NOTIZIE / NEWS
IMPACT
Print Conference, Bristol, UK
September 16th -19th 2009
Welcome to IMPACT 6, hosted by the Centre for Fine Print Research, University of the West of England, Bristol.
Hosting the sixth IMPACT conference will be both a privilege and a pleasure, having now been held in five countries across two continents. Following its past success, we welcome the return of IMPACT to Bristol, marking 10 years since the first conference was hosted here in 1999. What began as a ‘one off’ event has become a bi-annual feature in the printmaking calendar, bringing together hundreds of delegates from around the world.
Over the last ten years the landscape for the discipline of Printmaking has changed. Digital printing technologies that are now part of mainstream printmaking were in their infancy when IMPACT began. The advent of global communication has enabled much greater international collaboration and for a wider community of Printmakers across the world to be connected.
Printmaking, both in its message and its production, has always been primarily a democratic and collaborative process. These factors have allowed printmaking to quietly gain a more pivotal role in mainstream contemporary art practice, in an age where printing is accessible to all.
Therefore IMPACT 6 will celebrate the international diversity of the discipline, from its roots in industrial communication through traditional, fine art based processes, to the current cutting edge technology and theoretical debates. We welcome and encourage participation from the widest aspects of our community, from print studios, print curators, artists, academics and industry. We particularly welcome student involvement as we recognise them as next generation of printmakers, and the future of IMPACT.
The conference will be held at the Bristol Council House and School of Creative Arts, University of the West of England. There will also be a number of exhibitions at venues across Bristol. The return of IMPACT to Bristol coincides with the recent opening of new studios for both the Faculty at UWE and the Centre for Fine Print Research, where current research within print extends from colour science and wide format digital printing, to rapid prototyped 3D printing, laser cutting and the application of print to practices such as artists’ books, ceramics and enamel on metal.
In 2011 the next conference will be hosted by Monash University, Melbourne Australia, adding another continent and country to the IMPACT world map. The conference has been held in Bristol (1999) Finland (2001), South Africa (2003), Germany and Poland (2005) and most recently Estonia (2007).
We welcome your involvement and look forward to seeing you in Bristol in September.
Professor Stephen Hoskins Richard Anderton