I thought you might all be interested to know, I am beginning on a new venture. A Project.
Maybe a large project, maybe a fizzle out and die pretty quickly project, but still a project….
It is involving the recent culminating force of letterpress which seems to be organically growing into my life, it could be taking over slightly.
I have begun helping out at Spike with both Angie Butler’s book arts workshop and Nick hands letterpress workshop; these have both been massive learning opportunities and I am finally feeling like a slightly more competent, slightly less bodged-job printer.
It’s also been great to see people developing their work and enthusiasm in this practice.
Spike Island have a very large, very powerful Vandercook press, Automatic, one of only 3 in the country and concreted to the floor.
I have taken on the job of giving it life, cleaning down the press, definitely not an easy task, but very rewarding!
Check out the before and after- that was 9 years of ink build up!
This coincided with a job interview, for a print production ‘oh god, do I really want to work minimum wage, 12 hour factory shifts’ style interview.
I happened in on the wrong place-
Stumbling in to Mitre Printing, greeted by Bill Bishop- an ex typesetter, it inspired me to connect with more.
As one of Bristol’s largest industries in the 1960s there were hundreds- put out of work by developments in the print technology. I would like to meet with them, interview, show that print is not dead (well not yet).
It would be an opportunity to develop networks, run workshops between all the studios in Bristol, the remember Bristol’s printing heritage and promote the education of this practice amongst younger and enthusiastic printmakers.
So I request this- pass on this message, if you’d like to be involved then get in contact. If you’d be interested in running workshops next summer, if its something you’d like to attend, if you know an ex compositor. Please let me know!
charlottebiszewski 