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EAST Interview: Artists Screenprinting Co-op brings Printing to the People
Saturday, November 13 - Sunday, November 21
Various Venues (Austin)
free, Saturdays and Sundays 11am-6pm
[info]
How did ASPCO get started? What are you able to with the cooperative model that you couldn't do as a more traditional for-profit art studio model?
After moving to Austin in September of 2008, I began researching what it would take to start a small screenprinting studio at my house. I had been screenprinting on and off since I was in high school, and had a few new projects that required screenprinting as a way to produce them efficiently. After some pretty extensive research, I came to a couple of conclusions that got rolling the idea of forming a collaborative. One, my garage was not going to be the ideal place to set up a small studio, and two, a collaborative venture of sorts, might be a good way to help other Austin artists.
I knew that I couldn't be the only person in Austin who had the same need.
I posted an ad on Craigslist, describing what I had in mind, and two people answered my post. We met for lunch, and sketched out in general what a collaborative would look like. After about a year of research and countless organizational meetings at local Austin libraries, my original idea had grown from a 4-5 person collaborative into starting an official non-profit cooperative registered as such with the State of Texas.
As a co-op, there is a general sense of shared responsibility and the real fact of individual ownership. Each member of the co-op has a say in how things function, and are part owners, for the duration of their membership. A co-op presents to its members the opportunity to be a part of something unique, exciting and ever-changing. Those are some of the same qualities that art embraces.
In July of 2010, we were ready to lease space. The Pump Project had some studio space that had recently become available, and it has been a perfect fit. After a month of do-it-yourself construction and renovation, we opened the studio for operation.
Why screenprinting?
Misfits skull on a tie-dyed t-shirt.
Aside from the fact that screenprinting is just plain fun, there is a certain logical process that happens during creating prints. Many of the members who were new to the process of screenprinting, have found that the process of screenprinting itself is a interesting one. While it takes practice, there is a real sense of accomplishment when the final product is produced.
And the options for what you can screenprint are pretty much unlimited. We have artists screenprinting on many different types of mediums. Posters, fabrics, apparel, wood, metal—the list goes on. The only thing that really limits what someone can do is their own creativity.
What will studio tour participants be able to check out at the ASPCO headquarters during EAST?
The main thing we hope people experience when visiting us during EAST, is the art and process of screenprinting. Many of our members will have works on display, like posters, fabrics, greeting cards and t-shirts. But what I personally hope people take away from the visit the most, is the fact that you can create something as unique as a screenprinting co-op. Sometimes when I am at the studio by myself, I just stop and look around and am amazed at what we have accomplished in such a short amount of time. It took a year of hard work and planning to see ASPCO happen. A lot of people made a lot of sacrifices with their time and energy to see this come to fruition, and for that we are grateful and most appreciative.
Follow this post after the jump to find out about ASPCO membership perks and inspiration on following your dream...
What does one get in exchange for becoming a member of the Artists Screenprinting Co-op?
We have two levels of membership available for artists, depending on what fits their needs best. All members have 24/7 access to all the equipment one needs to screenprint. We started with a 4-color manual press for printing t-shirts, and have expanded our equipment list to include two poster printing workstations, and a fabric printing area. Jess Moss, another early member of ASPCO, has recently created a station for printing gift-wrapping paper that's pretty neat.
The support we have had from our members has been fantastic and really gratifying. One of our members donated a Mac workstation. Another member donated a large format printer that members used to print transparency film. All of our members donate their time and energy to keep the co-op running smoothly and effectively. The only things that the co-op doesn't provide are screens and ink with which to print. Since each members' needs are different in that area, we leave that up to the artists to purchase.
As a member of ASPCO, one also gets to be part of something really cool. We are Austin's only screenprinting co-op that we are aware of. Since there are so many different artists printing using different processes, members are also able to take advantage of the opportunity to learn new techniques that they may not have been able to learn elsewhere as easily.
The ASPCO studio has a lot of nice equipment - a conveyor dryer, a darkroom, a 4-color press, even a Mac workstation. What have been some of your biggest challenges and successes in setting up the studio space?
In the beginning, our main challenge was getting organized and securing funding and membership without actually having a space first. To achieve our organizational goals, we enlisted the help of Texas C-Bar, an association that provides free legal assistance to Texas non-profits. Whitney Cox, an attorney with Texas C-Bar was a blessing for us. She spent countless hours helping us form By-Laws, membership agreements and other legal documents that we needed to become an official co-op.
Once we were as organized as we could possibly be, we started formally recruiting members. After spending a year in a Catch-22 situation with funding, we finally took a leap of faith and leased space hoping we would attract members as we went. We did just that. We currently have about 15 members, and are accepting applications for new members for our January 2011 quarter.
The list of challenges was almost endless. Our entire co-op was founded on the idea that we could make it happen through hard work and effort. Cody Scrogum of Twin Villian screenprinting helped us build our darkroom wall. That was a challenge! Our darkroom is complete with a top-notch screen exposure unit. To achieve that, we had to section off part of our studio by building an enclosing wall. None of us were carpenters, but we ended up with a really nice room to handle all of our darkroom processes. We saved quote a bit of money by building our own massive exposure unit with the help of a member's boyfriend, who happened to be an engineer! We ended up with an exposure unit that is better than other units that were factory made. I'm pretty proud that our members have helped ASPCO rise to the occasion.
Even finding a scheduling system for artists to schedule studio time was a challenge at first. Members are able to schedule their own time through a shared Google calendar. That process is free and has worked great so far.
There are still some things that we would like to see happen equipment wise. We have a screen washout room that we converted from an old bathroom. After EAST, we plan on renovating that area and making some major upgrades to include backlighting so its a little easier to work in.
Choosing was our name was pretty intentional. We played around with lots of different names that sounded neat, but in the end, we felt like we wanted our name to represent exactly what we were: an Artists Screen Printing Co-op. We want our artists to be first and foremost, with the studio as a supporting apparatus.
All in all, we have a group of really dedicated, resourceful people who really appreciate what we have going. We don't have the most up-to-date equipment, but everyone is really grateful for what we do have. And we aren't operating under a huge deficit. We secured a small loan to purchase the 4-color press and conveyor dryer, but aside from that, we are operating on a balanced budget. That fact alone speaks volumes about our members' accomplishments. All decisions are made by the members. One member, one vote. And that's pretty cool.
Is there anything else you'd like Austinist readers to know about ASPCO?
Find a need and fill it. Whether that's starting a co-op, or smiling at the person next to you on the bus. Our dedicated, selfless members are what keeps ASPCO running. The cooperation among our members has amazed me. I knew this would be a useful venture for Austin artists, but in order for people to get the benefit, people have to step up and do the work.
Don't sit on the sidelines. Do what it takes to help someone else, even if that means it's going to be a particularly difficult challenge. Trust the process and you'll be glad you did.
