A place to create: Biggs Museum grows printmaking series for Delaware families

Photo: Printmaking at the Biggs Museum is a great family outing.

Artist-led sessions and youth-oriented printmaking programs aim to lower barriers and bring more residents into the arts

DOVER, Del. — Families across Delaware are being invited to discover — or rediscover — one of Kent County’s quiet cultural anchors as the Biggs Museum of American Art expands hands-on programming designed to introduce a new generation to creativity through printmaking.

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Photo: the Bigg Museum in Dover, Delaware. Courtesy: VisitDelaware.com

Located along Federal Street in downtown Dover, the museum has long served as a home for American fine and decorative arts, regional artists and community learning. Now, leaders say its growing series of printmaking workshops and demonstrations is helping transform the museum from a place that simply displays art into one where visitors can actively create it.

The rotating printmaking series offers artist-led classes, live demonstrations and family-friendly sessions that introduce participants to techniques such as linocut and woodcut relief printing, monoprinting, gel-plate printing and collagraph processes. Programs are structured for beginners while still engaging experienced artists, with shorter sessions designed specifically for children, homeschool groups and multigenerational families.

Museum educators say the approach reflects a broader mission: lowering barriers to the arts and making fine-art techniques tactile, approachable and community-centered.

Printmaking, in particular, is seen as an accessible entry point because it relies on repeatable processes, affordable materials and experimentation — qualities that encourage participation from visitors who may not see themselves as traditional artists.

The workshops are often paired with exhibitions featuring American and regional printmakers, allowing participants to view professional works before trying the techniques themselves. That connection between gallery and studio, museum leaders say, helps demystify the creative process and deepen appreciation for the art on display.

Beyond the print studio, the Biggs continues to maintain a permanent collection spanning 18th- through 20th-century American paintings, decorative arts, furniture, silver, textiles, photography and contemporary works, while also hosting rotating exhibitions and the juried Biggs Art Awards highlighting regional talent.

For Kent County, the museum plays a role that extends beyond culture. Visitors drawn to exhibitions and workshops frequently spend time in surrounding downtown Dover — supporting restaurants, shops and nearby historic sites — making the institution both an educational hub and a contributor to local economic activity.

Just as important, educators say, is the museum’s impact on young people. Field trips, youth programs and family art days often provide students with their first experience inside a professional art museum, shaping how they view creativity and community engagement.

As hands-on programs continue to expand, museum leaders hope more Delaware families will see the Biggs not as a distant cultural space, but as a welcoming place to explore, learn and create together. For many in Kent County, that shift represents something larger: ensuring the next generation experiences art not only on the wall, but in their own hands.