Elizabeth Corkery
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Elizabeth Corkery
Artist / Designer / Founder of Print Club Ltd.
Sacramento, CA
www.jointheprintclub.com
instagram @printclubltd
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twitter @printclubltd
WHAT DO YOU DO?
“I am a visual artist and the Founder of Print Club Ltd. an online source for limited edition, hand-pulled silkscreen prints.”
I was trained as a printmaker and I run the operations of Print Club in tandem with my own fine art studio practice. This means that one day I may be in the studio printing, maintaining Print Club’s e-commerce platform or social media accounts and the next day I may be researching for a new body of my own work or writing a grant or residency application.
My vision for Print Club is to draw on my close involvement with contemporary art to offer conceptually rich, gallery-quality works on paper that are priced to be a starting point for new collectors and accessible for design-lovers.
WHAT STEPS DID YOU TAKE TO GET TO WHERE YOU ARE NOW?
Back in 2008 I threw caution to the wind and moved from Sydney, Australia to New York right, smack in the middle of the “Great Recession”. The gallery world was retracting and so I landed at an advertising agency working in their Art Production department. After a couple of years there I went to graduate school to further my art studies and have spent the years since finishing my MFA working as a practicing artist and running Print Club Ltd.
FOR OTHER PEOPLE IN YOUR FIELD, WHAT DO THEY USUALLY LACK?
I see Print Club Ltd. as straddling two different industries; a source for affordable art online and a fine art printmaking studio. Often those groups who are selling art online aren’t necessarily aware of the specific conceptualization or processes that go into the pieces they are featuring.
Conversely, many contract printshops aren’t necessarily interested in the sales and marketing side of their production. In running Print Club Ltd. I am not only responsible for printing all of the work but also creating a compelling story for why people should add them to their collection.
WHAT ARE YOU WORKING ON RIGHT NOW?
I’m getting ready to launch Print Club’s two new collaborative artist editions. I’m thrilled to have worked on new pieces with New York-based artist Amie Cunat and Sacramento-based artist Graham McDougal. Both prints were previewed at our booth at the recent Editions/Artists’ Book Fair in New York and will soon be available on our online store. I’m also working on creative ways to connect with interior designers on commissioned projects and have a couple of mural proposals that I’m working on that will be an exciting shift in scale for me.
WHAT'S YOUR STYLE/PERSPECTIVE/TASTE? DO YOU HAVE A PROJECT THAT REPRESENTS THIS?
My style in relation to Print Club Ltd. kind of runs in two directions. Its branding and online presence is kept very simple and clear while the prints themselves veer into ideas of illusion, decadence and the history of print. I think this is my own conceptual bias coming in, my personal work is very much occupied by the history of representation and our complicated engagement with the world of copies and reproduction.
WE ARE ALL SLASHIES WITH MULTIPLE SKILLS, WHICH ONE DO YOU WISH YOU COULD DO MORE OFTEN?
I wish that I could focus more on the art direction of the lifestyle imagery I create for Print Club. If I could work with a photographer and free myself from having to be stylist and photographer for these shoots I think I would enjoy the process a lot more. I would probably also end up with a wider breadth of shots to use across our marketing platforms which would be a huge positive.
WHAT IS FRUSTRATING YOU RIGHT NOW?
I need to sub-contract someone to help with effective digital advertising placement because it is completely out of my skillset. I’ve just been doing a lot of observing of how other brands treat this medium of advertising rather than making moves on my end to figure out who and how to approach it myself.
IF YOU COULD HIRE SOMEONE FOR $20/HR, WHAT WOULD YOU HAVE THEM DO TO MAKE YOUR DAY EASIER?
So boring but I would likely have them keeping track of my financials or doing market data research. Poor fictional personal assistant!
LET'S BRING OUT THE TIME MACHINE. WHAT DO YOU WISH YOU COULD HAVE TOLD YOURSELF, WHEN, AND WHY?
That working for yourself is a landscape of peaks and valleys. It’s so easy when your flush with opportunities or sales to think that you’ve “made it” and it’s smooth sailing from there. When really those times should be used to prepare for when the next valley rolls around (after popping a bit of champagne first, obv.)
IF YOU COULD TALK TO AN EXPERT TO GAIN MORE INSIGHT ON SOMETHING, WHAT WOULD IT BE ABOUT?
Business and marketing strategy. Being a one-woman show, I can be left feeling a little lost during times when I think a new approach might be needed but I don’t have a sounding board for creative brainstorming or advice.
WHAT KIND OF OPPORTUNITIES/PROJECTS ARE YOU LOOKING FOR?
I’m really interested working directly with interior designers for project-specific pieces or print series. I would also love to do more homeware product collaborations; soft furnishings, wall-hangings. I love cooking decorating and hosting people so I’m very interested in event-based collaborations where Print Club could be involved in a team of brands that is putting together a shared meal or hosting a social gathering.
DESCRIBE YOUR IDEAL JOB/CLIENT/COLLABORATION.
A designer who has a whole hotel they need to fill with new prints! A showroom that needs to be styled with original art pieces! A homewares brand that wants to work on a range of soft furnishings! A furniture maker who needs bespoke printed textiles for a series of upholstered furniture pieces!
WHAT IS YOUR HOURLY RATE, RETAINER, OR SALARY RANGE?
I have a day-rate for printing, if it is a project where I am doing the production work in the screen printing studio. I also have an hourly design rate if the project involves more conceptualization or digital preparation. The scope and timing of the specific project really influences these combined rates, as does the exposure and marketing potential. Just get in touch, we’ll work it out!
HOW SHOULD SOMEONE APPROACH YOU ABOUT WORKING TOGETHER?
A friendly email to info@jointheprintclub.com. An ideal approach would involve an awareness of my style and past work but also an ambition for how I could be an asset to their project. I’m always open to new collaborations so even if it’s something I haven’t done before chances are I’m excited to try it!
HOW DO YOU STAY CREATIVE?
Getting offline and seeing contemporary art in person.
This member profile was originally published in August 2017, Updated November 2018.