The printmaking area within the UW–Madison Art Department will be host to the Southern Graphics Council International (SGCI) conference next week, bringing over 700 printmakers and arts professionals in all stages of their careers to campus.

Taking place from March 16-19, the conference, titled “Our Shared Future,” expands on the definition of “print” to include an interdisciplinary approach and expansion of print media. The conference will feature panel and roundtable discussions, open portfolio sessions, performances, exhibitions, demos, mentor sessions, and live print events on campus and at many locations across Madison.

“The study of printmaking within higher education deepens our understanding of the world. Since the inception of movable type and printed image, the materials and history of printmaking have expanded our global knowledge of history, culture, and the hard sciences,” explains Emily Arthur, an associate professor in the Art Department and a member of the conference steering committee.

Arthur says that the conference is “a call to artists to consider how our studio practice makes culture and knowledge visible through the socially engaged arts of the past, present, and future.”

The steering committee for the conference also includes Faisal Abdu’Allah, a professor in the Art Department and the associate dean of the arts in the School of Education; Adriana Barrios, the engagement manager for exhibitions and programs at UW–Madison’s Center for Design and Material Culture; and John Hitchcock, a professor in in the Art Department.

It is not too late to register for the conference, which costs $359 for professional members and $249 for student members. (A daily rate of $250 for non-members and $150 for members is also available.)

In addition, a few events and most exhibitions are open to the public — see below for some highlights and take advantage of this unique opportunity to hear from national and international artists and see their work right here in our own backyard.