When I first heard about the Washington Printmakers Gallery, it was through my dad who was interested in visiting the gallery with me over summer break. When researching on their website, I noticed that they offered internship opportunities for academic credit. I decided to reach out and after a few exchanges, we discovered that my advisor and a professor were members of the gallery for many years. With this connection, I managed to secure an interview as well as the request of my art in person. I arrived with my art and was accepted as an intern almost immediately.
We decided that in order to best accommodate my hours, we would do remote work every other week. When remote, I was tasked to promote the programs weekly, posting to spread the word about the programs taking place in the gallery. When I was in person, I got to work at the front desk and talk to visitors about their interest in art and what caused them to walk into the gallery. I also had the opportunity to learn about pricing pieces, editioning, and framing.
I think the biggest take away for me were the connections I made in being at the gallery. With every visit, I would meet a member of the collective that had lots of advice for me about my prints. When I revealed a proof of my print during a juried exhibition to my supervisor, she pushed me to show all the other members. They all were excited to see my work and asked me to take pictures of the final product to show them after the semester ended.
Meeting printmakers and fine artists from all over the globe and hearing their stories helped me immensely in realizing what I wanted to do when I graduated. It also gave me a list of people who owned presses locally and I could learn from, even after graduation.
