On Road Roller Day, KCAI's Printmaking Department will use a road roller to create massive prints, with designs specifically crafted for the occasion. The event highlights the fascinating process of creating large-scale woodblock prints, which is a crowd favorite—especially among children.

Miguel Rivera, Chair and Associate Professor of Printmaking at KCAI, explains, "The indentations on the block, the decisions made, and seeing the mirror image emerge is something kids have forgotten. We’re so used to computers and phones, where everything is superficial—no pun intended. But here, the surface is actually treated in depth, and you can see the embossing of the image coming to life. It’s as honest as one can be when making a mark by hand. There's something magical about pulling that print.”

Visiting Artist Background

KCAI is thrilled to welcome Emmy Lingscheit as the Road Roller 2025 Visiting Artist. On Wednesday, April 2nd, at 8:30 AM, Lingscheit will give a lecture in Epperson Auditorium before working alongside students on the project. The public is invited to attend the lecture, where they can learn more about her approach to printmaking and her artistic background.

Rivera explains the selection of Lingscheit as the visiting artist, saying, “Amy’s work focuses on using a lot of negative space, which is different from how a lot of students and faculty typically approach their art. We often feel the need to fill every inch of the surface, but Amy works in a more free-flowing, natural way. That’s one of the reasons we decided to invite her.”

Lingscheit’s lecture will introduce the theme for Road Roller 2025: Subterranea/Underground. From April 2nd to April 8th, KCAI students will carve 4x4 ft block panels inspired by this theme. Lingscheit will collaborate with students, offering insight into her carving styles and artistic process. "I find the action of carving a relief block to be a kind of excavation," Lingscheit says. "It parallels the acts of excavation performed by our non-human kin, and by scientists working to better understand our past and future on this planet."

Origins of Road Roller Day

Since its inception in 2007, Road Roller Day has been a beloved tradition at KCAI. The event was created by former Interim Printmaking Department Chair and Professor Laura Crehuet Berman, along with faculty member and alum Lloyd Patterson, to celebrate and share the community within the Printmaking Department and beyond. As the Printmaking Program expanded, Road Roller Day grew into a collaborative, festival-style event that draws a wider community into the creative process.

“The scale of the project and its public nature add an element of mystery—there’s always anticipation for the reveal," says Rivera. "It's like an oppressive secret that's finally unveiled to an audience."

Wrap-Up

The public event is the culmination of days of hard work by students and faculty. Leading up to the big day, a typical visiting artist will spend 3-4 hours a day preparing for the event, with students contributing even more time. The work is physically demanding, as much of it involves carving by hand.

Rivera emphasizes that while technology plays a role in some parts of the project, the focus remains on hands-on work. "The goal is to create tactile experiences that are invaluable for younger generations," he says. "We're noticing that students are losing that part of the brain that learns through touch, and experiences like this help feed that skill."

At the end of the event, the multi-panel prints will be displayed in Epperson Auditorium for all to admire, reflecting the collective effort and creative energy of KCAI's Printmaking Department.