International Graphic Arts Society: Modern Prints from the Syracuse University Art Collection Louise and Bernard Palitz Gallery Monday, May 7, 2007 - Friday, August 10, 2007
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The International Graphic Arts Society (IGAS) was a nonprofit organization founded in 1951 with the dual goals of promoting the work of contemporary printmakers and bringing print media to a wider audience. Led by executive director Theodore J. H. Gusten, IGAS served as a driving force behind the post-World War II "Print Renaissance" in the United States for the next two decades, before terminating operation in 1971.

At the core of IGAS was a seven-member jury that was responsible for selecting the artists who would then be commissioned to produce editions that would eventually be sold to IGAS members. This jury consisted primarily of curatorial giants such as Una E. Johnson of the Brooklyn Museum and William S. Lieberman of the Museum of Modern Art. Ben Shahn, whose 1966 wood engraving of Martin Luther King is featured in this exhibition, also served as a juror. The jurors tended to favor abstract works, which were decidedly in vogue in the art world for much of the 1950s. Generally, they rejected Op Art and Pop Art, even when these newer movements became immensely popular.

Among the programs offered by IGAS was an innovative print rental program for colleges and universities that assisted them in starting or developing a collection of contemporary prints. This unusual system allowed for member schools to rent prints from IGAS while agreeing to eventually purchase them through an installment plan, instead of having to pay the entire cost of these prints at once. In 1956, six academic institutions, including Syracuse University, were chosen to participate in this new program. Over the years, the Syracuse University Art Collection acquired 389 different works from 197 different artists through IGAS, helping to build our growing print collection.

International Graphic Arts Society: Modern Prints from the Syracuse University Art Collection features a total of twenty-seven prints, each by a different artist. The exhibition showcases a variety of traditional prints media, including woodcut, wood engraving, aquatint, etching, lithography, mezzotint, and drypoint. Also included here are prints featuring then-revolutionary techniques such as the cellocut and the acrylic engraving. Furthermore, this selection of prints encompasses several different artistic styles, including Surrealism, Abstract Expressionism, Geometric Expressionism, and Realism, with subjects ranging from landscapes and still-lifes to portraits and nonrepresentational pieces.