Artists Kelliher-Combs, Dion to work in Island Press this fall

Sonya Kelliher-Combs (Iñupiaq/Koyukon) has been named the Arthur and Sheila Prensky Island Press Visiting Artist and will give a public lecture Oct. 27.

A mixed-media visual artist, Kelliher-Combs’ family hails from the North Slope and Interior of Alaska. Her work focuses on the changing North and our relationship to nature and each other. Through visual art, community engagement, curation, and advocacy, she works to create opportunities to feature Indigenous voices and contemporary artwork that inform and encourage social action. Traditional women’s work taught her to appreciate the intimacy of intergenerational knowledge and material histories. These experiences and skills allow her to examine connections between Western and Indigenous cultures.

The Arthur and Sheila Prensky Visiting Artist Fund brings distinguished artists to the Sam Fox School for artist residencies at Island Press. Prensky Visiting Artists work closely with faculty, graduate students, and advanced undergraduate students through a variety of programs and interactions to create innovative prints that garner a critical response from national and international audiences.

Mark Dion will also make work in Island Press this fall, in conjunction with the Henry L. and Natalie E. Freund Visiting Artist Lecture he will give Oct. 2. Dion’s work examines the ways in which dominant ideologies and public institutions shape our understanding of history, knowledge, and the natural world. He is the co-director of Mildred’s Lane, an innovative visual art education and residency program in Narrowsburg, New York.

Island Press, a printmaking workshop within the Sam Fox School, explores the expansive theoretical and material terrain of the print in collaboration with visiting artists. The press is project-driven, tapping into the place where the artist’s creative activity and research intersect with the unique capacities of the print. Experimentation with new modes, platforms, and technologies is a natural part of the printmaking pursuit at Island Press, resulting in the creation of ambitious and pioneering editions in a wide range of media.

Visiting artists work in collaboration with the master printer, faculty, and students to create a reciprocal environment for education and research. Artists reap the benefits of numerous dedicated, energetic student assistants to help push to new levels of complexity and originality in their projects. At the same time, undergraduate and graduate students taking part in the development of artistic ideas gain access and insight into both the technical and conceptual challenges that make each artist’s project unique.