Contemporary Spotlight: New Acquisitions from the Brandywine Workshop

The Brandywine Workshop, a nonprofit arts organization established in 1972, was founded on the belief in the democratic nature of printmaking—a low-cost, accessible, and highly reproducible art form—and its power to nurture the careers of underrepresented artists. This vision would also inform Brandywine’s residency program, a venue for emerging and established artists with varied artistic practices to explore the art of printmaking in close partnership with master printers. A site of radical experimentation, cross-cultural exchange, and true collaboration, the workshop has since fostered the creative talents of nearly 300 artists from across the country and beyond. This exhibition spotlights the works of 13 of those artists.

Acquired by Telfair Museums in 2021, these works speak to printmaking’s legacy as a medium that has historically prompted dialogue around major, often contentious, socio-political issues. Several of the topics addressed, such as gender inequities and the legacies of American slavery, have continued to accrue significance and urgency. Other works celebrate the expressive range of printmaking, from abstraction to figuration, and convey intensely personal and vibrant aesthetic visions. These prints mix traditional and modern approaches to art history, printmaking, color, subject matter, and narrative. In the words of Emma Amos (1937–2020), one of the artists, the works on view “dislodge, question, tweak prejudices, roles, and notions related to art.” They challenge us to broaden our conception of who makes art, who poses for it, and how it comes into being.

This exhibition was organized by Telfair Museums and curated by Erin Dunn, curator of modern and contemporary art, and Anne-Solène Bayan, assistant curator.

Unless otherwise noted, all works are museum purchases in recognition of Courtney McNeil’s tenure as Telfair’s chief curator and director of curatorial affairs, from 2018 to 2021.