32
surprised by the print because it's in reverse.
31:35
And so I never know exactly what it's going to
31:37
look like until after I've made that. Proof is
31:40
what it's called, a proof of the plate. And for
31:43
both of you, do you use the same type of paper
31:46
when you do print? Sometimes I think we do, but
31:50
not all the time. You kind of tried and true,
31:53
right? Do you use the same couple of papers?
31:56
Yeah, I was Reeves BFK for a very, very long
31:59
time, but I'm starting to expand. Oh, juicy.
32:03
Very nerdy stuff. Insider look. There's a whole
32:06
universe in printmaking, especially about paper.
32:10
So Reeves BFK is an example of a cotton rag paper
32:13
and a cotton based paper is kind of the tried
32:16
and true, like heavy, fine art paper that you'll
32:19
see. I tend to print on Japanese papers. My favorite
32:24
is this paper called Kitakata. and it's made
32:27
of gompy primarily, which is the plant fiber.
32:29
I know, it's super nerdy. And it's a little green
32:32
and it's so beautiful. But it's really thin and
32:37
so. if you're printing an edition on that paper,
32:41
a lot of printmakers will mount it to a piece
32:43
of cotton rag at the end. And I'm kind of having
32:47
an internal battle of like whether I can leave
32:50
an edition of prints on that paper by itself
32:52
right now versus mounting it to another paper
32:55
or versus doing another process called ching
32:58
clay to mount it during the printing process.
33:01
I know your eye is in your face. No, this is
33:05
great. Someone is nerding out on this with you.
33:09
Oh yes, I hope so. So I just had this solo show
33:13
at Fleischer Art Memorial through their program
33:16
called The Wind Challenge. And I made all these
33:20
huge paper sculptures there. And they're all
33:23
etchings printed on this gompy paper, Kitakata,
33:28
and then glued back together in these crazy shapes
33:31
and then beeswaxed. So I'm trying to kind of
33:34
break the rectangle, like break out of that rectangle
33:37
that is like the etching in the frame on the
33:41
wall as much as I can. Oh, I love this. I love
33:44
both of your arts. This is incredible. And how
33:49
about for your for your wood etchings? Do you
33:51
find the same art in the wood? Well, you wouldn't
33:55
call them etchings. Right. They're a relief print.
33:58
It's kind of interesting. The the process of
34:02
I'm making sketches on paper, transferring them
34:06
to the wood and carving kind of gives me some
34:11
space to really further develop. my imagery kind
34:15
of in a different way. And so I start with a
34:19
sketch and I have an idea of some shapes and
34:21
textures and forms that I'm trying to create.
34:24
But I find that my ideas change a lot in the
34:28
process as I'm like carving away and printing
34:31
and seeing what happens like between layers.
34:34
So, yeah, I think the process of printmaking
34:36
and all the steps that it takes and the time
34:39
in between those steps really help me push my
34:43
image creation in a surprising way. And it is
34:49
kind of this magic moment when you're you know
34:52
you put it through the press and you lift the
34:54
paper up to see what happened. It is this moment
34:57
of kind of giddy surprise because yeah there
35:00
is kind of a surprise element to well did it
35:04
work? Did I carve enough? Are the colors layering
35:08
the way I thought they would? Is the texture
35:10
of the wood coming through? And there's ways
35:13
to, you know, manipulate that. And so I've just
35:16
spent the last decade making pretty much all
35:22
woodcut prints. I've dabbled a little bit elsewhere,
35:25
but I always come back to these relief prints.
35:28
And there is something that's like so beautiful
35:32
about it's... A handmade image, but the wood
35:36
doesn't look like your hand. It doesn't look
35:39
like a drawing. That's kind of hard to describe.
35:43
The impression of the wood on the paper with
35:45
the ink is you can't create it any other way.
35:49
I love this. I know and you should definitely
35:54
come see some of these things. So where can our
35:58
audience find you both in real life and online?
36:02
Well the print shop is in Old City at 12 North
36:06
3rd on the fifth floor. Okay so right now the
36:10
elevator that we spoke of is broken. Oh no. So
36:14
if you want to venture up there the best times
36:17
to do that the first is during First Fridays.
36:20
We typically have the shop open from 5 to 8 p
36:23
.m. Paradigm Gallery also has their gallery openings
36:27
that night. It is a Party sometimes we'll have
36:31
sometimes we have workshops where you can kind
36:33
of do a make -and -take With one of the members
36:36
and that is all member driven So some months
36:38
there's nothing going on and it's just us to
36:41
chatting and other other months It's going to
36:45
be like an inky wild party. So The best way to
36:49
find out if something is happening at the print
36:52
shop during First Friday is to either follow
36:54
us on Instagram at BYOPrint or to subscribe to
36:58
our newsletter. But the Instagram is probably
37:01
going to be the easiest to update, so that's
37:03
the best place to check. You can also email us.
37:06
Our email is easily accessible online at BYOPrint
37:09
.org or on the Instagram. Those emails come right
37:13
to me, so I answer every single one. and the
37:17
other time is we're running a pilot this year
37:20
as part of our like 15th anniversary so we're
37:24
open on the second Sunday of the month from 12
37:28
to 5 which is this Sunday the 14th I believe
37:33
from 12 to 5 and you can you can come in if you've
37:36
gone to the gallery you can continue upstairs
37:38
and visit us and that's um That's a good time
37:43
to ask us membership questions. Or if you're
37:47
a printmaker, you can drop in and do some printing
37:50
during those hours. Awesome. But you have to
37:52
know what you're doing. We're not tutors. I can't
37:59
just get wedding invitations done from 12 to
38:01
5. So we're not a commercial shop in any way,
38:05
but we do get a lot of inquiries like that. Like,
38:08
can you print t -shirts for us? Can you print
38:10
invitations? And when those kinds of things come
38:13
to us, we try to... expand the network and send
38:17
them recommendations of other like small businesses
38:21
in the city that are better suited for those
38:23
things. So we're really about lifting everybody
38:25
up. If there's a member who does that kind of
38:30
freelance work then of course we'll send that
38:32
over to them. It's really our whole goal is to
38:35
support the members in their own practices. I
38:38
think we should probably talk about that a little
38:40
bit is that all of our members independent artists
38:45
like we all use the shop together and we are
38:48
collaborative but the main goal of the shop is
38:51
our own personal practice and so I think Katie
38:56
has been so great at supporting artists in their
38:59
like personal career endeavors and like by we
39:03
have this space and you can use it to your fullest
39:06
and and we support and promote and every now
39:11
and then we collaborate And I think some of the
39:13
relationships that have grown out of you know,
39:16
just being in the shop working side by side on
39:19
independent projects and like Learning from each
39:21
other. Yeah Is really what makes the shop so
39:25
special. It's like i've known some members for
39:29
You know over a decade and it's like oh I really
39:34
love when you are working on this thing. Can
39:36
you show me or like? I'm really struggling with
39:39
this part of my print. Um I mean we have yeah,
39:43
we do color consultations with each other Yeah,
39:46
so it's like definitely driven by the independent
39:49
artists, but then we're all there, you know,
39:53
so Sometimes yeah, we get requests from the public
39:56
to like run a workshop or whatnot And that's
40:00
how you all found us working. We were prepping
40:03
for an event for more college of art for their
40:07
alumni reunion But lisa's right like the majority
40:10
of the time We're all working on our own things
40:12
and that idea of like lifting each other up and
40:17
the voices of the members being greater than
40:21
the voice of the print shop entity was always
40:24
really important to me. So like BYO print or
40:26
BYO printmaking collaborative, which is our full
40:29
name. Um, like that's always, it's always been
40:33
intentional that the entity takes the backseat
40:36
to the artist who's working inside of the space.
40:40
That's great. Well, thank you so much, guys.
40:44
This was amazing. We're going to close out. I
40:47
hope you got to learn a little bit about printmaking.
40:48
Yes, we did. It was so many great things. We're
40:52
going to close out with some rapid fire questions
40:55
for you. Could you describe the Philly art scene
40:58
in one word? Just like Philadelphia, big and
41:01
small. No, that's not one word. Joyous. There's
41:06
a lot of joy in the Philly art scene. Cheesesteaks
41:10
with, whiz, or without? I haven't had a cheesesteak
41:13
in over 20 years, so I would much prefer a tofu
41:16
banh mi. Oh, lovely. OK. I had to think about
41:19
that one. That's good. Because I knew it was
41:21
coming. Without. Your favorite Philadelphia neighborhood?
41:27
I'm growing obsessed with Old City right now.
41:29
We just moved there, so I have all these like
41:31
new feelings, but we spent so long in old Kensington.
41:36
Yeah, so yeah, I mean I lived in Fishtown for
41:38
over 15 years beginning in 2006, so like really
41:44
like that's where my heart is, and that's where
41:47
I became a grown -up, you know? So it always
41:50
has a place in my heart, although it doesn't
41:52
always feel Right right now. Yeah, so with same
41:56
with lisa i'm trying i'm like learning to love
41:57
old city We're just loving the new new neighborhood
42:00
vibes that we're feeling It's like i'm in a whole
42:04
different city. It's like Yeah Favorite philadelphia
42:08
-based artist people are sleeping on Okay, so
42:12
I know these are rapid -fire questions, but whatever
42:15
Fine, um help ourselves. Yes. So my statement
42:18
on that is we hope that people that are coming
42:23
to the arts community to see art don't sleep
42:27
on buying artwork through artist -run spaces
42:32
versus like a commercial gallery if they have
42:34
the opportunity to directly support artists.
42:37
You are sleeping on really amazing art that's
42:39
affordable, available, locally created. You're
42:43
sleeping on it. There's thousands of artists
42:45
in Philadelphia who are amazing. social media
42:49
now to reach a larger audience that had been
42:52
maybe gate -kept before and Now you can go directly
42:57
to that artist and either look for a commission
43:00
or look for their art and then access them directly
43:03
That's true. That said if you are interested
43:05
in work from an artist who is working with the
43:08
gallery Always go to that go to that gallery
43:11
because otherwise you're gonna mess up. Yeah
43:13
We we really love paradigm arts Not just because
43:18
we live there now. Yeah, but you know, we've
43:20
been friends with them for such a long time in
43:23
there They always bring such incredible art to
43:26
the public with their shows And so if you're
43:29
ever like, I don't know where to go on first
43:30
Friday Start a paradigm. There's always gonna
43:33
be a really fabulous show Yeah, and and as someone
43:37
who has like well, we've both shown our work
43:40
there Many times in over many years they they
43:45
work really hard on a very genuine to their with
43:48
their artists and their relationship with artists
43:51
and eagerness to like bring art into everyday
43:54
people's homes. If you could have any artist
43:57
in history produce a portrait of you who would
44:00
it be? I want a Hieronymus Bosch to be mine.
44:05
I feel like I totally could have. predicted that.
44:08
Oh yes, I'm not, I'm easy in that. Frida Kahlo.
44:12
That's a good one. Very nice, very nice. And
44:15
finally your favorite beverage of the moment.
44:18
I always find joy in the chai from the random
44:23
tea room. I don't have it that much anymore because
44:26
I'm just not there as often, but it is I think
44:29
hands down like my favorite hot drink of all
44:31
time. I like really, really spicy ginger beer.
44:36
Like, hurts a little. Oh, good. Okay. The chai
44:39
at the random tea room is also really spicy.
44:42
So good. Good little spicy drink. Lisa and Katie,
44:47
thank you so much for your time today and everyone
44:50
please check out BYO print in Old City. Thanks
44:54
so much. Thank you. Thanks for having us. Can
45:10
you imagine moving all of that printing equipment
45:14
as many times as they did? No. No. I would have
45:18
given up. I would have just passed out on the
45:21
stairs and I would have just left it there. Free
45:26
printing press? Or at least pieces of it. Have
45:29
you ever walked up to the fifth floor of Paradigm
45:32
Gallery where BYO print is? No. I've never ventured
45:36
up that much. Walk up? one story at a time and
45:40
then check out each level of the gallery, especially
45:44
in the summer because it gets so hot. And one
45:48
time I just went all the way to the top and I
45:52
had the worst glow. We got a lot of things for
45:56
people to do this weekend. Yes. Can I start?
46:00
Starting with tomorrow. Our podcast, Philly Has
46:03
Heart. is teaming up with the Bridget Meyer Gallery
46:08
for an artist talk and gallery tour of the DC
46:14
-based artist Alan Bentley's exhibition titled
46:17
Flight. 6 p .m. It's at 7th and Walnut. The drinks
46:22
are on S, the paintings are on U. The Bind Your
46:27
Own Book Workshop at Brooke Lanier Fine Art Gallery
46:30
is on Friday. Saturday is the Philadelphia Fall
46:36
Arts Fest at the Kimmel Center. It is free and
46:39
it starts at 11 a .m. Now, I don't know if this
46:43
is the same thing I walked past last year and
46:46
I saw a bajillion of children funneling out into
46:51
the streets in costumes, but keep it in mind,
46:54
I think this is gonna be something good for the
46:56
kids. Nice, okay. Robert, I believe you have
47:00
something you want to tell us for September 13th.
47:06
September 13th, Mural Arts Fest is hosting their
47:12
annual festival from two to seven at the Oval
47:17
on the Benjamin Franklin Parkway. The rain date
47:20
should you need it. I don't think so, though.
47:22
I think it's supposed to be nice is going to
47:25
be September 14th from two to seven. Mural Arts
47:28
Fest at the Oval is free day of art, music and
47:32
activities with a sneak peek at October's Mural
47:36
Arts Month. New Heaven, New Earth, the second
47:39
and last Fringe Fest stage read is on September
47:43
16th at 8 p .m. To Know Blue as Blue by Scott
47:50
Vredalis, who is put on our radar by Brooke Lanier.
47:53
His opening reception is at the 5U space in the
47:57
Callow Hill area on September 20th. Do you want
48:01
to hammer home something about what's going on
48:03
then? Yes, I do. On September 20th, there is
48:07
also Chaos and Kisses, a grand opening parade
48:10
for Calder Gardens. And then everyone can actually
48:13
get in to Calder Gardens on September 21st. What
48:18
do we have on the 24th, Robert? Oh, great. Our
48:22
annual Young Friend Happy Hour. is going to be
48:27
at the Kimmel Center for all performing arts
48:31
organizations of the city. So find yourself in
48:36
the lobby of the Kimmel Center on September 24th
48:39
for this amazing event where there's usually
48:43
some performances as well as some insights into
48:48
the new programs people are expecting to see
48:52
this season at the Performing Arts of Philadelphia.
48:55
Robert, what is on October 11th? We're super
48:59
excited for October 11th. Join the Philadelphia
49:03
Ballet as they celebrate the launch of their
49:05
2025 season for opening weekend gala. This year
49:10
will feature a double bill of Carmen and Bolero,
49:14
followed by a reception and gala at the Bellevue.
49:19
Grab your tickets today. You can do so by going
49:23
to PB Gala. 2025 .giftsmart .com. I'll also leave
49:29
that in the show notes. As always, Philly has
49:32
heart.