—Dr. David C. Driskell offers thoughts on EPI’s role in the art world—
EASTON, Pa., Sept. 16, 2009—Dr. David C. Driskell spoke with EPI’s director Curlee Raven Holton, praising EPI and expressing interest in it playing a pivitol role in the future of the print.
Driskell is a leading authority on African American art, having founded the Driskell Center at the University of Maryland to help young artists of color foster their love of art. His work has been featured in museums around the world, including the National Gallery of Art and the Corcoran Gallery of Art in D.C.
It was he who sparked an interest in the history of African American art by curating the exhibit “Two Centuries of Black American Art: 1750-1950.” Driskell has served as cultural advisor to Camille O. and William H. Cosby and as the curator of the Cosby Collection of Fine Arts since 1977. In 2000, Driskell received the National Humanities Medal from President Bill Clinton. He was elected in 2007 as a National Academician by the National Academy. Of EPI, he said:
“There are very few places in the national where visual artists of all callings: painters, sculptors and printmakers, can work so freely in both a caring and creative environment under the tutelage of a printer. Experimental Printmaking Institute at Lafayette College under the able direction of artist/master printer Curlee Raven Holton offers such an experience. My own art has been greatly enhanced by the privilege of working at EPI over the past six years. Already before us is an added dimension to the graphic arts movement in America in the presence of the Experimental Printmaking Institute.”