Donald S. Farnsworth

Printmaker and papermaker Don Farnsworth studied chemistry and printmaking at Laney College in Oakland, California and at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago before completing his Bachelor of Fine Arts degree at the San Francisco Art Institute in 1974. In 1977 he earned a master’s degree from the University of California, Berkeley. Farnsworth supplemented his official training in lithography and paper conservation by teaching himself to make paper by hand. He has since published several articles on traditional papermaking methods and papermaking as a means of conservation. Farnsworth taught from 1975-1986 at the California College of Arts and Crafts. He then taught at the University of California, Davis, the University of California, Berkeley, and the University of Hawaii before taking his current position as director of the California print studio Magnolia Editions.

Farnsworth’s work combines Asian calligraphy, ancient papermaking techniques, and imagery of Western architectural icons. He was also one of the earliest practitioners of digital printmaking. His work has been exhibited at the Museum of Modern Art, the Brooklyn Museum of Art, the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, and the American Craft Museum. He has received many awards, including a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts.