Big Ink

Never has the saying "Print Isn't Dead" been more poignant than in the case of a partnership between Hatch Show Print and BIG INK. To mark the occasion, Hatch Show Print will host a two-day event, September 14 - 15, celebrating works on paper in the Haley Gallery in downtown Nashville. There will be hands-on demonstrations and the opportunity to witness the printing of monumental woodblock prints carved by artists from throughout the region.

BIG INK is assembling a giant portable printing press inside Hatch Show Print’s Gallery for the sole purpose of helping artists print these woodblocks, some of which can reach nearly 4 x 8 feet in dimension. A massive press of this scale is rare. And it's precisely the reason that the New Hampshire woodblock printmaking advocacy and education organization BIG INK partnered with Hatch Show Print to host this 2-day event.

BIG INK is an organized network of creative thinkers focused on promoting the art of large-scale woodblock printing. The program was started in 2012 by Directors Lyell Castonguay and Carand Burnet as a way to spread their passion for the medium with other artists and the general public. BIG INK works by establishing a temporary print shop on site at partnership organizations, most often at museums, universities, art centers, studios, and galleries. Artists are selected, either by personal invitation or through a call-for-entry process, to attend these events and print original woodblocks at least 24” x 36” in dimension.  

“It's very unusual to have a press this size that artists can come and use,” says Lyell Castonguay, BIG INK co-director and woodblock printer and teacher. Castonguay says there's very few community accessible presses of this size in the country. “It's hard to find.” This is the first time Hatch Show Print will host BIG INK at the Haley Gallery. The event will feature work from artists based across the region and the event is free and open to the public.