About Printmaking
Idea, Ink, Action
Nothing surpasses the beauty of metal type embossed onto soft white paper, or the rich ink produced by an artful aquatint or lithograph.Slow knowledge—that which requires critical thinking, problem-solving, and true hard work—can be deeper and longer lasting than the swift hit of a single key.Printmakers embrace traditional, digital, and new, innovative ways of image making.
The School of Art offers tracks in printmaking for theBachelor of Fine Arts in Studio Artand theMaster of Fine Arts in Studio Artas well as a minor in printmaking.Students explore advanced avenues of collaboration and expanding art practices while maintaining the integrity of existing traditional practices such as lithography, intaglio, relief, and silkscreen and the art of the book and papermaking.
A Legacy of Creativity
View 30 years of student work in this celebratory publication that heralds and documents a laboratory of arts experimentation and innovation.
Award-Winning Paper Artists
Two MFA printmaking students won top awards in the National Collegiate Handmade Paper Art Triennial and received prestigious residencies.
Art in Florence
Printmaking Professor Leslie Koptcho directs this study abroad program that offers an exceptional opportunity to study art while living in Florence.
BFA
Undergraduate printmaking students explore and create using a continuum of processes while learning hands-on about the power of print, from its earliest history to its current potential with the application and integration of digital innovation and 3D printing and scanning technologies.
MFA
Graduate studies in printmaking consist of a vibrant and diverse community of student artists from across the United States and further abroad.From 1980 to the present, we have been able to support all of our graduate students with assistantships.Graduate students develop strong professional and critical skills through in-depth critiques in advanced coursework and seminar classes.
Printmaking Faculty
Enthusiastically encouraging diversity in imagery and approaches to the print medium, the School of Art's printmaking faculty are committed to fostering intensive exploration and development of each individual's unique personal vision while striving to offer a perfect marriage of new and historically grounded processes.
Leslie Koptcho, Professor & Area Coordinator
Lauren Cardenás, Assistant Professor
View all School of Art faculty.
Beyond the Studio
Printmaking has a long history of democratic and critical engagement within society.The print is a social agent, an advocate for and a vehicle of human expression and communication.Special projects, exchange portfolios and exhibitions, fieldtrips and study abroad opportunities, includingArt in Florence, offer a broad range of practical and inspiring experience, bringing both the art world and larger world perspectives to the learning environments.
Print
Club
The Print Club, a student-run organization, exists to build better communication between printmaking students, artists, and alumni.The club also sponsors creative workshops and visiting artists.
Visiting Artists & Scholars
Visiting artists, scholars, and guest lecturers provide further opportunities for students to extend their creative interests and to establish connections with artists from a variety of disciplines.
Art & Design in Louisiana
The high ground above the Mississippi River is an environment where landscape, climate, history, and culture allow for a lifestyle that is uniquely suited to the artistic temperament.
Facilities & Equipment
LSU's printmaking curriculum is one of the most comprehensive and best-equipped in the United States.The 10,000-square-foot printmaking area in Hatcher Hall houses facilities for intaglio, lithography, screen printing, book arts, papermaking, digital, and darkroom development.The workspace features a unique opportunity to work on large-scale work, including two 10-feet Takach presses, one for etching, relief, and monoprinting and one for lithography.Additionally, there is a 5 x 10 feet vacuum table in papermaking.
College Facilities
Students have access to a traditional wood-working shop!digital fabrication, photography, and lighting equipment!large-scale printers and scanners!an arboretum!a foundry!a motion capture studio!high-end work stations!and more.
Galleries
The School of Art hosts exhibitions throughout the year at its on- and off-campus galleries.Students have abundant opportunities to see and experience innovative work from a wide range of perspectives and social themes.
New Arts Building
Renovations to the Studio Arts Building are complete.The new Barnes Ogden Art & Design complex is the gateway to the historic part of campus and will promote arts to the community and provide state-of-the-art facilities and studios for studio arts.
Printmaking equipment and resources also include:
Intaglio
- Three Takach presses, 49" x 120", 36" x 42", and 25½" x 48"
- Charles Brand press, 36" x 42"
- Botega press, 25½" x 47"
- Inking stations with three hot plates
- Color inking area with 3' x 4' glass slabs for color-mixing
Lithography
- Three large Takach Garfield presses, one of which has a 4' x 10' press bed with plate base
- 10 stones ranging in size up to 30" x 40"
- Plate lithography area with separate, ventilated plate-processing space and spray booth
- Six large-diameter rollers ranging in size from 6" x 16" to 14" x 24"
- Variety of smaller brayers and rollers
- Large-format punch registration system
- Light table, 4' x 5'
- Large inking table on casters
Silkscreen/Darkroom/Digital
- Darkroom
- Large, table-type mat cutter
- Nu Arc vacuum frame exposure unit
- Cincinnati screen-printing unit, 5' x 10'
- Several smaller vacuum table stations
- Adequate screen-drying and storage areas
- Epson E9800 and 7500 plotter printers
Book Arts/Papermaking
- Vandercook SP 20 letterpress, 18" x 24"
- Vandercook I letterpress, 15" x 22"
- Tabletop intaglio press, 14" x 24"
- Tabletop proofing press
- Light table
- Eight galley cabinets with galleys
- Three job banks (composing stations)
- More than 200 drawers of foundry type
- An extensive library of type-high blocks with miscellaneous zinc cuts
- Four Bunting magnetic plate bases with scribed grids
