Bernie Witzack,
of bernie & zuzu

she/her
President
BernieAndZuzu.com

Bernie Witzack is an artist, art educator, and the entrepreneur behind bernie & zuzu. Bernie is currently the co-President of Polka! Press and has been a Polka! Press member for seven years. Bernie is available to teach all levels of screen-printing workshops offered by Polka! Press and is also able to teach block printing and host open studios. She is experienced with all age groups and ability levels. She is available for private and group lessons, as well as team building workshops. Please see her current workshop offerings on our workshops page, or email her to inquire about other teaching requests: bernieandzuzu@gmail.com

Bernie has been making art since she could hold a crayon, screen printing for 10+ years, and works full-time as an artist with her small batch, hand-printed apparel and home goods brand, bernie & zuzu. She has extensive experience teaching screen printing, block printing, fabric painting and drawing. She has taught children, teens and adults at the Arts + Literature Laboratory, the Textile Art Center, Pinney Library, and Polka! Press. Bernie earned a BA in Studio Art from Beloit College, a MA in Public Service from Marquette University, an MFA in Fine Art from the University of Michigan, and an AA in Graphic Design from Madison College. 

Philip Hasset

he/him
Vice President
WashboardPress.com

Jinx King

they/them/she/her
Secretary
HijinxMixedMedia.com

Jinx founded Hijinx Mixed Media in 2023 as a way to spread joy and laughter through art. Using humor, their art aims to accessibly explore difficult topics like humanity's impact on the planet, loneliness and community, or reminders of death (memento mori). Navigating the world as a mixed race queer artist, they hope to encourage community, solidarity, and resistance.

Lesley Numbers

she/her
Treasurer
LesleyAnneNumbers.com

Katheryn Horne

she/her
Community Outreach Coordinator
KatherynHorne.com

Richard Jones

he/him
Shop Manager
StudioParan.com

Richard S Jones is an undisciplined artist, in both senses. “I propose to be an undisciplined artist is to take the path of negation, a Keatsian path. Write my name in water. Full fathom five. Swim in the ludic undertow of our time, what comes next is not to be courted by some identifiable identity. Walk the pathless path through the gateless gate. Am I just wandering in the wonderment of a meadow? Will you meet me there?” He currently prints under the impression Ludic Undertow Press, engraves glass and dreams of shadows.

Kerry Ervin

she/her
Member
MurmelArt.com

I’ve been a lifelong drawer and studied art when I was younger, but it wasn’t until much later that I was introduced to printmaking—and it was truly life changing. I became joyfully, and perhaps a little obsessively, captivated. These days I specialize in woodcuts and drypoint, loving every step of the process—from carving to inking to pulling that first print. The etching press at Polka!Press is my beloved, and I'm grateful to be part of such an eclectic, talented and generous community of artists.

Emilee Taxman

they/them
Member

Emilee Taxman is an artist and printmaker who primarily works with interactive letterpress-printed books and broadsides. Their work explores major life changes that influence identity and ideas of the future, primarily through the lenses of mental illness and transgender experiences. They have worked at Distinctive Bookbinding in DC, Center for Book Arts in NYC, and the San Francisco Center for the Book. Their books are in library special collections across the country, including in Yale University’s Robert B. Haas Family Arts Library and the University of Iowa’s main library. They recently received their MFA in Studio Art from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and are currently working at Grimm Book Bindery in Monona.

Amy Wilson

she/her
Member
amywilsonae@gmail.com

I am an Elementary Art Teacher who is beginning to revisit my personal printmaking practice. I primarily work in screen printing and relief, and enjoy exploring themes related to the natural world, community, resistance, and play. Joy and connection are essential components of my practice, and a direct response to working with young people in our community every day. I enjoy teaching youth innovative ways to incorporate printmaking into their work with everyday items, and this playfulness and resourcefulness extends to my own creative practice.

Sarah O’Farrell

she/her
Member

Emma Goecks

she/her
Member

Paul Kjelland

he/him
Member

Maggie Pemberton

she/her
Member