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[[image - photograph]] Left to right, Paul Clinton, Julio Juristo, Michelle Juristo, Charles Ringness, Dan Stack working in the Graphicstudio, 1972. total of 27 Graphicstudio exhibitions. That organization also maintained a liaison with community subscribers for the collection of money and dissemination of work. Through the efforts of James Camp, currently a New York gallery owner, a small grant was received from the National Endowment for the Arts through the Florida Development Commission in the latter part of 1968. As modus operandi, the shop would be inaccessible only during the crucial proofing period so that the artist would be unhampered in his concentration. At all other times the studio and its personnel were to be accessible to students and public. In actuality, most of the artists did not require a cloistered atmosphere during proofing so for the most part the studio was accessible. Things learned through concentrated research and collaborative time spent with major artists enabled the printers and other studio personnel to become important resources of extraordinary value in a variety of ways. In the occasional classes, seminars, and lecture/demonstrations taught by the studio personnel, there was an offering of traditional expertise as well as newly evolved procedures. Concurrently, they were able to interpret the views, approaches, and procedures of artists with whom they collaborated. This combination of experience offered an unquestionably unique educational circumstance to our students and the local community. As Graphicstudio's reputation increased, the numbers of people on a local, regional, and national level who wished to see the work, visit its facilities, and meet with its personnel, similarly increased. Accumulated publicity was not only of value to Graphicstudio but also to the art department, the university and community, and the state of Florida. Major articles in Art in America and consistent references in Print Collector's Newsletter as well as other art journals, exhibition catalogues, and magazines, produced inquiries concerning undergraduate school programs. There were also requests for Graphicstudio, Art Bank, and U.S.F. exhibition publications. Tampa was identified on an international level as a center for important print activities. By 1970 large numbers of works were being placed into the community through our subscription program and the community through its support became the beneficiary of consequential experimental work. It was no simple matter to organize the administrative and fiscal structure within a state university which, as in all state organizations, carries its bureaucratic albatross tethered with red tape. No matter how much legal advice was sought, it was impossible to encapsulate the relationship between the Graphicstudio and other state agencies without there being yet another nuance to be considered. TO this day many of the organizational questions pose challenges but the constant support of the university administration allows the studio to continue to function although it has no precedence in a university setting. The University of South Florida is funded on a productivity formula which by definition places emphasis on the number of students taught. Against this pressure, it is difficult to utilize teaching positions solely for research, thereby reducing teacher productivity. To observe and maintain the vale of research and "indirect" teaching in Graphicstudio represents and astonishing and bold commitment to the arts in a period when funds are being cut back, available positions reduced, and non-credit-hour-producing activities legislatively criticized. For the most part the contribution by the state was limited to space allocations and academic research positions utilized. Beyond this, gaining the financial support required for full utilization of these positions was no small matter. Major operating costs were generated, especially in the initial stages, by the personal support and generosity of a number of Tampa Bay community residents who believed deeply in the total FALL, 1974 11
