Goshen printmaker Ida Mae Short is planning a printmaking event to bring the community together and promote welcoming perspectives.
Short is a practicing artist with a degree in printmaking from Goshen College. She is investing a $500 micro-grant she won through the Little BIG Idea Grant 2.0 program into the event.
The goal of the event is to peacefully counter negative messaging and extol the virtues of printmaking for good. Elkhart County residents can learn about printmaking and print signs of their own with positive and welcoming messaging.
In 2024, Short showed up for a community meeting after Ku Klux Klan flyers were left on cars and doorsteps throughout Goshen. Short left that meeting wanting to do something to counter the negative, hateful messaging the flyers conveyed.
“I’m grateful for the award,” Short said in a press release. “I love hosting events at my studio and I feel this is a good way to show people how printmaking can be positive, rewarding and unifying. I feel that print can connect folks and spark creativity.”
Short said printmaking can be exciting because people immediately see the results of what they’ve done.
“I have seen faces light up, young people and older folks, when they pull a print for the first, second or twentieth time,” Short said. “It’s a magical medium that is exciting and fun for adults and kids alike.”
The Little BIG Idea Grant program is an initiative of Vibrant Communities of Elkhart County and the Community Foundation of Elkhart County. The program encourages residents to submit ideas for community events, projects and gatherings that promote quality of place in Elkhart County. Awards range up to $500.
“Elkhart County is an area that is driven by unity,” Bil Murray, the grant program's project manager, said. “As a printmaker, someone who toils in fine art and messaging, Ida felt very strongly about wanting to use her medium to show the good that printmaking can do. She is an Elkhart County resident using the tools she has to improve her community, and we are honored to award her with grant funding.”
The funds will help Short source ink for the event and purchase paper. Any extra funds will be allocated towards more color options for children.
The Community Print Event will take place 2 to 5 p.m. April 26, at Short’s printmaking studio at 213 S. Main Street in Downtown Goshen. The event is free and open to the public.
