Thoughts on the Mid America Print Council's 2022 Conference

From October 13-16, 2022 at Kent State University, the Mid America Print Council (MAPC) held its first in-person conference gathering since 2018.

The usually biannual conference broke its streak as a result of the pandemic that shall-not-be-named, leading the committee to change the name of this years iteration; The Power of Print Resistance, Revolution, and Resilience. The excitement was palpable. Most people were in masks. Hugs were shared regardless.

Unidentified participant’s phone screen during a panel discussion that was too good for me not to document.

This was my third print conference, and my first time attending MAPC. Part way through I realized this was my last “first” conference ever. My very first Southern Graphics Council (SGC) I was an undergrad student, my second was during grad school. Now I’m establishing my career as an academic, full time faculty at an R1 research university, teaching both BFA and MFA students. I’ve been working for so long towards this goal — more than 10 years of focus on becoming a professor, crossing multiple timezones, moving my house and studio too many times. The friction and labor evoked by the term “grinding” just about captures the last decade or so of work I’ve put into my career.

I’m only 32, and I’m so tired.

I still feel like a newcomer to the field. In a lot of ways, I am. I spent the last 6 years almost completely divorced from the world of printmaking. The universe was pushing me hard into a humanities track, to the point where I started looking into PhD programs in art criticism or visual studies or something remotely related. At least then I’d be more qualified to teach the theory driven courses I stumbled into. As a result, I feel like I’m coming out of nowhere. I am constantly forgetting that I have years of experience, serious study, and expertise behind me.

I’m only 32, and I’m so tired.

Susanna Harris, *Burning What’s Left*, Emboss prints, wood panel, wire, fluorescent ink and paint, 47 x 30 in., 2022

Receiving a residency from the International Print Center of New York was the first step in what became a snowball effect. That experience alone seemed to kickstart my career, in spite of the grind before. By the time I received it, my application to the University of Cincinnati was already filed, my CV complete. It may have helped my application but I didn’t offer that information until after my site visit. I was able to make it that far without the residency, without the solo show at Jacksonville University, without anything else I had lined up since December 2021.

Yet the residency is still something that I can point to as a radically validating experience. I was being told in no uncertain words that my work in print media was valid, that my work was worth investing in, that the field I called home still welcomed their prodigal son back.

My predecessor is well known and respected in the world of print media. As she should be — when I realized she was my predecessor, I had a minor panic attack. Big shoes to fill! I ended up finding out a different predecessor was another artist I greatly admired and had worked with in my past life as an arts administrator. More big shoes! I only have so many feet! To a degree I feel like an intruder. My work hasn’t been very print-y as of late. I’ve always been deeply invested in issues of publishing, the dissemination of information, legibility, etc. But making actual prints is so difficult when the studio is simply a basement without a press or proper sink. Now I have proper facilities, start up funding, and more tools and materials than I know what to do with. So what’s stopping me from hitting the ground running?

I’m only 32, and I’m so tired. This conference has been energizing. But I’m tired. I don’t have the energy for the mental gymnastics required to balance everything I want to do. How do I make this work?

I’m unsure how, but in spite of all the complaining of the above paragraphs, I’m still looking forward to what the future holds. I am excited to be amongst my people again and am looking forward to contributing to the field however I can in the coming years. I will slowly but surely feel qualified somehow, someday.

Maybe I should rename this to “imposter press”. But I just spent $300 on the hosting, so I guess I’m stuck with this branding.