NBLA Printers Represented in North Coast Galleries

May 2017: This month, printed works from many of the artists who work at the Iota printshop are featured in two gallery shows on the North Coast.

One is at Healdsburg Center for the Arts, called Power of Printmaking, which runs until July 16. After the election of Trumpf, there was an outburst of poster-making at the shop, and we entered ten of them on picket sticks as an installation. They are also on sale at the gallery, with benefits going to the NBLA.

130 Plaza St Healdsburg, CA

---

The Mendocino show at the Oddfellows Hall is organized by Flockworks, and is called “Art of Letter, Word & Book”. It runs until May 29th and is a great assembly of calligraphic art, letterpress, and various other printmaking and book arts work.

 Odd Fellows Hall 45101 Ukiah Street Mendocino, CA

Printing with SRJC Students

North Bay Letterpress Arts recently hosted Santa Rosa Junior College graphic design students and helped them to print their own designs from photopolymer plates. While many projects at NBLA involve hand-laid lead or wood type, the process showed students how the printing method evolved over time, and how they could incorporate their graphic design skills to make custom prints by hand. The students learned how to print on the Vandercook SP-15:

Designs were printed 4-up...

...and trimmed down into individual cards to take home.

It is one of the goals of NBLA to provide printing experiences to different schools in the region. If you are a teacher interested in bringing your students into the printshop in Sebastopol, feel free to contact us!

Save

Solar Printing at NBLA

On March 25, Jami Taback taught a Solar Plate Printing workshop that created some beautiful work in the printshop. Solar plate printing is a simple, safe, and fast approach to traditional etching. It does not require the use of grounds, acids or solvents. Solar plate printmaking is used by artists, printmakers, and photographers all over the world.

Solar plates are exposed with UV light and developed with ordinary tap water.

Students watch as Jami  washes exposed plate material to reveal their solar printing plates.

Participants were introduced to the exposing, developing and printing of solar plates. Direct drawing, photographic and digital approaches to creating images was taught. Inking, wiping and paper preparation was also be demonstrated. At the conclusion of the workshop, participants had a clear understanding of the solar plate process and were able to take their very own prints home!

Create your own prints in one of our upcoming workshops!

Save

Save

We must insist.

At least once a week since the election someone in the shop is working on a poster or card in protest of the rain of Trumpery.  A couple of recent ones composed and printed on the venerable  Ostrander hand press.  Extra Heavy.          

When A Book Becomes An Artist Book

A short recap from a recent lecture at NBLA by Brooke Holve:  

When a book becomes an artist book, a transformation occurs in the process of making from its conventional form to another — a process than can be mysterious. What is the convention? The book?

Artists have challenged common assumptions about the nature of the book and its conventional form through the making of artist books. Some approaches to making artist books are:

Please join us for more upcoming NBLA events at the print shop in Sebastopol...