University at Buffalo (UB)
Print Review features traditional, experimental, and innovative printed art by three Buffalo-affiliated artists. It is fitting that UB Anderson Gallery has organized these three exhibitions of printed art because the Gallery is home to more than 800 prints in its collection of 1,200 works of Modern art that was donated to UB in 2000 by David Anderson, son of Martha Jackson. Recognized as one of the most influential art dealers who contributed to the shaping of the post-WWII American art scene, Jackson was one of the first dealers to provide separate gallery space for printed art by modern artists.
Kevin B. O’Callahan
A founding member of the Buffalo Print Club in 1931, Kevin B. O’Callahan (1902–77) was a nationally respected printmaker throughout the 1930s and 1940s. In drawings, wood engravings, and lithographs, O’Callahan explored the bold shapes, large scales, and powerful energy of Buffalo’s busy industrial system on the waterfront prior to and during the war years. He also employed unique principles of composition that revealed the intricate designs of industrial geometry around the shipyards of Maine as well as the dramatic contrast of deep shadows and bright light reflecting off the water. The exhibition is curated by James H. Bunn, UB Emeritus Professor.
Harold L. Cohen
Harold L. Cohen came to printmaking only after his tenure as Dean of UB’s School of Architecture and Planning. Printmaking offered a summation of many of his interests, particularly its dichotomous characteristics: processes demanding both scientific and artistic thinking and the mastery of traditional techniques coupled with innovation. Printmaking became the perfect sanctuary for Cohen’s energy, passion for lifelong learning, love of design, and his search for expressing the human condition. The prints selected by guest curator and artist, Hyeyoung Shin, alumnus and Research Scholar of UB’s Department of Visual Studies, demonstrate Cohen’s constant experimentation with process and expression.
Chunwoo Nam
Chunwoo Nam is recognized internationally as an artist, teacher, and master printer. For Nam the complex and tedious printmaking processes provide crucial time for reflection and experimentation to achieve expressiveness. Mindful of the toxicity of the chemical processes, he has experimented with and provided demonstrations of the benefits of etching with non-toxic copper sulfate. He has recently created alternative ways for presenting printed art within installations, which now includes performance. Nam’s new installation, Their Globalization, speaks to the human consequences of our global economy.