ABOUT
Bio
I’m an artist and printmaker that’s always resided in New England since being born in 1988. Currently in Connecticut, I’m a printer for the Center for Contemporary Printmaking in Norwalk.
I started SCUBA diving at 12 and had lifelong plans to become a marine biologist. Naturally, I would eventually earn my BFA in printmaking. The sea and its cool little critters still remain a fixation, in my artwork and otherwise. Diving for the local aquarium to maintain the habitat for their five sand tiger sharks is one of the greatest satisfactions of my life.
Back on land in the print shop, I get to collaborate with artists on print projects in mediums of etching, lithography, monotype, and more. I teach workshops both at CCP and abroad on topics of printmaking, as well as on printmaker’s health & safety in regards to hazard identification, proper lab protection, and prudent practices. Closing this educational gap for printmakers is a large aspect of my collaborations and workshops. It was important well before my breast cancer diagnosis at 36 (and remission at 37!), but believe you me, it’s all the more important now.
Statement
The medium of printmaking has sustained me well over the years, not only as a polite venue for my schemes and curiosity, but also as a livelihood. It feels inaccurate sometimes to relate to the printmaking art from my individual self. To study it is to know it is a nurturer of community. Where printmaking has served as a vehicle for grassroots movements across history, it has also preserved ideals of collaboration and mentorship. The facilitation of printmaking has even led to major discoveries in paleontology and chemistry. For all this, even lately, print to me feels more connected to humanity than to the market. Some of print’s core approaches have remained unchanged for centuries. This is appealingly anticapitalist and contrary to the culture of convenience, as this insists that we retain value in experiencing friction and wonder in our work. Being in the shop is being present, responding directly to materiality and phenomenon. At press, you’re a little apron-wearing dot on a timeline in solidarity with great labor, great minds, and some of the coolest aspects of our planet.
The personal work I make always depicts flora and fauna, but it returns most often to the sea. Marine motifs feel instinctual to depict. Mostly in a way that feels comforting, not very cerebral, like barking at the moon. I love the sea’s animal odor, and that it is dangerous and humbling, and that it is a home to our oldest ancestors. Waves, sharks, and salt feel safe and right for the ruminations that come to mind in the studio. These include thoughts about beauty and frustration with the status quo. Especially now, I suspect that I am desperately bargaining with the sea in regards to our impending man-made extinction, ingratiating myself with heroic depictions of sea creatures eviscerating men. These are violent triumphs which condemn the “puppet masters” of this wayward era.
CV
EMPLOYMENT
Collaborative Printer and Studio Manager, Center for Contemporary Printmaking, Norwalk, CT April 2020 – Present
Visual Arts Technical Specialist (Print and Photo Technician), Smith College Department of Art, Northampton, MA October 2015 – March 2020
Studio Monitor, Zea Mays Printmaking, Florence, MA September 2017 – March 2020
EDUCATION
University of Massachusetts Amherst, May 2012
Bachelors of Fine Arts in Printmaking, Minor in Art History 3.5/4.0
TRAINING
Apprentice, Wingate Studio, Hinsdale, New Hampshire May 2018 – August 2018
Intern, Zea Mays Printmaking, Florence, MA April 2013 – March 2014
EXHIBITIONS
-AEMPIRE AGAIN, ArtSpace Gallery, Hartford, CT, September-October 2025.
-AEMPIRE, ArtSpace Gallery, Hartford, CT, September-October 2024.
–Civic/ Civil Engagement, Center for Contemporary Printmaking, Grace Ross Shanley Gallery, Norwalk, CT. January 2023-March 2024.
– Liz Bannish: 12 Years of Printmaking, Solo Exhibition, East Wing Gallery, Mount Wachusett Community College, Gardner, MA. February- March 2024.
– With Fresh Eyes, Center for Contemporary Printmaking, Grace Ross Shanley Gallery, Norwalk, CT. January 2023-March 2024.
– Five Points Juried Printmaking Exhibition, Fine Points Arts Center, Torrington, CT. June 2023- July 2023
– Of the Moment, Center for Contemporary Printmaking, Grace Ross Shanley Gallery, Norwalk, CT. Dec 2022- Feb 2023.
– LAISSEZ LES BONS TEMPS ROULER!, Center for Contemporary Printmaking, Grace Ross Shanley Gallery, Norwalk, CT. Dec-2021-Feb 2022.
– Instructor Showcase 2021, Center for Contemporary Printmaking, Grace Ross Shanley Gallery, Norwalk, CT. March- May 2021.
– Boston Printmakers Faculty Show, Danforth Art Museum, Framingham, MA. Oct-Dec 2019.
–The Space Between Two Print Biennial, APE Gallery, Northampton, MA. October 2018.
-Boston Printmakers 2017 North American Print Biennial, Lunder Arts Center, Lesley University, Cambridge, MA. February 2018.
-ZMP New Prints Member’s Exhibition, Forbes Library Hosmer Gallery, Northampton, MA. July 2017.
-Wheaton Biennial: Printmaking Reimagined, Beard and Wiel Galleries, Wheaton College, Norton, MA. March 2017.
–Good Bokeh: International Juried Photography Exhibit, Ventura, CA. February 2017.
–Silent Engine, Ayvazian / Maurer Studios, Northampton, MA. February 2017.
–Unity of Opposites, Institute of Contemporary Art MECA, Portland, ME. February 2017.
–Unity of Opposites, APE Gallery, Northampton, MA. October 2016. –Here to Go, Mint Gallery, Atlanta, GA. January 2015.
-IPCNY New Prints 2014, Christie’s, New York, New York. August 2014.
-IPCNY New Prints 2014, International Print Center, New York, New York. May 2014.
–Works by Liz Bannish, Loo Gallery, Zea Mays Printmaking, Florence, MA. September 2013.
–Amalgamate, Flywheel Arts Collective, Easthampton, MA. January 2013.
–Something Old and Something New, The Former Gallery, West Stockbridge, MA. December 2012.
-Big Ink, Pop-up show and event, Northampton town center, Northampton, MA. September 2012.
–Duria Antiquior (solo thesis exhibition), Clark Gallery, University of Massachusetts Amherst, MA. April 2012.
–Adventures in Reproduction, Eli Marsh Gallery, Amherst College, MA December 2011.
–Remake, Hosmer Gallery, Smith College, Northampton, MA October 2011.
–Recollect, Student Union Gallery, University of Massachusetts Amherst, MA October 2011.
–Redefine, Eastworks Gallery, Easthampton, MA March 2011.
–Works on Paper, Northampton Center for the Arts, MA June 2006.
DISTINCTIONS AND AWARDS
-Event organizer and grant writer, Print Fair North printmaking fair, hosted by Zea Mays Printmaking. October 2016, Florence, MA.
-Demonstration Leader, Iron-On Intaglio: Multiple Tones in One Etch presentation at Southern Graphics Council International Conference 2014, San Francisco, CA. April 2014.
–Mom’s Choice Award Silver Medal for Children’s Picture Books, Noodles and Albie, illustrator. Small Batch Books, 2014.
-John Roy Award of 2nd Best in Show for senior thesis exhibition Duria Antiquior, 2012.
VOLUNTEERING
-Volunteer, SCUBA Dive team, Maritime Aquarium, Norwalk, CT June 2021-Present
-Volunteer, Dog walker, PAWS Animal Rescue of CT, March 2021- March 2023
