SGC PRINTMAKER EMERITUS

The Southern Graphics Council has selected Boyd Saunders to receive the SGC Printmaker Emeritus Award.  The 2002 SGC Printmaker Emeritus Award will be presented to Professor Saunders by Tom Hammond of the Lamar Dodd School of Art at the Univesity of Georgia.

In 1972 a handful of printmakers lead by Boyd Saunders gathered during a meeting of the Southeastern College Art Conference.  From that initial meeting the Southern Graphics Council was born, and is now the largest printmaking organization in North America.  It is a fitting honor that we bestow upon Boyd Saunders our highest award at our 30th annual conference.

Boyd Saunders is a painter, sculptor, illustrator, printmaker and a Professor of Art. He came to the University of South Carolina in 1965 with a mandate to establish and develop the printmaking program. He received the B.S. degree from Memphis State University, the M.F.A.
from the University of Mississippi and has done additional study at the University of Alabama and the Bottega d' Arte Grafica in Florence, Italy. 

His original prints and paintings have been exhibited and collected throughout the U.S. and in many foreign countries. In 1984 he took his "Southern Cross" Etchings on a tour of exhibits and lectures at a number of museums in the Peoples Republic of China. 

In 1989 he published, in collaboration with the U.S.C. Press, a deluxe, limited edition of William Faulkner's short story "Spotted Horses" with the complete text and illustrated with 34 original lithograph prints, hand-drawn and hand-printed by Mr. Saunders. This book was named "Best of Show" at the prestigious PICA Awards of that same year. 

More recently he has been commissioned to design and execute "The Aikenhead Collection", a series of original stone lithographs and bronze sculptures celebrating harness racing in America. He is also the author of a number books and articles about prints and printmakers. Included are "The Etchings of James F. Cooper", and "Alfred Hutty and the Charleston Renaissance" of which he was the co-author. 

He is listed in "Who's Who in American Art", "Who's Who in International Art and Antiques", "The New York Art Review", "Personalities of the South", and "Contemporary Artists of South
Carolina". In 1993 he was named 'Distinguished Alumnus' of his Alma Mater, Memphis State University: also 'Teacher of the Year' by the University of South Carolina Art Department. 

Previous Recipients of the SGC Printaker Emeritus Award have been:

1978: Elizabeth OíNeill Verner
1979: Richard Zoellner
1980: Caroline Durieux
1981: Maltby Sykes
1982: Alexander Hogue, Maricio Lasansky, Dole Reed
1983: Jacob Kainen, Pretiss Taylor, James Lesesne Wells
1984: Corrie McCallum, Sally Frost Knerr
1985: Constance Forsythe
1986: William Walmsley
1987: Gabor Peterdi
1988: Leonard Baskin
1989: Rudy Pozzatti
1990: James Steg
1991: Warrington Colescott
1992: Lee R. Chesney, Jr.
1993: Robert Blackburn
1994: Garo Antreasian
1995: June Wayne
1996: Nancy Spero
1997: Donald Saff
1998: Clinton Adams, Kenneth Tyler
1999: Jules Heller
2000: Krishna Reddy
2001: Antonio Frasconi