Prerequisite: Letterpress 1
Students are asked to bring a small 3x3 carved relief block.
We’ll begin by setting in metal type a paragraph of text/poem in Latin, to be used in common by all. We’ll look at examples in the history of illustrated manuscripts and books. We’ll look at the interplay of text and image over the centuries and consider the aesthetics and trends in page design.
The text will then be printed, in black ink. To these sheets each person will print their own image in an available color of their choice. Consideration should be made from what has been learned earlier about the relationship of text and image.
We’ll end with talking about the resulting prints and how they relate to principles of page design.
You’ll leave with a portfolio of prints by all the students and with things to think about in your art practice.
Class runs 11am - 4pm with a 20 minute break for lunch.
Instructor: Brian Allen
After a 40-year career working with letterforms and typography, 20 as a digital font engineer, 10 with a solo commercial letterpress print shop in Raleigh/Durham, NC, Brian has retired to Philadelphia to luxuriate in the arts, crafts, and culture here. He particularly enjoys the warmth and hospitality of the citizens. It affords ample opportunity to activate his sardonic sense of humor.
