Mark My Words: Amos Kennedy Jr’s poignant typographic call to action for social and environmental justice on display
A new group exhibition pairing letterpress prints by the renowned Amos Paul Kennedy, Jr. and a large range of regional print artists is on display at The Chesterton Art Center starting October 3. Titled ‘Mark My Words’ the exhibition is a “visual exploration of language and how it interfaces with and shapes contemporary material culture and social concerns.”
An installation of Amos Paul Kennedy, Jr.’s bold and poignant posters of social and environmental justice messages and calls to action covers the walls while zines and self-published small-run works by artists, illustrators, and printers from the region and beyond are showcased along with a Pop-Up Shop of artists’ works.
“Kennedy is one of the most important letterpress printers in business today. His posters champion a proverb, poem or call to action that reflects contemporary social concerns, community health, power, race and identity,” Saporiti said. “He runs pieces through his typography multiple times to layer type and text in vibrant colors and patterns. While this process creates unique posters, Kennedy’s love for printing is grounded in creating editions and multiples for accessibility and distribution.”
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“Kennedy’s practice thrives in the community, and he is always eager to engage others in conversation and creation. He is generous with his knowledge and time and hosts educational and collaborative workshops across the country,” he adds. “After 40 years as a systems analyst at AT&T, Kennedy earned his MFA from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and later taught graphic design at the Henry Radford Hope School of Fine Arts at Indiana University Bloomington. He has exhibited widely and is included in many museum and library collections, including the Museum of Modern Art and the Library of Congress.”
A man who “makes stuff” per Letterform Archive, Kennedy’s path to typography is an inspiring one. A former Chicago-based systems analyst for AT&T, Kennedy was 38 years old when he visited Colonial Williamsburg in Virginia and saw a printing press for the first time circa 1988.
“It was love at first sight. Within five minutes he decided to quit his job and become a printer. The rest is history” reads his profile on LA.
A “humble negro printer” — “I tell people that I am ‘negro’ because most people mistake me for African American. There is a profound difference between ‘negro’ and African American. My ancestors were the enslaved peoples whose labor built the wealth of this civilization” he said — his poignant prints ask questions and address numerous social issues, always advocating a society of justice.
“His posters are bold in every sense of the word,” writes Joyce Yin. “They force us to reconsider what belongs on posters and what is considered art in the first place.… Who should be allowed to participate in experiencing and collecting art? That’s a large reason why Kennedy embraced letterpress printing. It allows him to produce easily and quickly, ensuring mass production and distribution, one of the main goals of his work. Kennedy has a lot to say and he wants people to know it.”
“I was told years ago that everything you do is political,” Kennedy says, “and so my art is really a political statement. And the story of my art, when someone can actually cipher it out, is a statement of what I envision the world to be. One is that every piece is unique because every individual is unique. There is no such thing as a mistake. There are just happy coincidences. This is what happened at the moment of creation.”
The ‘Mark My Words’ exhibition also features the work of Katie Armentrout, Rachel Bard, Matthew Barron, Dan Breen, Terrence Chouinard, Georgia Geis, Corey Hagelberg, Laurel Izard, Olivia Jobbe, Connie Kassal, George Kassal, Casey King, Kelly Massei, Lindsay Mathers, Mythos Publications, Colleen Newquist, Briana Olivares, Josh Olsen, Ramiro Rodriguez, Ida Short, Kelsey Simpson, Eric, Isis, Drake Spruth, Jewlya Sturtevant, Suzy Vance, Valparaiso University Creative Writing Students, and Kay Westhues.
Kennedy, Jr. will discuss his typographic works during a print workshop from 6 to 8 p.m. on November 4. Participants will be able to create their own small prints on a table press.
The ‘Mark My Words’ exhibition is on view October 3–November 29, 2022 and is free and open to the public.
Tags/ typography, exhibition, letterpress, poster, activism, prints, amos kennedy jr, art center
