Alan Pocaro

Alan Pocaro is an Associate Professor of Printmaking and Foundations at Eastern Illinois University, where he teaches and maintains an active studio practice. Previously, he served as adjunct faculty at both the Art Academy of Cincinnati and Miami University. As an artist associated with the New Aesthetics movement, Pocaro emphasizes the physical and material nature of art in his creative practice.

His research interests focus on printmaking techniques, book arts, and contemporary visual practices. Pocaro's work explores the intersection of historical references and contemporary concerns through screenprinting, solvent transfer, and mixed media collage. He creates codex-style and concertina-format artist books that incorporate classical literature adaptations, Midwestern landscapes, and explorations of perception and memory.

Pocaro's recent artistic output shows a consistent focus on book structures and printmaking techniques, with significant works produced between 2018-2021. His work demonstrates technical mastery across multiple formats including concertina books, codex structures, and traditional prints. The themes of communication, silence, and historical adaptation recur throughout his recent production.

As an active member of AICA (International Association of Art Critics), Pocaro contributes regularly to Chicago's New City magazine and has published in The New Criterion, New American Paintings, Art Critical, Abstract Critical, CityBeat, and ART PAPERS.

Pocaro maintains an active studio practice alongside his academic responsibilities, producing editions that serve as raw materials for his book-making practice. His work bridges the 'cool & cerebral' aesthetic distance of printmaking with the 'warm and intimate' spaces of bookmaking, creating a distinctive visual language that connects historical references with contemporary concerns.

His professional activities include regular exhibitions at national and international venues, critical writing, and academic teaching that integrates his studio practice with pedagogical approaches to printmaking and foundations in art.