Printmaking
The aim of the Printmaking studio is to develop a personal and innovative artistic language through print, understood as both a medium and a way of thinking. Learning printmaking techniques (woodcut, etching, dry point, aquatint, lithography, silkscreen) as means of expression goes hand in hand with accepting print as an open field of research. It is not about learning to master tools to repeat what we already know, but rather using those tools to generate new ideas. The Printmaking studio is enriched by its diverse students and evolves with them. Since our practices oscillate between the single and the multiple, collaborative processes are actively encouraged. Students are co-managers of the studios and participate in publishing and exhibition projects. From the Bachelor’s programme onwards, critical thinking is combined with the exploration of techniques. Conceptual, societal and spatial contextualization issues play an essential role. A key part of the Bachelor’s and Master’s programmes is devoted to writing, editorial thinking, spatial issues and critical seminars.
The Master’s programme (Print Thinking) looks at print as an open and evolving field of research. Print is no longer simply a result, but rather a trigger. Students are encouraged to develop their own production and distribution networks seeing as the definition of their professional artistic career is at the heart of the Master’s programme.
Teaching team
The teaching team is made up of practitioners – artists, designers, researchers – who are aware both of the importance of print as a field of research and of their responsibility to equip tomorrow’s practitioners with the most appropriate tools for making and conceiving the world of the future. Guest lecturers (artists, curators, writers, musicians, engineers, etc.) help to deepen the ongoing research and open up new horizons. Interdisciplinary courses and workshops, Erasmus exchanges, critical seminars, residencies, exhibitions and publications all help the students to develop a solid body of work that is directly linked to their aims, thoughts and concerns.
Network
The studio is a member of the Printmaking Union, a European association for print research and distribution, connecting the studio to CSM-UAL and RCA (London), KASKA (Antwerp), HGB (Leipzig) and KABK (The Hague). This association enables its members to share knowledge through a range of exchanges: digital platforms, workshops, conferences, publications and exhibitions.
Pedagogical coordination
From 1 March 2024, Koenraad Claes will be responsible for coordinating the Bachelor's programme, while Anne Franssen and Gary Farrelly will coordinate the Master's programme.
Pedagogical staff
Teachers
Koenraad Claes, Gary Farrelly, Francis Capes, Marianne Corté, Anne Franssen
Assistants
Annabelle Milon, Julia Lebrao Sendra,
Lecturers
Koi Persyn, Esther Le Roy, Aline Bouvy, Yonghi Yi, Daniel Henry, Joaquim Hernandez-Dispaux
