Jennifer Mack-Watkins: Mokuhanga & Me - Artist Talk and Demo
Jennifer Mack-Watkins (American, b. 1979), The Conqueror, 2015, color woodcut (mokuhanga), Museum Purchase, Zimmerli Art Museum.
The Zimmerli is delighted to welcome artist Jennifer Mack-Watkins, whose work powerfully blends Japanese woodblock printing techniques, known as mokuhanga, and her culturally rich southern roots. Her work investigates societal constructs that can leave women feeling isolated and definitions of femininity based on widely held notions of beauty and cultural norms. Three prints by Mack-Watkins were acquired by the Zimmerli in 2021 and are on view in our Japonism Gallery.
Mack-Watkins gives an artist talk, then leads a demonstration of mokuhanga woodblock printing. The Morse Print Room is open between the talk and demo for visitors to explore works curated by Mack-Watkins, as a reflection of her influences, from the Zimmerli’s extensive print collection.
This program is made possible by the Woodruff-Matsuo Lecture Series Fund.
Event Schedule (visitors may join at any time):
- 4pm – Artist Talk
- 5pm – Reception and Print Room open for viewing
- 6pm – Mokuhanga demonstration
More about Jennifer Mack-Watkins:
In the summer of 2015, Mack-Watkins was selected to participate in the Mokuhanga Innovation Laboratory artist-in-residence program in Yamanashi, Japan, and was a Joan Mitchell Foundation 2015 Emerging Artist nominee. She is also the recipient of the Elizabeth Catlett Printmaking Award, presented by Hampton University Museum. Institutional acquisitions include the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Library of Congress, Getty Research Institute, Newark Public Library, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, and Clark Atlanta University, among others. Her work has been featured in the New York Times, Vogue, Art and Object, and Essence. Mack-Watkins is a native of Charleston, South Carolina, and currently lives and works in both New Jersey and Georgia. She holds a BA in studio arts from Morris Brown College, a Masters in Art Education from Tufts University, and a MFA in Printmaking from Pratt Institute.
