Guide

Best printmaking residencies for working printmakers

A printmaker's shortlist of residencies with the facilities, technical staff, and community that actually advance a serious print practice.

1. Section 1

   Robert Blackburn Printmaking Workshop, NYC

   RBPW is one of the most established printmaking residencies in North America, based in the Elizabeth Foundation for the Arts in New York City. Residencies typically run 6 months with full access to lithography, intaglio, relief, screen printing, and book arts facilities, plus a stipend and exhibition opportunity at the workshop's gallery. What RBPW is for: serious printmakers working in established techniques who want sustained urban-studio time with technical staff support and a community of printmakers. The Manhattan location is both an advantage (access to galleries, curators, museum print rooms) and a financial consideration (housing is the artist's responsibility and Manhattan rent is real). Selection emphasizes prior body of work in printmaking, project clarity, and an articulated reason for needing the specific RBPW facilities. The application requires a portfolio of recent printmaking work, an artist statement focused on the print practice specifically, and a project proposal that names the techniques and outcomes you'd pursue.

2. Section 2

   Frans Masereel Centrum, Kasterlee Belgium

   The Frans Masereel Centrum is a Flemish printmaking residency with comprehensive facilities — lithography, intaglio, relief, screen printing, and book arts — and a rotating residency program for international printmakers. Residencies typically run 4–8 weeks. Travel is sometimes covered for accepted European residents; international applicants from outside Europe may need to cover their own travel. What FMC is for: technical depth. The facilities are among the best-equipped in Europe and the resident technical staff have decades of experience with each process. Printmakers working on technically demanding projects (large-format intaglio, complex multi-color lithography, experimental processes) find FMC's equipment depth uniquely valuable. The application is straightforward by European standards — portfolio, project description, schedule preference. The acceptance rate is friendlier than most well-known residencies (estimated 15–25%). FMC is one of the most accessible high-quality printmaking residencies for early-to-mid-career printmakers internationally.

3. Section 3

   Tamarind Institute, Albuquerque NM

   Tamarind is a lithography-focused institution affiliated with the University of New Mexico, with one of the strongest lithography facilities in the world and a residency-collaboration program where artists work alongside Tamarind's professional printer-collaborators to produce editions. Residencies are typically 2–4 weeks of intensive collaboration leading to a published edition. What Tamarind is for: artists serious about lithography specifically. The collaboration model means the artist works on technique and image-making while Tamarind printers handle plate preparation and printing details — producing finished editions that join the institution's archive. The model produces high-quality work but the artist is one half of a collaboration, not a soloist in a studio. Selection emphasizes the artist's existing body of work and the panel's read of whether lithography would serve the artist's vision. Lithography newcomers are not the target; the program is for artists with established practice who want a sustained dedicated engagement with the medium. Application materials emphasize the body of work in any medium plus a project proposal showing how lithography would advance it.

4. Section 4

   Highpoint Center for Printmaking, Minneapolis MN

   Highpoint is a Twin Cities printmaking center with a robust artist-in-residence program. Residencies run 2–4 months with access to all major printmaking facilities, a stipend, technical staff support, and the option to produce editions for the Highpoint archive. The Midwest location is more affordable than coastal print residencies. What Highpoint is for: working printmakers in or near the Midwest, or those willing to relocate to Minneapolis for the duration. The technical infrastructure is comprehensive and the staff have strong reputations across the printmaking community. Highpoint also has a serious editions program, so residencies often result in published work that finds collectors and institutions. Application materials include portfolio, project proposal, and recommendations. The selection panel includes working printmakers and the standards are high but not metropolitan-elite; mid-career printmakers with solid documentation and clear projects have realistic chances of acceptance. Highpoint is one of the better-balanced print residencies in terms of facility quality versus application competitiveness.

5. Section 5

   Penland School of Craft, Bakersville NC

   Penland is a craft school in the North Carolina mountains with serious printmaking facilities (along with ceramics, metals, glass, fiber, books) and a structured residency program for working artists. The residency model is different from most others on this list — Penland residencies (called "Resident Artist" positions) are 3-year appointments, with shorter "Core Fellow" and visiting residency options. What Penland is for: artists committed to extended technical and pedagogical engagement with craft. The 3-year resident artist appointment is a long commitment but provides housing, studio, and integrated participation in the school's teaching community. Shorter visiting-artist appointments are more accessible to working printmakers without 3-year mobility. The application for short-term print residencies is straightforward; the long-term resident appointments are highly competitive and operate more like a curated multi-year fellowship. Both pathways involve interaction with Penland's teaching environment, which is a feature for artists who value pedagogy and a constraint for artists who want pure studio solitude.

6. Section 6

   Spudnik Press Cooperative, Chicago IL

   Spudnik is a member-cooperative printmaking studio in Chicago with a residency program for early-to-mid-career printmakers. The cooperative structure means residents share the space with active member-printmakers, which creates a working-studio community rather than the institutional silence of some print residencies. Facilities cover screen printing, relief, etching, and lithography; the studio is smaller-scale than Tamarind or RBPW but serviceable for most working projects. What Spudnik is for: early-career printmakers building their professional identity in a working studio community. The application is less demanding than the more prestigious print residencies, and the Chicago art ecosystem is rich enough that the residency carries real career signal without requiring a national-celebrity CV to be accepted. Spudnik also runs frequent open calls for project funding, exhibitions, and edition publishing. The print community in Chicago (Spudnik, Anchor Graphics, Hoofprint Studio, and others) is one of the strongest in the US and a residency at one of these often leads to connections with the others.

7. Section 7

   Crow's Shadow Institute of the Arts, Pendleton OR

   Crow's Shadow is a printmaking residency on the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation in northeastern Oregon, focused on supporting Native American and Indigenous artists working in fine art printmaking. Residencies typically run 2 weeks with intensive collaboration with the institute's master printers, producing limited-edition lithography or intaglio prints. What Crow's Shadow is for: artists from Native American or Indigenous backgrounds who want focused time on collaborative print production. The institute has produced major editions with significant Indigenous artists and the program is well-funded with travel, housing, and technical support included. Eligibility specifically prioritizes Native American and Indigenous applicants, though non-Indigenous artists collaborating on Indigenous-themed projects are sometimes accepted. The application emphasizes the artist's connection to specific community contexts and the proposed project's relationship to Indigenous artistic practice. This is a residency where fit matters more than career stage; strong artists at any career level can be accepted if the project fits the institute's mission.

8. Section 8

   Atelier Calder, Saché France

   Atelier Calder offers extended residencies (typically 6 months to a year) in Alexander Calder's former French studio in Saché, with print and sculpture facilities. The residency is highly selective and emphasizes substantial bodies of work that would benefit from extended European studio time. What Atelier Calder is for: mid-career artists ready for an extended residency in France with serious facilities. The Calder Atelier itself is well-equipped for both print and sculpture, and the location in the Loire Valley provides quiet for sustained work and proximity to Paris for cultural engagement. Highly competitive — typically 1–2 residents per cycle. The application emphasizes artistic maturity and a clear project that fits the Atelier's heritage. Printmakers whose practice has developed beyond emerging-career level and who can articulate why this specific French location would advance the work have a path through; early-career applicants are unlikely to be a fit at this stage.