Written by Colin Secore
In my time with PUGG and the D.R.A.W., I can recall countless instances of us serving the neighborhood. We’ve been rooted in midtown Kingston since the beginning. We’ve helped in various art shows, events, classes, workshops, programs, and beyond. The Neighborhood Print Studio is the natural evolution of our goals and the product of our love for this town. While we have had all of the necessary equipment for printmaking in our space at Energy Square, we haven’t had the area to properly apply them until now. Now there’s a dedicated printmaking studio right in midtown Kingston that we can be proud of. I’m happy to be working here and to offer more to the community through this new print shop.
After the space was bought and before it was open to the public, a lot of work had to be done on the inside. The floors had to be redone completely, the walls had to be painted, and the rooms had to be cleaned up and prepared for their new roles. We spent a lot of time packing up all of the D.R.A.W.’s printmaking supplies with various other tools and amenities. The D.R.A.W. was eerily empty for a short period once all of the major cabinets and printing presses were moved over to the print shop. That changed once our Teaching Artists show was curated, which is an exhibition featuring work from teachers and friends who have worked with the D.R.A.W. It’s still on show for public viewing on Saturdays and Sundays and I recommend seeing it if you can.
The D.R.A.W. is greatly inspired by Ben Wigfall and Communications Village. Communications Village was a print studio that held workshops, classes, and artist talks while allowing open access to the community. The Neighborhood Print Studio honors Ben Wigfall’s wishes for the arts and communities, it being the next wave of his influence and a beacon of public arts. The large printing press that Ben Wigfall used in Communications Village has remained dormant and unused for a couple decades now. Wigfall himself had requested that it be given to someone who will use it to support the community. With the blessing of his son, Gino Wigfall, we were able to obtain the iconic press from Communications Village. It’s now in use at our Neighborhood Print Studio as a centerpiece and a functioning reminder of our mission.
The new space has been an essential part of D.R.A.W. events since its opening. Before the third annual Draw-A-Thon last summer, the Neighborhood Print Studio was a bustling center of printmaking. The D.R.A.W. invited numerous local artists to take part in making massive linocuts. They would be printed under a steamroller at the Draw-A-Thon. The studio was incredibly busy and I was able to watch various artists play around with their two-foot long linocut pieces and test them with comically large rollers. This kind of space and these kinds of resources were truly pivotal to making the steamroller printmaking a success. One can only imagine the potential this new space could provide us into the future.
The Neighborhood Print Studio continues to evolve with new programs and appliances. I’m anticipating it being used intuitively to serve the community into the future, especially with the creative minds at work here. I hope you also look forward to the future of the D.R.A.W. and our new space!
