On Saturday, June 3, aligned with the celebration of their 10th Anniversary, the staff, board, and members of Spudnik Press Cooperative kicked off a year-long fundraising campaign that will be invested in the longterm stability of the organization as well as professional-track programs.

The 10th Anniversary Campaign will raise $65,000 from individuals and businesses between June 2017 and June 2018.

The all-new Spudnik Press Giving Circle offers the organizations most dedicated supporters acknowledgement and incentives to continue supporting the mission to provide affordable and approachable access to printmaking. In addition to cash donations, admission to ticketed fundraisers, winning auction bids, and Studio Memberships will all accrue towards the Support, Patron, and Benefactor Giving Circle levels.

Businesses that would like to support Spudnik Press Cooperative can take advantage of the Sponsorship Program that combines philanthropic support with opportunities for creative staff retreats via customized “Ink and Drink” events.

Within the overarching fundraising goal, members of Spudnik Press have stepped up their investment in their studio by initiating an Equipment Fund dedicated to upgrading, expanding, and repairing shared equipment. By contributing to our Equipment Fund, donors can ensure that the collection of rare presses remains in great shape for the hundreds of artists and students that use the studio day in and day out.

Guests at the Birthday Bash Printing Dash contributed the first $2350 towards the Anniversary Campaign.

Raising the remaining $62,650 will allow Spudnik Press to deepen the support they provide Chicago’s create community through specifically their Fellowship and Residency Programs. Additionally, the organization will invest in a newly establish Reserve Fund to ensure that the organization remains a resilient resource for years to come.

Donate to the 10th Anniversary Campaign

Support the Campaign with tickets to the Print Factory Art Party

Through out June 2017, Spudnik Press Cooperative is presenting a full calendar of programming that includes hands-on art making, community projects, exhibitions and art sales, conversations, celebrating, and fundraising. Each event will connects programs and  initiatives at Spudnik Press with students, emerging artists, established artists, collectors and art consumers. Together, the calendar of events aims to promote dialogue, raise awareness, and expose artists to new audiences.

6/1       Crossing of the Fellows: Exhibition & Artist Talks

The Spudnik Press Fellowship Program provides emerging artists unfettered access to our studios for seven months. The twice-annual Crossing of the Fellows event brings together our graduating class of fellows and our incoming cohort to present their artwork and discuss their projects.

6/2       Private Reception: Crossing of the Fellows

Spudnik’s donors are invited to join the Board of Directors for a cocktail reception celebrating seven emerging artists supported by our 2017 Fellowship Program.

6/3       Birthday Bash Printing Dash

Pre-Sale Incentive: Grab tickets now for a chance to win a free workshop!

If anyone knows how to party it’s us nerdy printmakers! No seriously, we turn ten this year and are letting our hair down. We’re throwing a party so big it takes over the entire studio and spills into the parking lot.

6/7       Drink & Draw: Comics Jam & CAKE

Join us for a double serving of CAKE:

First of all, CAKE (The Chicago Alternative Comics Expo) is right around the corner. Gear up by creating your own CAKE-worthy comics at this month’s Drink & Draw. Then, head to the snack table to grab a slice of birthday cake. What could be sweeter?

6/10     The Press Box @ CAKE

Spudnik Press Cooperative is excited to debut our new mobile print project, ThePress Box.  Named after the space dedicated to reporters and other members of the media, The Press Box invites all people to make their own headlines.  Using repositionable metal plates, The Press Box is letterpress printing meets magnetic poetry.

6/12   Publishing as Collaboration Panel Discussion

Printers have a long history of collaborating with artists, often new to making print. Why are printers so excited to get artists working in other mediums, often very disparate from flat ink on paper, to publish prints? What do artists get from the experience? Meet artists Kelly Kaczynski and Jeroen Nelemans in conversation with the printers who have been working side-by-side to produce new bodies of work at Spudnik Press Cooperative.

Presented by the Annual Benefit Committee.

6/16     Where we have been, before we go:
Opening Reception & Gallery Talk

Featuring prints that investigate the art making process as a progressive and ever-evolving exercise, artists produced diptychs reflecting past and current art practices.

6/17     Pop-Up Print Sale @ Galerie F

Our members are mounting a one-day print sale and BBQ at this Logan Square haven for print collectors. The event is free, but bring $ for art, burgers and brats.

6/25    Community Workshops Presented by the Fellowship Program

Our fellows have organized a Sunday-fun-day at the printshop exploring the papermaking and paper embellishing. These workshops are pay-what-you-can. While we do need people to register in advance, we won’t deny anyone access based on lack of funds. The suggested $20 donation covers materials and our amazing teaching artists. But any donation, even $1, will allow you to register online.

Handmade Paper: Adventures with Pulp, Embedding, and Laminating
10:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.
Teaching Artist: Yasaman Moussavi

Paste Papers (Plus Accordion Books!)
2:00 – 5:00 p.m.
Teaching Artists: Mary Climes & Carolina Martinez

6/29     Member Birthday Party

Join us for some good ol’ classic Birthday Party fun celebrating 10 years of Spudnik! There will be pizza, cake, drinks, games, and a raffle featuring some amazing spud gear, open studio passes, limited edition prints and more! All proceeds go towards the Spudnik Equipment Fund.

Support our 10th Anniversary Campaign

Spudnik Press Cooperative is celebrating a milestone: A decade of community arts programming!

This June, we will kick off a full month of special programming as well as a fundraising campaign to support our mission to provide affordable and approachable printmaking resources to Chicagoans.

Without a communal studio, dedicated equipment, highly trained staff and approachable programs, printmaking is out of reach for most. However, Spudnik Press has found inventive ways to keep their extensive collection of tools and equipment available to all. We opened our doors as a work/live studio in 2007 with a simple drop-in Open Studio program. Today, programming includes a network of opportunities from youth field trips to three month residencies for local artists.  In 2016 alone, we hosted over 587 students and 668 Open Studio visits.

Our big anniversary celebration is the Birthday Bash Printing Dash on Saturday June 3, featuring an afternoon of print-themed field day competitions, studio tours, music, and food. Donations from this event will be invested in the all-new member-driven Equipment Fund. This new initiative is raising funds for equipment upgrades, expansions, and repairs.

Grab Tickets Now for a chance to win a Free workshop

Spudnik Press Cooperative is also debuting a new Print of the Month Club that highlights 12 of their 175 members. Each month, subscribers will receive a fresh-off-the-press print designed by a member of the cooperative.  Print of the Month Club sales directly fund the featured artists and sustain the day in day out programs at Spudnik Press.

Join Our Print of the Month Club

Want to know more about our big milestone?
View the 10th Anniversary Press Release
View Upcoming Events

Spudnik Press Cooperative welcomes Rachel Foster as Studio Coordinator, a new position for the organization.

Rachel has been a contributing member of the Spudnik community for several years in various roles such as teaching and exhibiting artist. Now, as staff, she is excited to meet members, students, and our full community of artists and makers.

Rachel has both a B.F.A. and M.F.A. in fine art and has always had a love for printmaking. Her print work can be found in Printeresting’s Ghost compilation as well as The New Concrete: Conrete Poetry in the 21^st Century. Her work can also be find in the collections of ArtNow International and the Museum of Contemporary Photography.

In addition to her experiences as an artist and printmaker, she has extensive administrative experience. Her cumulative professional experiences makes her an invaluable resource for Spudnik Press Cooperative an our community.

If you see her around the studio, say hello and welcome her to the team! Rachel is here to assist with press reservations, orientations, class registration, and all other general inquiries. She can be reached at Rachel@spudnikpress.org or 312-563-0302.

Our 2016 Annual Report highlights that 2016 was an energetic year for Spudnik Press Cooperative. Our calendar of programming was the most robust to date and our small staff worked round the clock to provide hundreds of artists the artistic opportunities, education, comradery and studio facilities they need for their creative pursuits to thrive.

As we approach our ten year anniversary, we are taking stock of our assets and making sure we can continue serving the Chicago community for many more years to come.

I am incredibly proud of Spudnik Press Cooperative and hope that you will join me in looking back on our accomplishments, and more importantly looking forward to another year of unique programming in support of the hundreds of incredible artists that come through our doors each year.

With gratitude to all of our supporters,

Angee Lennard
Founder & Executive Director

View the 2016 Annual Report

Did you know…

Today is National Chili Day! Today is a day to celebrate this remarkable stew and gear up for a delicious weekend of eating.

This most happy holiday promotes not only the wonderful stew, cooked the world over, but the many cultural traditions surrounding this hearty dish.

Do not worry! The wait is coming to an end! The 2017 Hashbrown Chili Cook-Off starts in less then 48 hours, where the chili will be ample, the games ridiculous, the company unsurpassed, and the fun incalculable.

Grab your pre-sale tickets now to save $5 off each adult ticket!

In just two days, 18 chefs will come together to face-off chili to chili. Three will go home winners, but only one will receive the coveted “Chili Champ” Juror’s Choice Award!

We asked our chefs if they’ve ever competed in a cook-off before, and here’s what they said:

Just how often do our chefs cook chili?  

Where exactly are our chefs finding their recipes?

Will you be able to tell who the real chefs are? Will the novices be able to convince you they are pros?

At the Hashbrown Chili Cook-Off, we let YOU be the judge! Reserve your discounted pre-sale tickets today and prepare to give your taste buds the challenge of a lifetime.

We look forward to seeing you this Saturday, February 25!

In just a few days, 19 chefs will come together to prepare our guests a winter feast with 19 varieties of chili, 2 types of tamales, cocktails, beer, and more. But who exactly are our chefs????

Chicago ACT Collective
Chicago Alternative Comics Expo
Chicago Design Museum
Chicago Printmakers Collaborative
CHIRP Radio
Homeroom
Candor Arts
Cul de Sac Press
Double Trip Press
Fata Morgana Press
Hoofprint Workshop
Metal Magic Interiors
Metropolitan Brewing
Transit Residency
Team Chi-Chi-Chili
The Birthday Bash Printing Dash Team
(Plus More Spudnik Member Teams)

Okay. So now we know their names. Yet we know so little about their food preferences! Luckily, our investigative reporters were able to dig up some facts. Here is what they discovered:

Just under half favor dinner over other meals. 27% prefer snacks. 

Cracker Barrel tied with Bob Evans as “Favorite Casual Dining Restaurant Chain” with the majority of chefs preferring to keep their chair restaurant indulgence top secret.

If our chefs could each invite a guest, dead or alive, to a dinner, here’s who would be at the table:

• Printmakers Kathë Kollwitz and Alois Senefelder.
• Musicians David Bowie, Prince, Lemme Kilmeister, and Brian Eno.
• Fictional characters Dr. Worm (of They Might Be Giants fame) and Linda Belcher (of Bob’s Burgers fame).
• Artist Salvador Dalí (twice invited!)
• Chef Julia Child

Are you ready to meet these chefs in person? Ticket’s for the 2017 Hashbrown Chili Cook-Off & Carnival on Saturday, February 25 start at just $20 ($10 for kids). Reserve your ticket for unlimited chili and print-themed carnival games!

2017 Hashbrown Chili Cook-Off & Carnival
Saturday, February 25, 2017
6:00 pm – 10:00 pm

Reserve Your Tickets

Did you know…

The first recorded eating contest is featured in Norse mythology, when Loki challenged Logi to a meat-eating race. Both gods ate their meat in record time, but Logi ate the bones and the plates too, securing himself the win.

The first eating contest with human competitors was likely in the late 1800s, as carnival organizers found a new to sell food and draw a crowd all at the same time. Since then, eating contests have sprung up around the world. Here’s some of our favorite food-focused records:

7 sticks of butter in 5 minutes
49 donuts in 8 minutes
A 22 oz Slurpee in 9 seconds
35 BBQ brisket sandwiches in 10 minutes
275 jalapeno peppers in 8 minutes

Are you ready for your own personal eating content? See just how many chilis you can taste at the 2017 Hashbrown Chili Cook-Off & Carnival approaches on Saturday, February 25. Reserve your tickets today!

2017 Hashbrown Chili Cook-Off & Carnival
Saturday, February 25, 2017
6:00 pm – 10:00 pm

Reserve Your Tickets

This isn’t our first rodeo. In fact, it isn’t a rodeo at all. It’s a cook-off. And it isn’t our first.

Inspired by Sunday Soup, a community micro-granting project initiated by the now defunct InCubate, The Hashbrown began in 2010 as a community event to raise funds for our big expansion into our current home. In the early years, chefs heralded from the many printshops throughout Chicago.

In 2014, peer non-profits were first invited to compete. This brought new chefs to the table including Read Write Library, Soup and Bread, and 60 Inches From Center.

Carnival games were first introduced in 2016 with the popular Vandercook Target Practice.

This year, the event has again reinvented itself with:

• All new carnival games
• All inclusive tickets: Unlimited chili, unlimited games, unlimited tamales.
• Youth tickets: Bring the whole family!
• All new Chili Champ award selected by a Guest Jurors, David Hammond (Newcity Dining & Drink Editor) and Pat Berger (Kaiser Tiger)
• More chefs including Spudnik Member Teams! More games! And a bonus Silent Auction! We are going all out!

Ready for the newest and greatest Hashbrown? You are in luck! It’s happening again on Saturday, February 25. Tickets are going fast, so grab them while you can!

Be on the lookout for more Chili Babbles as the 2017 Hashbrown Chili Cook-Off & Carnival approaches on Saturday, February 25. In the meantime, reserve your ticket for unlimited chili and print-themed carnival games!

2017 Hashbrown Chili Cook-Off & Carnival
Saturday, February 25, 2017
6:00 pm – 10:00 pm

Reserve Your Tickets

Did you know…

Consuming chili peppers is just good for more than flavor and proving one’s might. Here’s five healthy benefits of pepper-heavy diet:

1.     Chili peppers are a better source of vitamin C than oranges.
2.     Hot peppers lowers blood pressure.
3.     The capsaicin in peppers makes an effective anti-inflammatory.
4.     The enzyme luetin, found in peppers, can prevent cataracts and macular degeneration.
5.     Ingesting spicy food can help lower cholesterol.

Do these sound like health benefits you are ready for? We have just the opportunity for you! Be on the lookout for more Chili Babbles as the 2017 Hashbrown Chili Cook-Off & Carnival approaches on Saturday, February 25. In the meantime, reserve your ticket for unlimited chili and print-themed carnival games!

2017 Hashbrown Chili Cook-Off & Carnival
Saturday, February 25, 2017
6:00 pm – 10:00 pm

Reserve Your Tickets

Did you know…. The Scoville Scale is the official measurement scale for the heat (or piquancy) of a pepper. It has been used since 1912, though the process for determining a pepper’s Scoville units has evolved significantly with technological advances. 

Here’s the original process for determining the scoville units of a pepper:

1)    The dried pepper is soaked in alcohol and then diluted in sugar water.

2)    The solution is diluted more and more until a panel of five trained testers can no longer detect the pepper.

3)    The more dilution needed, the more units of heat the pepper has.

Nowadays, though, Scoville units are calculated with high-performance liquid chromatography.

Be on the lookout for more Chili Babbles as the 2017 Hashbrown Chili Cook-Off & Carnival approaches on Saturday, February 25. In the meantime, reserve your ticket for unlimited chili and print-themed carnival games!

2017 Hashbrown Chili Cook-Off & Carnival
Saturday, February 25, 2017
6:00 pm – 10:00 pm

Reserve Your Tickets