Wells Summer Book Arts Institute

This July, I had the honor of teaching a week-long intensive workshop on pressure printing at the Wells Summer Book Arts Institute. It was an intimate class, with only three students + me, the instructor, and four Vandercooks at our fingertips. (Plus three more in another room, had there been more students.) My students are all practicing artists, and were open to trying out all kinds of different things–it was truly an incredible time for all of us.

Because the class was so small we were able to really dig in and experiment with pressure printing. We started with the basics and moved to include color layering and the achievement of texture and depth through multiple passes through the press. Each student found an element to the process that really resonated with them, from using a hot glue gun to “draw” matrixes to experimenting with cutouts and paper thickness to create the appropriate amount of textures. And ultimately, taking the work and making books, paper quilts and other things.