Panel Discussion: 50 Years of Normal Editions Workshop

The primary public event for Collaboration in Progress: Normal Editions Workshop at 50 is a panel discussion with key figures from Normal Editions’ history. James D. Butler (founder), Richard D. Finch (former director and master printer), and Veda Rives Aukerman (former director and master printer) will participate in a conversation moderated by Morgan Price (associate professor and acting director & master printer). The panel will be followed by a reception.

Collaboration in Progress: Normal Editions Workshop at 50 is an exhibition that celebrates the 50^th anniversary of Normal Editions Workshop, a non-profit, professional, collaborative print research and publishing workshop within Illinois State University’s Wonsook Kim School of Art. The exhibition features 50 prints created at Normal Editions by visiting artists, emeritus faculty, current faculty, and alumni.

Normal Editions Workshop was founded in 1976 through James D. Butler’s vision for a contract print research facility that emphasized an educational mission for the students. The Workshop was established by Butler and printmaking faculty members Harold Boyd and Raymond E. George. (A complete history of Normal Editions is available on its website.) Richard D. Finch served as the director for 37 years, and Veda Rives Aukerman served as both the interim director and the director for 11 years. Normal Editions has completed: 163 artist collaborations; 313 editions/projects; three books; 57 traveling exhibitions; and 20 exhibitions sponsored by Normal Editions. Importantly, through their experiences at Normal Editions, students have collaborated directly with artists and master printers, created new works of art, and learned how a professional print facility functions. Many of Normal Editions’ projects with artists were supported in part by the Illinois Arts Council, Alice and Fannie Fell Trust, Harold K. Sage Foundation, Illinois State University Foundation Fund, Wonsook Kim School of Art Visiting Artists Program, and/or University Galleries.