New York Celebrating Fine Art Printmaking

When we see a work of art by an artist whose style we know, we don’t have to look for the signature in the lower right hand corner, or on the plaque next to the picture, that gives the artist’s name and information about the materials that went into making the work. We know the style, we know the artist.

What isn’t written on the artwork, or on the plaque on the wall, are the names of the experts who made the materials that went into the work: those who fabricated the paint, the ink, the paper, the equipment, and the master printmakers whose assistance, advice and expertise helped with its creation.

In Europe, as early as the 17th and 18th centuries, there were master printmakers available who worked with artists to help to create their works, but there were not many in the United States.

When Gemini G.E.L. was founded in Los Angeles in 1966, many fine artists began to collaborate with master printmaker Kenneth Tyler (b.1931) and his partners, Sidney Felsen (1924-2024) and Stanley Grinstein (1927-2014).

The relationships that were established between artists and printmakers were strong and enduring.

Felsen, who documented, with photographs, fifty years of collaborations, was given a retrospective, and honored, at the Getty Center on February 20, 2024. First Came a Friendship: Sidney B. Felsen and the Artists at Gemini G.E.L. included Felsen’s photographs of Robert Rauschenberg, Jasper Johns, Ellsworth Kelly, Roy Lichtenstein,Frank Stella, Claes Oldenburg, David Hockney, Richard Serra and other modern and contemporary artists.

The second half of the video below shows Felsen's photograps at the Getty:

“When I began photographing the artists in the early 1970s, it was just about taking photos” Felsen said. “But soon I realized that all of the artists working with us were so highly accomplished, and I had the feeling of history building up.”

Sidney Felsen died on June 9,2024 at age 99.

Fine Art Printmaking is being celebrated in New York this weekend at the Park Avenue Armory, hosted by the International Fine Print Dealers Association (IFDPA), Coinciding with the IFDPA exhibit is the Brooklyn Fine Art Print Fair at Powerhouse Arts in Gowanus. The scope of both fairs, including works that were done more than 500 years ago, is a tribute to the breadth and scope of fine art printmaking.

Please contact us if you would like more information about the works of Robert Rauschenberg, Ellsworth Kelly, Roy Lichtenstein,Frank Stella,James Rosenquist, Claes Oldenburg, David Hockney, Richard Serra and the other fine artists whose works are available at VFA.