UC Berkeley Art Practice
Department of Art Practice at UC Berkeley

Printmaking Studio

Printmaking

View of half the Printmaking Studio with gravure and litho presses

Partial view of the Printmaking Studio with gravure and litho presses

The Printmaking program at UC Berkeley has an illustrious history. Originally designed by Karl Kasten, the studios have developed over the years from the remarkable teachings of George Miyasaki, Shane Weare, Sylvia Lark, Don Farnsworth, Barbara Foster and Randy Hussong.

Located on the second floor of the Anthropology & Art Practice Building, the two Printmaking Studios include equipment for stone and plate lithography, intaglio, screen printing, relief, monotype, and digital and photo processes.

Work by Kira Oikawa-Clark (BA’19)

Work by Kira Oikawa-Clark (BA’19)

The lithography studio has three presses, a large graining sink, and a wide variety of lithographic stones.  The intaglio studio is equipped with three etching presses including a large American-French press , two hot plates, an aquatint box, a ventilated cleaning hood, and a separate acid room equipped to etch large plates. Three screen printing stations are available for water-based printing, along with a spray booth and a separate area for coating and storing light-sensitive screens. The printmaking program has its own digital facilities and a large NUARC flip-top exposure unit for photographic lithography, intaglio, and screen printing processes.

Students explore both traditional and experimental printmaking techniques, with an emphasis on the development of ideas and concepts. The Printmaking Studios provide a working environment for students to learn collaboratively, develop their creative process through direct assistance and engage in critical discussion.

Two studio classes are taught in Printmaking each semester, and are assisted by a full-time staff Mechanician. Courses rotate between these selections:

  • ART 16: Printmaking (Relief & Intaglio): Foundations

  • ART 17: Printmaking (Lithography & Screenprinting): Foundations

  • ART 120: Advanced Printmaking: Intaglio

  • ART 122: Advanced Printmaking: Lithography

  • ART 123: Advanced Printmaking: Screen Print

  • ART 124: Advanced Projects in Printmaking

  • ART 160: Special Topics in Visual Studies

Vera McBride is a 2022 graduate of the Art Practice Department at the University of California Berkeley, and as the winner of the 2021/22 Art Practice & University Library Printmaking Award, two of Vera’s prints, Sinking and Trick of the Eye, have been added to the Graphic Arts Loan Collection that students at UC Berkeley can now borrow.

The Printmaking area is also affiliated with the Graphic Arts Loan Collection (GALC) on campus, which is a collection of framed, original lithographs, etchings, and woodblock prints. These prints are available for loan to students, faculty, and staff of the UC Berkeley campus. These patrons may check out up to two prints each academic year beginning with the fall semester.

In 2022, Senior Lecturer Randy Hussong curated “Proof: 28 years of printmaking at UC Berkeley” at the Worth Ryder Art Gallery, which featured more than 1400 prints from 1135 students who have taken printmaking classes. Hussong maintained an archive of student prints from every class since 1994 and was an extraordinary opportunity to view nearly three decades of etchings, lithographs, relief and screen prints.

Studios location: 2nd Floor, Anthropology + Art Practice Building

Lab use: Access to these spaces is reserved for students enrolled in Printmaking classes and to graduate students in Art Practice.
Facilities/Materials fee: varies per class

For more information, contact:
Tamar Beja, Printmaking Studio Mechanician
Email: tamar@berkeley.edu
Office: 310 Anthropology + Art Practice Building

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