Spudnik Press is continuously seeking new Board Members and we encourage members of our community to consider supporting our mission by joining our Board of Directors. 

The Spudnik Press Board of Directors is a team of volunteers working behind the scenes to ensure our organization is resilient, mission-driven, and advocating day-in-day-out for artists and the arts. Board Members provide long-range leadership, governance, and oversight for the organization. 

Members of our board work collaboratively with each other and the staff of Spudnik Press to support the mission of our organization and any challenges that arise during their tenure. Board Members serve two-year terms and are eligible for reappointment for additional terms. Board meetings are typically held in the evening, every month, with additional meetings called as needed. Priorities for the coming year focus on our current leadership transition and working closely with staff to ensure that the organization is accessible, diverse, inclusive, and equitable. 

There are dedicated seats for Spudnik members with waived annual dues. To be eligible for these seats, Spudnik members must have at least two years of membership with the organization, and these years do not need to be consecutive. Membership must be active at the time of application.

At this moment, we are accepting applications for general and member seats. Please send your resume and a letter of inquiry to boardofdirectors@spudnikpress.org.

With great appreciation and respect for the community of Spudnik Press Cooperative, I am announcing my resignation as Executive Director. 

Engaging with our community and working to restore organizational trust has been a top priority since I began in this role. In a time when our membership would be understandably wary, I was surprised by the speed and willingness of our members to share their experiences, both joyous and painful, at the Press. I quickly understood this to be indicative of a larger need to be heard by organizational leadership, and worked to make myself readily available to our community, both current and past. 

Spudnik has experienced a challenging few years and, while many of these challenges predate my arrival, the impact on the community continues to reverberate through how we operate and function as an organization today. Through my conversations with members and as I came to understand our operational infrastructure, the true nature of Spudnik’s organizational status became apparent. I urge our community to read the recent statement from the Board of Directors, detailing some of the structural concerns we share for the organization, as well as the hope of working towards a truly cooperative organizational model. 

While the challenges ahead are daunting, I am confident in the collective abilities of our current Board of Directors to move forward in close collaboration with our membership. I firmly believe that each Board member holds the humility, compassion, and commitment that is needed to support our community through this next phase. 

As outlined in the Board of Directors statement, the Board will be holding a community meeting on Wednesday, November 2nd at 6:30pm. I implore you all to attend, whether you are a current member, former staff, or studio user of years past. This is a critical moment for the Spudnik community to determine how to move forward together. To allow the Board to best prepare for this meeting, RSVPs are required. 

Though the duration of my leadership at Spudnik is coming to a close far sooner than I ever expected or hoped, the generosity of our community has left a significant impression. I’m thankful to so many of you, not only for your support and the impactful conversations we’ve shared, but for the laughs and print-nerdiness we’ve indulged in together. 

With deep gratitude and appreciation, 

Sara Emerson
Executive Director

With gratitude and respect for her work and efforts the Board of Directors announces the resignation of Sara Emerson as Executive Director of Spudnik Press Cooperative effective October 31, 2022. In this transition the Board, as it looks forward, has realized that the systems Spudnik was built upon are unsustainable in their current model. The amount of work asked of our Director and our staff is not equitable and perpetuates foundational inequalities that we are not willing to stand by. Sara inherited an organization in crisis and was not properly informed about the expectations and obstacles to her and the organization’s success. These are fundamental things that need to be addressed for the future stability of Spudnik. In addition, two members of the Board, Hellen Coleman and Holly Ekwejunor-Etchie have also resigned their positions. 

At the time of Sara’s hire, the Board did not have the capacity or institutional knowledge to provide adequate support to properly address the challenges we face as an organization. The board had had only three members, two of which had nonmianal experience and were engaged in a difficult transition. Sara relocated for this position, unaware of the extent of the collective trauma our community had experienced. She was unprepared and under supported in taking on the significant challenge of restabilizing our organization financially, administratively, and in spirit. 

The need for change and restructuring is imperative. We must acknowledge the significant challenges ahead, as well as the time, commitment, and collaboration that making these changes will require. For Sara, we know the lack of resources and support has been especially frustrating, as much of her own work as an artist and professional has been centered in expanding equity, access, and inclusivity within printmaking. Sara has shared that her departure is profoundly upsetting on a personal level; getting to know the Spudnik community has been a great privilege, and she is deeply grateful to our members for their kindness, patience, and insight in these past months. 

We have reached a moment of critical reflection. We need to work with our staff, members, community, and friends to redefine ourselves and the way we work together and move forward. Reviewing our financial situation and our organizational structure, it has become clear that it is impossible for the Press to exist as it has. This is an exciting and difficult time of transition. By choosing to completely reassess ourselves we are opening our organization to being remade as a more caring, transparent, communal, and equitable space to create and support printmaking. 

We recognize that it is our fundamental structure and operation based in hierarchical organizational principles that have put us in this situation. To mitigate and counteract the inequalities within our current system we will not move with the Board at the forefront alone, but rather invite our community to come together and work with us side by side. Together we can imagine and create a better future that affirms our values to build a press where everyone feels welcome, supported, and inspired by one another. This will not be easy and will require help from everyone who cares and believes in Spudnik, but we are hopeful that we will meet this challenge with the full force and innovation of our community. 

We will hold a community meeting on Wednesday, November 2nd at 6:30pm to begin discussing the current challenges and some options we have been considering for the future of Spudnik. A large portion of the meeting will be dedicated to answering questions and collectively imagining how we move forward together.  This meeting is open to all who are or have felt like a part of the Spudnik community, not just those who are current members of the Press. Moreover, the Board will need help moving forward, so if there are those who considered joining the Board in the past, we urge you to consider that again. To attend our community meeting, we are requesting RSVPs:

RSVP TO OUR COMMUNITY MEETING BY CLICKING HERE 

This is not intended to limit participation in any way, rather to help us prepare the studio beforehand. While our meeting will be held at Spudnik, we will do our best to provide a virtual component for those who can not attend in person. 

If you have initial concerns or questions you would like answered during the meeting or beforehand, please direct them toward comments@spudnikpress.org. Please refrain from sending messages via Instagram or other modes, these channels go to staff members and we do not want this situation to put more work on their desks. The Board of Directors will respond as quickly as possible to all inquiries. 

Amira Hegazy, Dutes Miller, and Chris Perzan
The Board of Directors 

Link to Sara’s public resignation letter

This week marks an exciting shift for Spudnik: Our next Executive Director, Sara Emerson, has arrived in Chicago and is eager to begin meeting Chicago’s artistic community. We are enjoying a brief overlap period, and I can confidently say that we share a deep love for the art and craft of printmaking and a dedication to expanding its equity, accessibility, viability, and vibrance. 

The initial stages of this transition have heightened anxiety, and brought concerns about equity, transparency, and organizational culture to the forefront. Sara understands that as a member-based organization, community participation is essential for moving forward and I am excited about her early commitment to member engagement. Monthly membership meetings are scheduled through the summer with agendas determined by member input. These meetings will culminate in Spudnik’s Annual Member Meeting in August where members can cast their ballots for any artists and supporters nominated to join the board of directors. 

Spudnik has experienced continual growth and expansion since the 2007 grand opening in my humble apartment. Now firmly in its teenage years, the next phase of growth may be less about scale and more about focusing who  Spudnik is, what Spudnik does, and how Spudnik operates. Change and transitions are rarely easy. There remains a tremendous amount of work ahead to repair division, interrogate how privilege and inaccessibility show up in the organization, and rebuild finances and staff.

I hope that my departure as the founding executive director signals that the organization has matured into a reliable resource with a strong network of artists, supporters, and programs. It is now ready to be guided by the next generation of artists. As I leave my staff leadership position, I look forward to supporting Spudnik as a community member.

Looking back over the past 15 years, I am incredibly proud of the organization that I founded. I’ve made my share of mistakes as well and I’d like to take this opportunity to acknowledge and apologize for any harm and hurt I’ve caused.

Spudnik has been looked to as an inspiration for many community print spaces across the country, and has helped shape the next generation of printmakers. This accomplishment is the direct result of an incredible network of current and past staff, teaching artists, volunteers, and board members contributing above and beyond. I am so grateful for everyone’s support. 

With deep appreciation of everyone within the Spudnik community,

Angee Lennard
Founding Director of Spudnik Press Cooperative

Spudnik Press is excited to announce the appointment of Sara Emerson as the organization’s incoming executive director. Sara Emerson will lead a new era of community engagement and inclusiveness for Spudnik Press. Holding a BA in Printmaking and Social Practice of the Arts from Bennington College, Emerson comes to Spudnik with a strong background of collaborative printmaking, arts programming, financial operations, and managerial positions across higher education institutions throughout the US. Sara Emerson joins Spudnik from Williams College, a liberal arts college in Massachusetts, with graduate programs in the history of art and a track record of ambitious goals encompassing sustainability; diversity, equity and inclusion; and accountability and transparency. As Williams College’ Studio Manager, Emerson provided broad leadership and managed day-to-day operations of the printmaking facilities.

“On behalf of the board, we are excited about the creative perspective, plus management, and programmatic experience in the printmaking arts that Sara will bring to the position as Executive Director. We are delighted to have attracted someone of Sara Emerson’s talent, enthusiasm and accomplishment. She brings all the key skills that Spudnik needs to be successful at this stage in its history,” says board member and chair of the search committee Hellen Colman.

As Emerson begins her leadership at Spudnik, she looks forward to continuing work with community partners, and developing new collaborations and programs that explore the range and diversity of our community.

Welcome, Sara!

This Spring, we’re reducing our offerings as we select and welcome our next Executive Director, and as we continue to prioritize strengthening engagement with our members and community. 

This decision is a necessary step to ensure that the organization manages this time of change and transition with care and transparency. This plan centers our staff and our internal community – members, and those who are currently engaged in our programs.

Artists and students currently enrolled in programs will also not be impacted by this change. Our Open Studio, Keyholder, and  Residency Programs will also continue to operate, and will not be affected. 

At this point in time, the following activities will be reduced or paused: 

• Group classes and workshops, including Papermaking Labs.
• New Printing Services. All current projects and projects that we  provided a quote for will be completed as planned. 
• Summer internship program. We welcome college students to apply for a Fall 2022 internship position. 
• Studio Fellowship program applications are paused at this time. Our current cohort is active through September 2022. 
• Private workshops, including youth program field trips and private corporate workshops,  are not available at this time. 1-hour group tours are available on a limited basis. Please contact info@spudnikpress.org with any inquiries.
• We are continuing to offer select Studio Access Trainings and Private Lessons that can be booked through our website. We are not able to schedule sessions outside of this limited availability.

As new staff are welcomed to the team, we will gradually resume our programs, and continue to keep you updated on any new developments. 

Thank you for your patience and understanding, as we navigate this important transition for the organization. 

The Spudnik Press Cooperative Board of Directors is seeking new Board Members! We encourage members of our community to consider supporting our mission by joining our Board. 

The Spudnik Press Board of Directors is a team of volunteers working behind the scenes to ensure our organization is resilient, mission-driven, and advocating day-in-day-out for artists and the arts. Board Members provide long-range leadership, governance, and oversight for the organization. Members of our board work collaboratively with each other, the Executive Director, and the staff of Spudnik Press to support the mission of our organization and any challenges that arise during their tenure. 

Priorities for the coming year focus on our current leadership transition and working closely with staff to ensure that the organization is accessible, diverse, inclusive, and equitable.

Board Members serve two-year terms and are eligible for reappointment for additional terms. Board meetings are typically held in the evening, every month, with additional meetings called as needed. Directors are expected to serve on at least one committee, meeting approximately once per month.

We have recently created dedicated seats for Spudnik members, without annual dues. These member seats are part of our commitment to ensure we are representing the needs of the community in our guidance and decisions. To be eligible for these seats, Spudnik members must have at least two years of membership with the organization, and these years do not need to be consecutive. Membership must be active at the time of application.

At this moment, we are accepting applications for general and member seats. 

Please send your resume plus a letter of inquiry to boardofdirectors@spudnikpress.org. The board of directors will select new Board members to temporarily serve through August. These Board members will be eligible to be voted into the full two-year term by Spudnik membership in the Annual Member Meeting in August.

Spudnik Press Cooperative is looking for a new leader to change and grow the organization into its next phase. As the Executive Director of Spudnik, you are a strong advocate of the organization, staff, and printmaking community. You uphold Spudnik’s mission of providing printmaking facilities and services for artists who need a place to create or exhibit their original artwork, and of offering education in printmaking practices by uniting professional artists with a diverse community of learners.

View the Executive Director job description

Founded on the premise that art should be a democratic and empowering medium, Spudnik is committed to being an approachable and affordable print shop; a space where professional printmakers can meet aspiring students; and a space that encourages collaboration and the sharing of ideas. As Spudnik enters its fifteenth year, you will be uniquely positioned to move the organization in a new direction, ushering in new growth and building upon Spudnik’s legacy.

This is a permanent full-time position. Applicants should be based in Chicago by the start date. Occasional evening and weekend events will require attendance. Employee benefits include paid vacation, paid holiday and sick time.

View the Executive Director job description

Spudnik Press Cooperative does not and shall not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion (creed), gender, gender expression, age, national origin (ancestry), disability, marital status, sexual orientation, or military status, in any of its activities or operations. These activities include, but are not limited to, hiring and firing of staff, selection of volunteers and vendors, and provision of services. We are committed to providing an inclusive and welcoming environment for all members of our staff, clients, volunteers, subcontractors, vendors, and clients.

Dear Spudnik Community,

We have heard from many of you – both current and former community members and staff – on areas we need to improve to ensure Spudnik is an approachable, inclusive, respectful, and nurturing community space and workplace. Thank you for coming forward and speaking to us. Please know that we hear you and are working on moving the process forward.

Instrumental to this process will be a close working relationship with our staff, who are dedicated to making this transition effective.  We would like to state that the staff were not the subject of these concerns, and that they were not informed of the concerns brought to the board by former staff and community members when this news was initially announced. The staff are committed to collaborating with us as we work toward change.

As a largely new board, we are committed to positively shaping the culture at Spudnik to ensure we’re living our values across all facets of the organization. As part of these efforts, this year we’ll be adding two board seats dedicated to Spudnik community members, without annual dues. We are working on revising our grievance process to ensure that staff feel safe and supported, and we will revisit the salaries of current staff. We will also commit to engaging our community member base on more ways we can improve in the coming weeks.

As we begin our search for a new Executive Director, we are committed to finding a strong leader and team builder that shares our values. We have begun working with a search committee and dedicated members of staff that will be involved in the hiring process.

Please be patient with us as we work towards answering your queries. Emails addressed to boardofdirectors@spudnikpress.org will be answered in turn as we balance a number of tasks that require our immediate attention.

We thank all community members and staff for their patience during this time of transition. This is a difficult time for all of us. Please know that we will do what we can to move in a positive direction.

Sincerely,
Spudnik Press Board of Directors

Chicago, IL – After fifteen years, Founder and Executive Director Angee Lennard is leaving Spudnik Press Cooperative, a community-based art center located at Hubbard Street Lofts in West Town, Chicago, to explore what’s next for her career.

“Printmaking in all of its forms is who I am, so while this is hard to say, the organization is ready for change in order to grow stronger and continue its journey”, says Lennard. “I founded Spudnik Press Cooperative with the aspiration of creating a cooperative space where printmakers can thrive. Together, with the support and dedication of the community, it has grown to become a dynamic organization built on a multi-faceted, welcoming, and resilient studio model. I look forward to staying connected.”

Spudnik Press Cooperative is unique in its dedication to printmaking and the cultural traditions surrounding print. Its studio houses professional facilities and rare equipment for a wide variety of traditional print processes and fine art publishing. The 4800 square-foot studio includes shared work space, private studios and mixed-use spaces for exhibitions, classes and community events.

“What Angee has achieved over the last fifteen years for Spudnik and the printmaking community in Chicago is truly extraordinary,” says a statement from the Board of Directors. “Her expertise as a printmaker has helped forge the organization’s reputation as a trusted resource for artists and collaborators in the printmaking space. She will be missed at Spudnik, and we look forward to witnessing her – and Spudnik’s – next amazing chapter.”

The organization began in 2007 as a live/work studio. Founder – Angee Lennard – created the community-integrated print shop to respond to the needs of printmakers and Chicagoans interested in the arts. Throughout its fifteen-year history, Spudnik Press has seen exponential growth. Programming began with a simple weekly drop-in Open Studio session and now includes a rich network of opportunities for anyone who wishes to be creative through Printmaking.

Between 2008 and 2011, the organization incorporated, received 501(c)3 status, moved to a dedicated studio space, acquired additional printing presses and hired a Studio Manager. Within four years, Spudnik Press Cooperative was able to offer access to professional letterpress, relief, intaglio, bookbinding, screen printing, and offset printing facilities. Programs expanded through new Open Studio sessions, a local residency program, youth field trips, and publishing prints in collaboration with artists and designers. Another studio expansion in 2013 allowed for the creation of an Exhibitions Program, a large-scale free festival, Printers Ball, and the inclusion of Risography into our printmaking resources.

As Spudnik approaches fifteen years of programming, it looks forward to bringing on new leadership at an important moment in its history. During this transition to find a new Executive Director, the organization will continue to minimize barriers to well-maintained, robust printmaking facilities while establishing a rich community of artists and art-consumers engaged in the vibrant landscape of fine art printmaking.

For media inquiries, email boardofdirectors@spudnikpress.org.

—end—

Link to a Letter from Angee Lennard

Dear friends of Spudnik,

Since I founded Spudnik Press Cooperative 15 years ago, I have lived and breathed every moment for the betterment of the organization. Printmaking in all of its forms is who I am, so while this is hard to say, the organization is ready for change in order to grow stronger and continue its journey.  

As many people may know, I had a long-planned sabbatical that was supposed to start in April 2020. However, the pandemic had different ideas. I stayed on and through my efforts we were able to secure needed funding to remain open and viable, and offer ongoing studio access to the artists who rely on our studio. Now that the emergency is over, I intend to take a creative retreat in order to explore what is next for me.

As part of this transition, I support the open call for applications for a new Executive Director.  I will be available during this search and for an expected transition period though Mid May. Between now and when a new Executive Director is fully onboarded, the Board of Directors will be determining the short and long-term strategy of the organization.

I founded Spudnik Press Cooperative with the aspiration of creating a cooperative space where printmakers can thrive. Together, with the support and dedication of the community, it has grown to become a dynamic organization built on a multi-faceted, welcoming, and resilient studio model.

I have loved my time at Spudnik Press, and deeply appreciate the opportunities I have had to collaborate with our staff, board of directors, teaching artists, members, and students, the countless artists who’ve come through our studio and our programs, and the staff, artists, and students of the dozens institutions and organizations we’ve partnered with over the years. 

I look forward to staying connected.  

With gratitude for your ongoing support,
Angee Lennard
Founding Director of Spudnik Press Cooperative

Spudnik Press Cooperative is excited to announce the five Resident Artists in 2022 who will bring new research, programming, and experience to our community: Cameron Mankin, Susy Bielak, Elizabeth Rose, Hale Ekinci, and Hui-min Tsen. The Residency gives mid-career and established artists full access to our studios for the completion of new print-based artwork, along with a stipend and support from our staff of professional printmakers. Each Resident also engages our community in unique public programming that is connected to their practice and open to all.

In addition to these five artists in residence, we are also excited to be hosting artists re-scheduled from 2020. Stay tuned for an upcoming announcement welcoming these artists!

Resident Artist Project Statements:

Cameron Mankin, March/April 2022

Susy Bielak, May/June 2022

Susy Bielak will use a residency at Spudnik to create a suite of portraits of people in the act of listening. This is part of an ongoing series that draws relationships between people and infrastructural and natural disasters.

Inspired by Pauline Ontiveros’ expansive understanding of listening as an act of meditation, tuning, and focus, and R. Murray Schafer’s concept of hearing as “a way of touching at a distance,” Bielak will photograph choreographers, musicians, and poets as they stage acts of listening in their homes. Bielak will translate the resulting images into a series of prints, with accompanying short texts based on conversations with the artists.

Elizabeth Rose, May 2022

Working with intaglio, relief, and risography processes, I will produce a series of unique and editionable works on paper based on my recent experiences living in Poland.

I am interested in ecological shifts as they relate to Northern latitudes within the broader global context, with specific attention to the correlation between Poland’s landscape and the United States.

I will work from my photographic archive along with bright and colorful resource materials I collected while in Poland to create my new work at Spudnik Press.

Hale Ekinci, July/August 2022

Collage and techniques of transference are integral to my multidisciplinary practice. As an immigrant female artist, my work deals with acculturation, hybrid identity, and ideas about gendered labor. Influenced by Islamic ornamentation, my visual language references a mixture of coded symbolism such as oya  (lace edging that traditionally contained meaning in the patterns on a headdress) and kilim rug symbols. As a resident at Spudnik Press, I plan to continue my mixed-media works on textiles and add printmaking to my visual vocabulary.

For this residency, I have a range of processes I would like to experiment with to expand my mixed-media mark-making. I plan to use silkscreen printing and transparent inks instead of solvent photo transfer, which would allow me to layer and play with colors while reducing toxic exposure. I will also use linocut motifs to create repeated patterns and textile materials to make impressions for monotypes. I have a collection of textiles, mostly from thrift stores and my dowry that I want to use to translate onto surfaces. After printing on fabric and/or paper, I will layer embroidery and hand painting as I typically do in my work.

Hui-min Tsen, September/October 2022

I will use the residency to develop a series of small, riso-printed books. The series is part of an ongoing project that brings the reader across a successive line of frontiers, starting with the Illinois prairie and heading westward across the American interior.  Individually, the books tell specific stories of prairie remnants, Ronald Reagan’s boyhood home, the crossing of the 100th meridian, and how-to-find-the-frontier (among others). Taken all together, the books use moments of westward migration to explore the identities and paradoxes of the American narrative, forming a loose story about the ways in which imagined and tangible landscapes can co-occupy a single space.

Learn more about the Spudnik Press Artist Residency

Image Credit (left to right): Details of “Ronald Reagan Rides a Horse” by Hui-min Tsen, “Covid Atlas” by Cameron Mankin, “Untitled Ellis Island” by Hale Ekinci, “Listening, Fireplace, Susy, 2020” by Susy Bielak, and “Altitudinal Zones”  by Elizabeth Rose.