Award: Research & Development Grant

Discipline: Multidisciplinary Arts

Project Collaborator(s): Alex Brueggeman, co-author 

City/Town: Tucson

Year: 2019

Artist Website: www.redcollarpress.com

Artistic expression has been a central fixture in my life for as long as I can remember. As a child, art became a way for me to channel the frustrations and confusion of my upbringing when I felt alone and misunderstood. What followed was an unwavering commitment to the development of my craft as a means of literal and figurative survival.

Excerpt from Amy Dunn’s R&D Grant application

As a Korean woman with a Black brother and two white parents, Amy Dunn has a unique perspective on issues concerning family, race, and identity, a particular worldview she feels can serve not just as a window into the lives of diverse people, but as bridges that connect them. 

Dunn was awarded funding in support of her work on a children’s book that highlights the value of those nuanced worldviews while exploring how to navigate the complexities of transracial adoptions, multiculturalism, and the forging of identities that straddle multiple histories, people and places. 

Beyond composing the art/graphics which accompany her story, Dunn will engage in researching national and international adoption systems, connect with other transracial adoptees to garner a holistic understanding of racial identity within multiracial family units, and collaborate with her New York-based brother to develop the story.

Work Samples

“Sonoran Cinderella”, 2018

Screen Print

“Oh Suzy, you misunderstood a term in your cookbook”, 2014.

Relief Woodcut, 24″ x 30″

“Nurture Nature”, 2017

Relief Woodcut

Amy Dunn has been a printmaker since graduating from the University of Arizona with a BFA in printmaking in 2014. After graduating she worked as an assistant for her former Relief professor and mentor, Sheila Pitt, for two years. Amy primarily focuses on Relief woodcuts but is also skilled in Letterpress and Screen Printing. She established a sole-proprietorship in 2016 under the name Red Collar Press and started selling at seasonal markets around Tucson. In 2018, PopCycle began carrying one of her t-shirt designs.