Session: Protest + Print, Winter 2025

Artists: 12 high school students

Materials: 11×17 white copy paper, pens, pencils, markers, glue sticks, stapler, masking table, linoleum blocks, block printing ink, linocut ink rollers, linoleum cutters, xacto knife, self-healing cutting mat, risograph printer

Description:

Beginning just a couple of days after Trump’s inauguration, Protest + Print students were provided a safe space to process and make art. Guided by instructors Miriam Klein Stahl and Alex Bowman, students discussed their concerns with this presidency. From LGBTQ rights to environmental justice, racism and xenophobia to genocide, these teens were puzzled with how to move forward. Each student chose a topic to focus their art on, and as the weeks went on, we saw our artists channel these feelings of despondency into messages of hope to inspire their communities to make change together. Through a series of sketches, drawings, paintings, paper cutouts, linocuts, and individualized critiques, their art was translated into 11”x17” risograph posters.

Art and Inspiration

“I was inspired by the Free The Land movement, which, started by Black Americans, honors people’s liberation and connection to their land. While we are all products of our environment, political institutions do not always treat our planet and people with respect. The image of the starfish promotes environmental and social resilience, as its arm regenerates whenever it is cut off.” –Julia Brimmer, 12th grade