Book turns spotlight on printmakers
Print Council Aotearoa New Zealand team devote hours to produce special publication celebrating milestone
Anew collaboration between Massey University Press and The Print Council Aotearoa New Zealand has resulted in Proof — Two Decades of Printmaking. Proof covers a huge breadth of printmaking processes and displays the incredible diversity of this artform, from the more traditional woodcuts and etchings to those pushing the boundaries of print.
Reviewer Louise Ward sat down with a key force behind the book, Kathy Boyle.
Q: Tell us about Proof — how did it come about?
A: A publication about PCANZ was mooted about 10 to 12 years ago but always seemed too big for it to happen.
I strongly felt it was a story to be told and in 2020 when I stepped back into the role of chair of PCANZ after an 18-month break one of my aims was to make this book a reality.
The time was right with the twodecade milestone approaching; the organisation was in a financial position to take on such a project and we were able to assemble a team who had just the right skillset and who were prepared to put in the many hours of work to make it happen.
Q: What’s your contribution, Kathy?
A: I approached two PCANZ members to join me on the publishing team, each of us having particular skills to contribute.
Di Harries had previously compiled and catalogued all PCANZ archives and did a brilliant job on the administration side corralling all the members in the book to deliver the required information when needed.
Heather Partel was our liaison between Massey University Press and PCANZ as well as doing an amazing quality control job, working many long hours checking all the fine details meticulously. We couldn’t have achieved the quality product we have without her input.
Me, I co-ordinated the whole project. Having been a PCANZ member for 20 years and chair for more than 10 years I have an in-depth knowledge of the Print Council and was able to contact, encourage and coerce the appropriate people to contribute where needed.
I, with help from Heather, formatted much of the research, adding further material where needed.
The final working manuscript was then handed to lead writer Miriam Sharland to weave her magic.
Heather and I worked closely with the designer on the book’s layout and design, spending many hours tomake sure it looked as we had envisioned.
Q: Which Hawke’s Bay printmakers feature?
A: Kathy Boyle, Lisa Feyen, Lynne Wilburn, Cate Godwin, Rosalie Thompson, Bev Trillo, Nic Tucker, Helen Dynes, Pam Hastings, Terrie Reddish, Julie Henderson, Ashley MacPherson, Bev Pawluk, Gail Spence, Rachael Stone.
Q: What was the process of making the book like?
A: Enjoyable but intensely time consuming and more involved than imagined — working with over 150 people was at times a little like herding sheep.
Working with our small but very focused team of three, each with their own particular skillset, made things tick along and Massey University Press were great in helping us achieve our goal.
Having a very clear image in our minds as to how the content should read and the way the images and cover would be presented helped, but at the same time meant that we had to be clear to the publishers when describing our vision.
The PCANZ ethos is very much one of inclusiveness, and we were keen to give the PCANZ members the opportunity to be part of the book, regardless of where they were in their printmaking journey.