Tag Archives: letterpress print shop

Printing Is Alive At Press 65

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When you tour the sunny and smooth streets of Oakland, California, one spot in particular pops out at you in the fresh and thriving neighborhood: the hidden gem that is Press 65. Tucked away in the impeccably shabby-chic home of the husband-and-wife team, Paola Hurtado, the letterpress printing maven of the creative husband-and-wife duo, sat down with us to blur the lines between design and the art of letterpress.

Paola and Marlon Hurtado of Press 65.

IMPRESSIVE PRINTS I was born in Curitiba, Parana, in the south of Brazil. I moved to the States with my family when I was seven and have lived in various parts of California since. While in high school, I discovered my passion for art; and during my senior year I decided that if I passed the AP Studio Art Portfolio Review, I would take it as a sign that I should apply to art school.

With a passing score, I applied to the Academy of Art University in San Francisco and began studying Fine Art. In 2010 I married a painter/photographer, Marlon of MH6 Photography, and in 2011 we founded Press 65, a husband-and-wife custom design and letterpress studio.

Expertly printed letterpress piece from Press 65.

ARTISTIC CALLING When I started at AAU, I declared Fine Art Painting as my major, assuming this was the logical course for me. However, during my first painting class, the instructor constantly told me I was “rendering” instead of “painting”! This was a huge contrast with my Intro to Printmaking class, during which I found my artistic calling. Once I changed my Fine Art emphasis from Painting to Printmaking, I was introduced to letterpress by Megan Adie of Aviary Press. Megan was my first and only letterpress instructor, as I took her class 4 times!

Gorgeous letterpress wedding piece from Press 65.

CALIFORNIA CREATIVE Six months ago, Marlon and I moved out of San Francisco and into great Hoover/Foster neighborhood of Oakland, California, where we now run Press 65 out of our bright, shabby chic home. In the Press 65 space you’ll find what inspires us and what makes us smile: vintage books, mini succulents, Brazilian instruments, a His Master’s Voice gramophone, and our two adorable cats, Cezanne and Michelle Pfeiffer.

PRINTING MENTORS Megan Adie of Aviary Press will always hold the role of being the first person to teach me the art of letterpress printing. Currently, however, I look to the lovely Macy Chadwick of In Cahoots Press for inspiration, motivation, and mentoring. With a beautiful personality, as well as gorgeous letterpress and artist’s books that speak to my inner person, Macy plays a part in my drive to continue printing. I admire Macy more than she knows.

DESIGNED FOR PRINT For my prints and artist’s books, I design in the sense that I create compositions and book structures. However, I often tell people that I am an artist, not a graphic designer, because for me there is a clear distinction between art and design. With the bulk of Press 65’s business being wedding invitations, though, I am forced to blur the lines a bit and play the part of co-designer, along with my husband. At the end of the day, though, printing – with its complexities, difficulties, and ultimate beauty – will always be my favorite part of the job.

Press 65's mascot cat, Michelle Pfeiffer, and printed piece.

THE CREATIVE PROCESS In my personal work, design is a very introspective, quiet process that mirrors my introverted personality. I allow concept to inspire form. In Press 65’s commercial work, where Marlon and I share the role of designer, form often comes first, because that’s the way Marlon’s mind works. He is frequently very taken by a grandiose idea, as his imagination holds no bounds; and I tend to come in at a later stage to bring the concept and design back down to earth. It’s really a perfect design duo situation: he has the imagination to think up the big picture and I have the attention to detail to perfect it.

Elegant printed letterpress postcard from Press 65.

FULL TIME FUN Yes and no. I print full-time because I am lucky enough to print part-time for my mentor, Macy Chadwick, while Press 65 is currently run as a side business.

PRINTING FEATS I am incredibly proud to have had the opportunity to show my work in printmaking and book arts at various exhibits, both in the States and internationally. I remember my first purchase prize (into the University of Florida Book Arts Collection) as if it were yesterday; and most recently, I am proud and grateful to have had two of my letterpress artist’s books exhibited during the SGCI 2014 Conference. It is also an honor to have designed and printed wedding invitations for my little sister who is getting married this month.

Printing light grey on a Vandercook at Press 65.

PRESS HISTORY I learned to letterpress print on a Vandercook No. 4, and for that reason Vandercook cylinder presses will always be my equipment of choice. In the past couple years, I have grown more accustomed to the Vandercook Universal 1 than to the Vandercook No. 4, as I appreciate one less metal roller, as well as the efficiency of switching from Trip to Print with a simple tap on the gripper pedal. I’m happy to be on my way to acquiring a Hohner Model D platen.

Tools of the printing trade at Press 65.

BOXCAR’S ROLE Since the start of my letterpress career, Boxcar has been a go-to resource for letterpress. Boxcar has everything a letterpress studio could need; and most recently, Letterpress Commons has been added to the mix as a wonderful way to connect printers all around the country.

SHOP TIPS Always “measure twice, cut once.” Letterpress can be tricky business so it’s important to take your time. I’ve found that sometimes, if something strange is happening on the press and I’ve used all my problem-solving juices in vain, it works perfectly the next morning. So don’t be afraid to step away for a bit and come back to a project later. Also, make sure that you love your space: surround yourself with things that inspire you, and always have your favorite music on. Being in an enjoyable printing space allows you to fully delight in the letterpress process.

WHAT’S NEXT We have lots of exciting little plans for the coming year. One that we’re happy to share is a collaboration between Marlon and me. While we run Press 65 together, we have never joined our personal art forces before. We’re thrilled to start a project involving Marlon’s photography and my letterpress.

Big round of thanks out to Paola & Marlon of Press 65 for letting us take a look around!

Absoloot-ly In Love With Letterpress

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Plunked down in the vibrant heart of the entrancing Hungarian capital of Budapest (and a easy stroll from the Danube River) sits the thrum and hum of the Absoloot printshop. The sunny, spacious shop houses laughter, good cheer and a heaping dose of the ever-alluring smell of ink and paper. Andrea Hermann, one of Absoloot‘s founders, shares with us stories about the true worth of a good night’s sleep and the irresistible appeal of paper & design.

Judit, Andrea Hermann, Juci & Reni of Absoloot in their bright letterpress print shop.
(from left to right: Judit, Andrea Hermann, Juci & Reni)   

PRINTING HERITAGE We are two gals, Judit & Andrea, who live in Budapest, the capital city of Hungary.  We love paper, we love design and in 2011 we thought about starting our own business involving paper & design. That’s how Absoloot was born. We wanted to work with talented young artists, so we emailed and invited them to participate in our business. They receive a percentage of our sales, so you are an investor in their future with each purchase.

Dazzling letterpress work printed by Absoloot printshop.

IN THE BEGINNING We believe in everyday luxury that you can feel. We bought an Adana table press for our first range of notebooks, but then we found out it would be too small for our ideas. Then we got to know some letterpress printers over here – there are only a handful. One of them is an avid collector of these machines and he sold us a more than 100 years old Joseph Anger und Söhne platen press. We had to renew her a bit and still need newer rollers, but it’s awesome!

Clever notebook printed by Absoloot printshop.

HUNGARY FOR LETTERPRESS We have a nice studio with an industrial feel to it. It’s more like an office where we work on computers, but of course our printing presses have their own corner (we do everything ourselves, unless the job requires different machines or higher volumes) and this is where we hold workshops or exhibitions, since it’s quite spacious, more than 100 square-meters. We love to work for others, to create a nice design and fulfill customer orders, but the focus is on the products of our own brand.

Clean spacious press floor of Absoloot letterpress printshop.

DESIGNED FOR PRINT We are working with a bunch of young, talented designers and illustrators from Hungary and Europe, so we can always help out a customer with the design. We send out the project to our friends and anyone who’s interested sends us a price and some references and the customer can choose from them. It’s a good opportunity because you have multiple choices.

FULL TIME FUN Yes, but we do a lot of other things, too… Organizing workshops, exhibitions, designing our products, going to design markets and so on.

PRINTING FEATS We haven’t really advertised ourselves, yet we’ve got very good reviews from our customers and thanks to this word-of-mouth, inquiries are coming in from all over the world! Our products are starting to gain international recognition, so we’re actually looking for an investor to work on expanding our business.

Letterpress press gear details.

SHOP TIPS Well, we’re beginners, but if there’s one thing we’ve learned: if you’ve been trying to set up the press for hours in vain, that means you’re tired and you should stop trying and get back to it after a good night’s sleep.

Detail shot of the wall at Absoloot printshop.

WHAT’S NEXT Workshops and a series of exhibitions, finding an investor, expanding our brand worldwide, hiring new colleagues and interns and getting new machines for the print shop.

Big round of thanks out to Andrea, Judit, Juci, & Reni for letting us get the skinny on the fine presswork of Absoloot!

Visitors!

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We were thrilled recently to have a visit from members of the Syracuse University Printmaking Department and Amze Emmons, one of the editors and co-founders of the website Printeresting, “the thinking person’s favorite resource for interesting print miscellany.” Check out this site to twist your mind on different print projects, events, exhibitions, and much more.
Come visit us at Boxcar Press

Up close with a Finger print shop 11-14

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This is part of a glue machine called a finger since it picks the glued piece away from the rollers. After a good while of the finger being used as many sheets are duplexed one after the other, droplets of paste tend to form and create a gnarly look.

Letterpress printing in action

Over the Moon for Luna Letterpress

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Letterpress has chosen to follow Carrie Durand of Luna Letterpress. From a chance meeting when taking courses while working towards her BFA to a remarkable internship at Sesame Letterpress followed up by a very lucky bid for a Chandler & Price from a friend. Now both a freelance graphic designer and printer, Carrie ponders over beauty of hand lettering and expanding her stationery line. We caught up with her to see where the journey has taken her.

Carrie Durand of Luna Letterpress shows off her Chandler & Price and letterpress cards.

PRINTER-DESIGNER EXTRAORDINAIRE My name is Carrie Durand and I am currently located in Brooklyn, where I live with my boyfriend and my cat. I graduated with a BFA in graphic design from SVA in 2010. I currently work as a full time graphic designer in Manhattan.

LOVE AT FIRST SIGHT I first took a letterpress class with Dikko Faust the second semester of my senior year at SVA. I have always loved antiques and was newly inspired to work heavily with typography. Letterpress is essentially a marriage of those two things, so it seemed like a fun and interesting class to take. Plus, I have always enjoyed working with my hands. Little did I know how much I would grow to love it. I knew I had found my niche.

Beautiful view from Luna Letterpress.

After I graduated, I sent a ton of emails to local studios and shops trying to get some more experience under my belt. I knew I had a lot to learn still and I was eager to gain more knowledge. I finally got a response from Breck Hostetter at Sesame Letterpress and I landed an internship at their studio in Brooklyn. I worked with them once a week for a little over a year. When I first began it was a lot of organizing & stuffing envelope liners but over time I got to print jobs and mix inks and by the end of my internship I was getting paid to design for them on a freelance basis. I loved my time there and I owe a lot of my knowledge about printing and about the business aspect of this field to them.

After leaving Sesame, I had no access to a press so I spent my free time focusing on my lettering. About a year later, my friend Roisin Reilly (an artist and interior painter, who I worked with during my internship at Sesame) randomly bid on a Chandler & Price press on ebay and won. She didn’t know a lot about letterpress but she heard me talk about it every day at work and I think it interested her.

Carrie Durand's well-loved Chandler & Price letterpress printing press.

I don’t think she thought she would actually win the bid on the press but she did and it changed everything for me. She had it installed in the basement of her house (which happens to be a historical landmark in Haverstraw, NY) and I started going upstate to print. My first job was Rosie’s wedding invitations! Luna Press was officially born.

Inking up on Carrie Durand's printing press and beautiful letterpress cards.

PRINTING MENTORS My senior year at SVA, my portfolio instructor was Louise Fili. She was the one who originally opened my eyes to letterpress. Louise is a big supporter of all things beautifully made and she is the person who has inspired me the most in terms of design and production. She showed me the beauty of lettering by hand and the loveliness of paper and print.

Carrie Durand's letterpress cards display expert hand lettering.

PRINTING FEATS Since I work full time as a designer, I work on freelance and personal projects in the evenings and print on the weekends. I’m hoping to eventually transition to make printing my full time job. My biggest project is a line of silly stationery. I like for all of my personal projects to be beautiful but also have a sense of humor. It makes the process all the more fun for me if I can make people laugh or smile when they see my work. I’ve been selling my cards on Etsy as well as some local craft fairs and have been getting great responses so far!

BOXCAR’S ROLE Boxcar has been so helpful to me since the beginning. I was first introduced to them through Sesame Letterpress and I’ve relied on their amazing turn around and customer service ever since. They have been so helpful to me and have answered any questions or concerns I’ve had since day one. I couldn’t have come this far without them!    Carrie Durand's letterpress cards display sass and fun.

SHOP TIPS The best tip I could give to new printers is, trial and error will be your best teachers. It helps to have a great initial training by people who know what they’re doing, but beyond that, read a ton of books and just keep working and eventually you’ll perfect the process. I have come such a long way from where I started from and I still have a ways to go, but the learning process has been so fun every step of the way.

WHAT’S NEXT As for what’s next for me, I plan on expanding my freelance work as well as my stationery line. I have plans to sell at Brooklyn Flea this winter, which is an amazing place to be around other local creatives and network. A personal goal for 2014 to see my cards sold in local stationery stores and boutique shops. Good things come to those who work!

A huge round of thanks out to Carrie of Luna Letterpress for letting us get the full scoop!