In the Pressroom

When I talk to younger printers starting out in Letterpress I'm surprised by the way they work. They seem to use computer tools as they were taught in university and then use letterpress as a delivery process. Often files are output as CYMK from Illustrator or Indesign/Quark and then the image is "locked in" using process inks and a platen or cylinder press to realise the image on paper using Photo plates. 
 I have used Photopolymer and its not all that easy, as I'd be the first to admit. Photopolymer has a very shallow etch, so the lock up has to be perfect and the rollers set to the lightest possible setting. If not then non-image areas get inked and will often print. Its very frustrating and ultimately a fun day of press work descends into lots of cursing and frustration as the printer tries to get a plate to work.

This put me off using the material and sent me in the direction of using more traditional materials. Photopolymer is not all that sharp either. Nothing like new crisp type from M&H foundry or Dale GuiId with their amazing foundry types. Using woodcuts and Linocuts too gives a nice low tech picture which carries a beautiful rich layer of ink on 100 year old presses. they seem to enjoy these materials! It always pays to remember the age when these presses came into existence and work with them. Same goes for deep impression. Too heavy an impression is very wearing of the plate, press and type especially so I avoid punishing the materials. Simple materials puts it all on the creators. those who cut the blocks, set the type and mix the inks. The 'art' is in assemblage and making choices.

With my work, colour is one of the last steps. The right mood is important. I try to match the content of the block with a colour. Sometimes we will print a block in a range of colours - some cool, some warm, to convey different moods. On a platen press you can change colour in minutes. I do own a pantone colour guide (the industry standard) but usually I just flick through it to  get an idea of possibilities. We use just a basic range of rubber based non skinning inks and use opaque white and transparent inks. Incidently mix from very light. Mix by sight and intuition. Start light and very gradually add a darkening colour. Tap a small amount out on paper to check. If you go too dark, "can it" and use it for something else. Start again.

Real Master Printers

Recently we had the joy of handling some 19th century japanese prints. A friend had been gifted them as a bequest.

   These prints are made off carved wooden blocks, with a "Baren" (a pad of bamboo Leaves). Ink is made from soot (black) and various pigment sources, often vegetable. It is amazing to see and to hold closely such beautiful prints. They are printed on handmade paper and these ones obviously had been in albums and suchlike as the mounts were still attached lightly in the top corners.  They are printed in register from successive blocks of colour and were made in hundreds. Often very good copies were made and printers did forge each others work too as famous prints garnered better prices. These guys could really print!

  Our job was to encapsulate them in acid free archival mounts that effectively sealed them from hazards in the future. A good friend who practices these skills taught us how this is done. Core-flute backing board, Mylar, and museum quality materials are used throughout the process. The prints were then stored in a purpose made box. I have a feeling that these sort opportunities happen only once in a lifetime!

Making Cards

Lasting Impressions is a Private Press. This means that we primarily print for the pleasure only seek to trade in order to buy in supplies to keep the studio ticking over. 

Making cards is one way in which in which trade can be mixed with pleasure. Joanne conceives and cuts most of the blocks out of lino. Subject matter is usually based on local wildlife and are usually not message cards. People are buying these cards and framing them, and why not! They are hand printed and archival and have a great feel to them. You can pay a little more though and buy the same image signed, and on a good paper especially for framing.

 Sometimes I make cards based on type. These pull on our growing and excellent type collection and are the usual message based cards. They give me a chance to play with the colour of the 30's and using printers ornaments is a great way to build a distinctive design. Ones that can't be replicated on computer. Ornaments were invisible to me when I was in "the trade" of the 60's. The fad had past by and for me the designs I worked with were usually zinc blocks of plain colours - Gill Sans and Times Roman. It was all very Bauhaus.
  Dale Guild Foundry in New York make these wonderful sets of ornaments and they can be arranged in an infinite way. I spend a lot of time looking at print materials from early 2oth century to the 60's. I look for simple innovative printing and ink colours that come from mixing on the press using mixing tints. Mostly pre-photography and this helps widen my skills base.

  We aim to keep all these skills in use and the studio when we finish (when is that!), will be a unique collection of fine letterpress with the best equipment and tools in daily use by artist/printers. The small amount of product we make goes along way to keep us functioning. Selling at our local market and a couple of retail outlets. The markets are a great way of meeting people who enjoy our work and often we also meet those who are or were printers. Sometimes they have the odd treasure to donate like type or small pieces of equipment.

Howards finished restoration

Readers of this blog will remember a rough but useable platen that Howard has been working on. It all came to fruition and was used at steam museum weekend recently. We set some type for a bookmark design and every attendee could go home with a fine memento. It still needs a pair of friskets and a bit of fine tuning but generally it printed very well. Howard was given a complete Ludlow type caster by an interested visitor. Ludlows are a very useful casting machine used for producing single lines of type from 'fonts' of matrices held in libraries by the user. Widely used all over the world they were a very useful machine in small printeries as it gave the printer great flexibility and cheap good typesetting.

Melbourne Wildseed 2012

 Emma Wild's label, "Wildseed". - Watch for it!!

The end of January and we were away in Melbourne catching up with family and having a break bird watching. Daughter Emma is a total ball of energy at the moment and producing some great fashion works combining silkscreen with lovely fabric designs. She sells at St Andrews market (Saturdays) and Geelong (Friday nights). Printing sure has changed. In my time it was lengthy apprenticeships and not much art now its the opposite. She takes inspiration from nature and the design is eye catching and simple elegance at an affordable price. Printing meets fashion.

 I usually like my presses to be made of cast iron and steel, but I must say I love the design of these silkscreen machines. totally adjustable for register and light enough to operate for medium run lengths. Ideal for back-shed use! Like the early Adana platens in the 50's many a small business is out in the shed! Emma is a fan of photo-screen which combines image gathering, computer work and screen making. Emma's picture I think, or could be Pete's!

 Jo, Emma and grandson Ruben outside Emma's stall at St, Andrews Saturday market. It was so hot. This is a great country market on the edge of Melbourne near an area ravaged by fire a couple of years ago. The landscape and the people are still showing the effects, but the market is vibrant and the overall vibe is relaxed and happy. Lots of interesting stalls. Great food.

A part of the range Emma makes. Its hard work! Shes on a roll folks.

 Emma selling her creations (Wildseed label) proudly being able to say "I designed and printed everything you see".

Melbourne was very hot and full of interest. Emma, Pete, and Ruben live close to our esteemed Prime minister in a neighbourhood close to Port Phillip Bay. Lots of bird life and some wet areas that yielded a couple of new sightings for my life list. Over 300 birds now.

 The "Spirit of Tasmania" is a very smooth ship to voyage on and the staff are actually friendly. Its relaxing and interesting. Try and say that about a recent air journey!

The return voyage had us in recliner chairs at the stern of the ship watching more birds and some great squalls crossing over us. The ferry is a lot more interesting than air travel. I just hate the vibes in air ports these days. Air travel is good if you need to be somewhere fast, but if not, its just an experience in congealed anxiety! I really enjoyed the ocean birds like Gannets, Petrels, and Prions, wheeling around and moving with the fronts.

Now for a year of printing and art in front of us! The paper has arrived and some transparent tint ink, and I have just ordered a font of Centaur titling from Bruce Rodgers original Matts. no ideas for them as yet but its the first time in many, many years, the mats have been released for casting. Dale Guild are doing this service for printers.

Holiday Greetings

Arriving today is this wonderful "trade" greetings from M&H foundry San Fransisco. We buy type from them and the Dale Guild Foundry, our main fonts coming from M&H. 

 Its ideas like this expressed simply and so imaginatively that impresses me with the whole experience of dealing with suppliers in the US. Their products are great, prices right, and delivery swift, (no more than 10 days). You can find them in our links, please, have a good look at their downloadable catalog.  Its a tough monotype metal, very durable for our hand platens. If you are not a letterpress printer yet, this catalog might do it! Then check out their start up fonts and prices!

Busy With Photography and Printing

December has started with us both just flat out doing some interesting studio work. I have been processing and printing some pinhole photographs in the darkroom. I always like to tone a little just to warm the prints. For years I split toned to have nice deep blacks from the Selenium and the sepia gave a beautiful mid/highlight colour. Well sepia is getting a little hard to locate in any quantity, so I have opted for mixing my own. In Australia, Vanbar.com.au has everything you need online except the old Sulphide toner ingredients (which stank anyway), so I had great joy taking the pinholes through to final stage. My flattening press is a very early kodak job of cast iron and it requires care. The idea I think is to heat it up and then turn it off. It then flattens prints successfully for about half an hour. If you leave it on it just gets hotter. No thermostat at all.

The camera is a 120 roll film job that cost $5.00 some years ago, and I removed the lens and put a pinhole (F262) in place. I like this camera as it is roll fed and has a B setting. you need it as most exposures are 3-6 seconds long