Kenneth E. Tyler

Ken Tyler processing lithography stones drawn by Helen Frankenthaler during her 'Reflections' series, Tyler Graphics Ltd., Mount Kisco, New York, 1994.

Kenneth E. Tyler, AO (born December 13, 1931) is a master printmaker, publisher, arts educator and a prominent figure in the American post-war revival of fine art, limited edition printmaking. Tyler established leading print workshops and publishing houses on both West and East coasts of the United States and made several innovations in printmaking technology. His technical expertise and willingness to experiment on a bold scale drew many famous and influential artists to his workshops, among them Frank Stella, Helen Frankenthaler, Roy Lichtenstein, David Hockney, Robert Rauschenberg, Anthony Caro and Jasper Johns. Ken Tyler remains active as an educator and promoter of fine art printmaking, and mentor of a younger generation of printers through his various training and collecting institutions in Singapore, Japan, Australia and the US. The largest collection of prints produced at Tyler's successive workshops is currently held by the National Gallery of Australia.

Early life and education Ken Tyler was born in East Chicago, Indiana in 1931. His father was Romanian and his mother Hungarian, and his parents both emigrated as young children to United States.

Encouraged by his school music teacher, Tyler developed an interest in the visual arts and subsequently studied at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, from 1950 to 1951. Coming from a family of modest means, Tyler sought paid employment throughout his student years. From 1951 to 1952, he studied liberal arts at Indiana University, which, according to Tyler, consisted of "one semester at the campus in Bloomington, Indiana and one semester at Gary, Indiana extension while I worked full time in the Gary steel mill and attended evening classes at the extension". Originally Tyler had planned further studies at the Sorbonne in Paris. It was during the Korean War, and while applying for his passport in September 1952, he was drafted for military service. After undergoing basic training, he excelled as an officer candidate and won the opportunity to return to college, where he was given the title of ‘Regimental Staff Artist’, maintained an active private painting studio and also edited the Officer Corps newspaper.

Tyler studied further following his time in the army, earning a bachelor's in art education from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago in 1957. Tyler then studied lithography under Garo Antreasian at the John Herron School of Art (now Herron School of Art and Design) in Indiana, graduating with a Master of Art Education in 1963.

Tamarind Lithography Workshop In 1963, Tyler received a Ford Foundation Grant to study printing at the Tamarind Lithography Workshop in Los Angeles. This workshop, co-founded by June Wayne and Clinton Adams, was established in 1960 with the intention of reviving the ‘dying’ art of lithography. Here Tyler worked under technical director Irwin Hollander and also later studied under the French master printer Marcel Durassier. Durassier, who was noted for his technical skill, had worked at the French lithography workshop, Mourlot Frères, with some of the great artists of the School of Paris, including Pablo Picasso and Joan Miró. Here Tyler acquired a broad technical skills base through research and practice, and from 1964-5 was appointed Technical Director of the Workshop. It was in this role that Tyler had his first major collaboration with Josef Albers, an artist who became, in Tyler’s words, "the catalyst of my career."

Gemini Ltd. and Gemini G.E.L. In 1965, Ken Tyler established his own print atelier, Gemini Ltd., at 8221 Melrose Avenue in Los Angeles with his former wife Kay Tyler. From this modest workshop was born Gemini G.E.L. (Graphic Editions Ltd.). The following year Tyler, with the backing of his partners, Sidney Felsen and Stanley Grinstein, began to develop this print and publishing workshop into a large and influential organisation that attracted American artists including Josef Albers, Jasper Johns and Robert Rauschenberg. The clean, crisp look and flawless finish of many Gemini G.E.L. prints, as well as Tyler’s apparent preference for collaborating with well-established artists, was criticized by some commentators. Participants in the 1971 Gemini G.E.L. exhibition Technics and Creativity, for example, were accused of commercialism and too great an emphasis on technique. These criticisms tended to ignore Tyler’s use of many complex, time-consuming traditional methods, which he often combined with less orthodox printing processes. Works such as Robert Rauschenberg’s iconic Booster (1967), which was an experimental and labor-intensive "hybrid" of lithography and screen printing, exemplify this approach. Tyler's work with well-known artists also created the economic and technically innovative foundation for lesser known artists to print and be published through Gemini G.E.L.

Tyler Workshop Ltd. and Tyler Graphics Ltd. In 1973, after selling his collection of printer's proofs and drawings to the National Gallery of Australia, Tyler parted ways with Gemini G.E.L. to seek new direction on the East Coast of America. There he established Tyler Workshop Ltd. in Bedford Village, New York. The following year this workshop became Tyler Graphics Ltd., and in 1987 expanded its premises to Mount Kisco, New York.

Over its twenty-five year history, Tyler Graphics Ltd. saw collaborations with artists as diverse as Josef Albers, Anni Albers, Claes Oldenburg, Masami Teraoka, Ellsworth Kelly, Nancy Graves, Anthony Caro, Robert Motherwell, James Rosenquist, Joan Mitchell, and more. Certain artists in Tyler’s stable, such as David Hockney, Frank Stella and Roy Lichtenstein, continued to work with him over several decades and through many stylistic progressions.

When Tyler made the "difficult decision" to retire from printing in January 2000, he had built up a massive operation that was staffed by highly trained specialists and serviced by state-of-the-art printing technology. In Canberra, Australia, the National Gallery of Australia holds a collection of over 7000 Tyler works, as well as an archive of related film, sound and photographic material.

Honours Honorary Officer of the Order of Australia — "For service to the Arts, particularly through the Kenneth Tyler Collection at the National Gallery of Australia and through philanthropy." December 2, 2011. Endowed chair position in his name at IUPUI Herron School of Art & Design, currently held by Aaron S. Coleman.