Jillian Ross

Collaborative Master Printer

Canadian-born Jillian Ross is a Master Printer who specializes in collaborative printmaking. Currently living in Canada, Ross was the Master Printer of the David Krut Workshop (DKW) in Johannesburg from 2003 to 2020, working with over 100 South African and international artists, most notably William Kentridge. Ross and partner Brendan Copestake founded Jillian Ross Print in 2021 in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, where they continue working on collaborative projects in South Africa as well as developing new relationships abroad.

Throughout her work, particularly in the publicly accessible open-studio format of DKW at Arts on Main in Johannesburg, Ross has promoted and enhanced artist, collector, and public knowledge of printmaking through mentorship, educational workshops, and knowledge sharing.

Ross has collaborated with William Kentridge since 2006 on several major prints, including the Triumphs and Laments Woodcuts (2016 – 2021), The Universal Archive (2011 – 2015), The Noses (2006 – 2010) at DKW and the recently released Studio Life Gravures (2020 - 2022) from Jillian Ross Print (JRP), co-published with DKW.

Other recent 2021-2022 projects include a collaboration with Latitudes Online, South African artists Cinthia Sifa Mulanga and Puleng Mongale, and the technical team at The University of Alberta in Canada; and an exhibition entitled William Kentridge: The Colander realized at Griffin Art Projects in Vancouver in collaboration with curator Lisa Baldissera in Canada and the Kentridge Studio and David Krut Projects in Johannesburg.

Ross will continue her inclusive collaborative work with partners in Canada and South Africa - bridging her two home countries - by continuing and developing collaborative relationships with artists, studios, institutions, and galleries to develop print projects.