Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Nancy Turner. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Nancy, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. How did you learn to do what you do? Knowing what you know now, what could you have done to speed up your learning process? What skills do you think were most essential? What obstacles stood in the way of learning more?

My father suggested that I take Printing in high school when I couldn’t get into the graphic arts class. Printing was taught in Shop and they had just begun allowing girls to register. Despite being the only girl, I had an engaging and supportive teacher who was happy to have me in class. The expectation then was that Printing would be a job skill, so I learned to set type, run small commercial presses, carve lino blocks to add artistic interest to projects and other skills needed to run a print shop. After college, I married my English major writing skills with Printing for a 20-year-long career in organizational publications, until I changed careers with desktop publishing began. Many years later and still with a love of printmaking, I found that Cincinnati (where I live) has a non-profit printmaking organization, Tiger Lily Press. I joined and took the first class I could that fit my schedule…silk screen printing, using photo-emulsion process that wasn’t available in my high school days. Having a local printmaking studio meant easy access to classes, work space and supplies so I could print frequently, try new processes and have artist friends to learn from. TLP sponsors community shows and sales that include beginners, so I had arts events to work toward. I’m sure I grew into these skills much more quickly, and had far fewer failures, because of TLP’s expert support. Without this organization or one like it, I doubt that I would have gone back to printmaking. Having a studio with equipment, supplies and knowledgeable teachers made all the difference. Still, improving as a printmaker has simply taken patience, practice and learning from my failures.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I began printmaking as a hobby, but quickly found interest for my printed textiles, which I sell through my shop Real Butter Studio. Early in my printmaking adventures, I realized that printing on textiles (other than T-shirts) was a great way to print and also send my work out into the world. I began with, and still, silk-screen print vibrant and cheery images of produce and flowers on kitchen towels using water-based, non-toxic inks that are heat-set so the towels can be used. I also both block print and screen print on upcycled cast-off or thrifted shirts that I then sew into one-of-a-kind bags and home goods for use. A revelation of my printmaking practice is an unexpected flair for pattern design and color combinations. All of my pieces are unusual and interesting, as well as being useful. In recent years I have been making multi-color, limited-edition screen prints on paper that I submit to shows and make available for sale. I do take commissions for specialty print products, particularly table textiles.

Most of my art prints and pattern designs begin life as collages. I love to cut and paste paper. Collages have the same fresh, graphic quality as screen prints, so it’s not a far stretch to translate my collages into prints.

Why Real Butter Studio? I have a deep love of real butter. Butter made from good quality, local cream tastes of grass and sunshine. Making butter (which I do sometimes!) is all about taking a simple ingredient, adding some skilled process and then transformation happens. Something totally new is created that brings joy to life. Which is what my printed products are all about. It gives me joy to make them and people enjoy them too.

Teaching printmaking is part of how I grow as an artist and is an opportunity for me to give back to my community. I have taught beginner screen printing and block printing on fabric in Cincinnati at Tiger Lily Press, the Weavers Guild, the Cincinnati Art Museum. I post on my social media when classes are open.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

The most rewarding aspect of being an artist is taking simple supplies, messing around with them and coming up with something new. Sometimes my creations are great and often they are terrible and that’s ok. It always leads to some better at some point. I do sell my prints, but I wouldn’t do it if I didn’t enjoy the making process. It is meditative to come up with ideas and also pull prints. I engage various problem-solving skills to figure out how to achieve a desired result, which can be a struggle but is also rewarding to find solutions. I have to approach new processes as a beginner, which is humbling and also adds to my amazement at what can happen when making art. The whole process amazes me. I think being amazed by life regularly is a very good thing.

Looking back, are there any resources you wish you knew about earlier in your creative journey?

I wish I had known that there are community organizations that support various artistic processes. There actually are printmaking organizations in lots of communities. Many are quite affordable to join or to simply take classes. They were less easy to find when I started out in printmaking a dozen years ago. Now so many organizations have a solid presence on social media and are known by local arts fund raising organizations. Just some poking around can turn up other individuals or groups interested in something similar.

Contact Info:

• Website: nancygturner.com
• Instagram: @ngturner22
• Facebook: Nancy G. Turner, Artist

Image Credits
Nancy G. Turner, photos