Printmaking by the People
What’s It All About?
What would the Declaration of Independence say if it could be written today?
What visions do Philadelphians have for the promise of “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness?”
Next year marks the 250th anniversary of the writing of the Declaration of Independence. This city-wide project will feature discussions about essential aspects of freedom, the importance of printing in communicating and mobilizing during the Revolutionary era, and the urgency of poster-making as a means of advocating for change. Participants in dozens of workshops around the city will create their own posters to express their ideas about the rights that are essential for a just, inclusive and sustainable community. The work will inspire a signature mural and an exhibition at the Free Library of Philadelphia.
Read about what it’s like to attend a workshop in this blog post!
Read about our project launch last year in this blog post.
About the Workshops
Printmaking by the People has sought to reach as many Philadelphians as possible through its free community workshops.
We held 35 workshops over the past two years, with more than 1000 participants. Of these workshops, nine were with schools or youth education programs, seven were at branch libraries, and eight were public pop-ups. We collaborated with the Martin Luther King Day of Service, the Young People’s Continental Congress, and the organizers of Juneeteeth and the Cherry Street Piers Independence Day celebration. Most workshops were open to the public.
Our public workshops have concluded. However, we are still happy to collaborate with organizations that would like to host a Printmaking by the People workshop in their community. Contact Lindsey Rosenberg at lindsey.rosenberg@muralarts.org to learn more about how we can work together and the costs of a workshop.
Sharswood
The Gayborhood
Spruce Hill
Kensington
Mt. Airy
North Central
Tacony
Bella Vista
Rittenhouse
Hunting Park
Riverfront East
Passyunk
Oxford Circle
University City
:
Kingsessing Library, Kingsessing
Parkway Central Library, Franklintown
Independence Library, Old City
Greater Olney Library, Olney
Fox Chase Library, Fox Chase
Wynnefield Library, Overbrook
Joseph E Coleman Northwest Regional Library, Germantown
About the Artists and Project Management Team
Since 2024, we have hired more than 30 different printmakers, artists and other creatives to design, lead and assist in our workshops. We thank them for providing their unique expertise to teach printmaking to Philadelphians and to give people a platform for expressing their civic and creative voice in this crucial time!
Printmaking Methods Taught
Letterpress:
- Vandercook and Provisional Press
- Typesetting and Pre-set Type
Screen Printing:
- Monoprints, monoprint over collage
- Pre-burned screens, layering
- Created an image with transparencies & Sharpie
Relief:
- Indentation on a foam sheet with a pencil
- E-Z cut Linoleum
Cyanotype
Mimeograph on a Fax Machine
Stamping
Gelli Printing
