The Biennale, which first took place in 2009 and is organised by Northern Print, is a celebration of contemporary print that showcases works in a number of exhibition venues across the city.
It will take place between 16 September and 30 October, with the majority of the exhibitions being free, in venues including Gallery North and Vane.
The centrepiece of the IPB is the Print Awards, with prizes offered up by various donors. There are also a number of events and talks taking place throughout the period.
IPB Founder and Northern Print director Anna Wilkinson said: “For me, it’s so important to showcase and spotlight print rather than all the other different ways artists make their work.
“Printwork has been part of communication for so long and it’s still current and relevant and means something to the artists working in the industry today.
“I think the thing that people often respond to is the tactile quality of print – ink on paper. Whether it’s using new technologies like laser cutting, or traditional hand-cut processes, there is that sort of richness of the tactile quality of print that people can experience at the IPB.”
The open call for entries had 770 submissions, which have now been whittled down to 31 to be judged for the awards and shown at the exhibitions. Prize-winners will be announced on 16 September.
More than 130,000 visitors attended the 2014 Biennale, which the organisers expect to drop to around 100,000 due to this Biennale being two weeks shorter than the last. Wilkinson put this down to gallery space availability.
Awards include The Bryan Robertson Trust Award of a £4,000 cash prize and the Northern Print International Residency Prize, which gives a short residency to a non-UK based artist.
There is also the V&A Print Prize, sponsored by the Victoria and Albert Museum, which gives the winning artist the opportunity to have their work shown in a V&A collection.
Funding for the show has mainly been obtained from the Arts Council of England but other funders from within the industry include Cramlington, Northumberland-based Potts Print and London-based John Purcell Paper.
Wilkinson said her full-time IPB team had learned their lesson in terms of attaining funding this time for the show by approaching potential funders very soon after the previous IPB had finished.
“I always love the diversity of it. I work in print and the fact that this print is coming from all over the world to be on my doorstep and also I get a chance to meet some of the artists is fantastic,” she added.
“This bringing together of people who are in print is always exciting and energetic.”
