Islands are vessels anchored at sea. Moored between the cultures of two continents, Borikén —the original name of Puerto Rico— has been a center of cultural exchange for centuries, with a rich and complex heritage. From the early engravings on stone, to the intense printmaking production of the 20^th Century and the present, Puerto Rican graphic artists have sought cultural interaction with the world by sea and air. PUERTOGRÁFICO will showcase, through artistry, technique and dialogue, one of the strongest callings for our work: the tracing of History.

Welcome aboard.

Las islas son embarcaciones ancladas al mar. Firme entre las culturas de dos continentes, Borikén —nombre original de Puerto Rico—ha sido centro de intercambio cultural durante siglos, sobre una herencia rica y compleja. De los primeros grabados en piedra, a la intensa producción de carteles del Siglo 20 al presente, los artistas gráficos puertorriqueños han procurado la interacción cultural con el mundo por cielo y por mar. En PUERTOGRÁFICO, entre la técnica, la destreza y el diálogo, compartiremos uno de los llamados principales para nuestra obra: el registro histórico.

Bienvenidos a bordo.

Louise Fisher, our Web Editor is, an Iowa-based printmaker and a 2019 graduate of Arizona State University. She was the 2018 recipient of the SGC International Graduate Fellowship Award. Louise states about her process and artwork that she is “an interdisciplinary artist working in the expanded field of print; using methods of layering, impressing and repetition for it’s literal and visual enactment of time and the body. By integrating constructed and celestial time, geometric and organic forms, and digital and hand-drawn printmaking processes, I point to the complexities of our current experience with nature. Through an investigative visual language, I aim to rekindle an appreciation for natural light and ask viewers to consider how their rhythms are impacted by this new incessant LED world.” To get to know Louise a little better, you can read her complete bio and artist’s statement on her website and check out her interview from VoyagePhoenix.

Blake Sanders, our Web Curator, is a printmaking and foundations Instructor at Southeast Missouri State University. He has been an active member of SGCI since 2005 and has participated conference portfolios, exhibitions—both sanctioned and peripheral—and chaired two panels. His work looks “beyond anthropocentrism, emphasizing humans as a part of a global community—residents, not lords of the manor—who should be good neighbors to each other and all of nature.” In works that range from diverse print media to collaborative installation he strives to “provoke compassion within the culture” by intently observing himself and his family “to mine for the universal within the personal.” One of Blake’s most recent projects, Encountering Our Indelible Mark, is an exhibition that was installed in Santander, Spain at IMPACT10: Encuentro and an accompanying extensive web catalog. In an essay originally intended to be published in Graphic Impressions, Adriane Herman has reviewed this project. We are publishing Disrupting Our Disruption: Recycling Our Indelible Mark to mine a “wee bit of hope”  here so that you can get to know Blake and his curatorial work.