On Friday, May 9, the Laramie Plains Civic Center’s Gorgon Gallery will debut “Printmaking: Exploring the Process,” a Creative Aging Showcase featuring works of the 16 adult students of Laramie artist Jim Jereb.
This showcase celebrates the culmination of a printmaking workshop series hosted in partnership with the Wyoming Arts Council through the Creative Aging Project Grant. The program provided older adults in the community a no-cost opportunity to learn and engage in the creative process of printmaking, from initial concept through final artwork.
“The studio atmosphere permitted complete strangers to work alongside each other: meeting new people and learning new things,” Jereb said. “This, I think, is an important aspect of the Creative Aging program: working together in a supportive, positive, and dynamic learning center.”
Jereb teaches a printmaking cohort in 2024 in the Laramie Plains Civic Center Workshop. This year’s class and culminating gallery event were his second time participating in the Wyoming Arts Council supported program, which provides free arts education for individuals 55 year and older.
The workshop series and resulting exhibition not only aim to nurture artistic skills but also foster meaningful community connections and mental well-being among older adult participants.
“The Creative Aging printmaking class is every artist’s dream. It was a great way to learn new techniques and processes I’ve never had the opportunity to explore,” Jodie Atherton, one of Jereb’s students from this year’s printmaking course, said. “ I am grateful for the friendships I found and for the chance to expand my artistic vision.”
Jereb, who has worked in the field of printmaking for over forty years, has taught professional and amateur students of all ages. This was his second Creative Aging cohort.
“Working with this group was a pleasure: from the very first minute to the last second; a great confirmation of the saying about how time flies when you are having fun,” Jereb said. “Experience levels ranged from complete novices to those with years of using printmaking techniques. Various processes were introduced that challenged everyone to learn new viewpoints and understand themselves better as they worked through the class projects.”
The Creative Aging Project Grant, administered by the Wyoming Arts Council, promotes high-quality arts learning experiences for adults aged 55 and older. This year, free programs in various artistic media have been hosted by teaching artists throughout the state, with funds provided by the National Assembly of State Arts Agencies in partnership with E.A. Michelson Philanthropy and the Wyoming State Legislature.
A reception for the artists and works from “Printmaking: Exploring the Process” will be held on Friday, May 9th, from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m. in the Gorgon Gallery, a free, public gallery located in Room 332 of the Civic Center.
Training and funding details for 2026 Creative Aging programs have not yet been released by the Wyoming Arts Council.
Jereb chats with gallery show attendees who came to view the works of his students in 2024. A reception for 2025’s class will be hosted on May 9th at 5 to 7 p.m. in the Civic Center’s Gorgon Gallery.
