Diego Lasansky Portrait at Eighteen (2014) in “Lasansky: UD's Private Collection" at the University of Dubuque -- through February 3.

Through Monday, February 3

University of Dubuque's Bisignano Art Gallery, 2255 Bennett Street, Dubuque IA

Stunning works by an Argentine-American artist and educator revered for his advanced techniques in intaglio printmaking, as well as members of his family, will be celebrated at the University of Dubuque's Bisignano Art Gallery through February 3, with Lasansky: UD's Private Collection honoring the man who established the school of printmaking at the University of Iowa, which offered the first Master of Fine Arts program in the field in the United States.

Lasansky, who passed away in 2012, was born in 1914 in Buenos Aires, where his father worked as a banknote engraver. At age 19, he began to study painting, sculpture, and printmaking at the Escuela Superior of Bellas Artes (Superior School of Fine Arts), Buenos Aires. In 1943, Lasansky came to the United States on a Guggenheim Fellowship and spent a year studying the print collection at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. Four years later, he was appointed lecturer in printmaking at the University of Iowa, where he established the first Master of Fine Arts in printmaking program in the country, leading to Time magazine, in 1961, labeling the U of I the "printmaking capital of the United States."

As a printmaker, Lasansky was known for the grand scale of his images, his vivid color, and the complex layering of multiple print techniques, including engraving, etching, lithography, drypoint, electric stippling and aquatint, in a single work. In the 1970s, after two decades of work that focused on the horrors of Nazi Germany, Lasansky began working on the eight images that comprise The Kaddish Series. While still very much concerned with the Holocaust, The Kaddish Series focuses on its aftermath and the ways those who survived deal with the experience. One part of the Kaddish prayer, which is often recited as part of Jewish funeral services, is a request for peace, and the images in this series reveal the artist's belief that finding even a small amount of peace on this earth often comes at a terrible price.

Tomas Lasansky Picasso 1985

The University of Dubuque's collection of intaglio prints by the Lasansky family started with a major gift by the Bisignano Art Gallery's benefactor of Mauricio Lasansky's Great Thinkers series in 2013. Since then, UD has acquired many more of Mauricio’s works. In addition, through special funding via the Office of the President and gifts, UD expanded its reach to include the Lasansky family of artists: Tomás Lasansky, son of Mauricio, and Diego Lasansky, grandson of Mauricio, nephew of Tomás, and son of Phillip Lasansky. The Lasansky family is truly one that believes in lifelong artistic production.

Noah Bullock, coordinator of the Bisignano Art Gallery, said you can spot a Lasansky at a distance – not so much through the subject matter but through the form. “Mauricio Lasansky was a formalist through-and-through,” Bullock said. “While large, clean color field painting seemed all the rage in certain contemporary galleries in 1970s Soho, Lasansky’s large-scale, multi-plated figurative images kept traditional intaglio technique and figurative art in focus for the rest of us. He is truly the ‘father’ of modern printmaking in America.”

When Bullock visited the Lasansky Workshop in Iowa City many years ago, he was drawn to the large portraits of influential people from the past and was inspired to learn more. “They’re big, vibrant, and full of texture,” Bullock said. “Mauricio, Tomás, and Diego Lasansky combine painting, drawing, and printmaking to create these one-of-a-kind pieces. In a sense, each artist reminds me of a modern-day Rembrandt using some of the same techniques.”

Mauricio Lasansky Kaddish1 1976

The mission of the Charles and Elizabeth Bisignano Art Gallery is: to serve University of Dubuque students, faculty, staff, and the surrounding community by bringing diverse exhibit to campus; to support the mission of UD by connecting visual arts to other disciplines via educational programming and collaborations; and to promote UD to the tri-state area and beyond by welcoming the public to attend (in person and virtually) the exhibits. The Bisignano Art Gallery is the programming arm and primary resource for the Digital Art and Design Department. The gallery features at least 10 original, in-house curated exhibitions per year. It also serves as the primary display space for students and faculty on campus, providing opportunities through juried student shows, Senior Thesis exhibitions, and faculty shows.

With around 15 intaglio prints by the Lasansky family included, Lasansky: UD's Private Collection will be on display at the University of Dubuque through February 3, with regular gallery hours noon to 5 p.m. on Monday through Friday. Admission is free, and more information is available by calling (563)589-3267 and visiting BisignanoArtGallery.com.

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