OUGD504: The Print Project - Letterpress

Today we were given an introduction to letterpress printing, where we experienced typesetting a number of letterforms and/or glyphs to create our own printed typographic image.  Nick brought in a selection of font sizes and styles, mostly wooden blocks though there were a few lead pieces as well.

When printing a phrase or word, the separate blocks need to be placed in reverse so that when the image is transferred to paper and its reflected image is printed, the printed type comes out the right way round.

After deciding on what I was going to print, the next steps involved positioning the type on the printing press and fixing in place with strong magnets to ensure the blocks didn't move when rolling the ink onto them and printing.  After rolling ink over the letterforms, I placed the paper I was printing on over the top, then a few sheets of newsprint on top of that to prevent any ink pushing through and to shorten the gap between the blocks and metal roller so the ink transferred properly.  I then pulled the the metal tube across the paper in one fast movement to make sure the ink was spread evenly.

The results below worked really well, each print becoming less dense with ink after each print. 

I also used this opportunity to test out one of the titles for a potential booklet; playing around with the spacing and position of each letterform.