Category: Printing

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Printing

MCBA’s in-person and virtual workshops in book arts are designed for adults looking to spark their creativity and professionals aiming to hone their practice. Our in-studio workshops offer hands-on experiences with specialized equipment and small class sizes, and often include a physical takeaway like a book, poster, or handmade paper. Virtual workshops feature processes that require easy-to-source materials and the opportunity to connect with artists from near and far. Our teaching artists—who bring a wide range of experience and education—thoughtfully balance lecture, demonstration, work time, and group sharing.

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Hand-Carved Stamps for Winter Cards

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with Hope Amico
Tuesday, December 10; 5–8pm CT

Whatever you celebrate, a handmade card is a treasure! Carving your own stamps means you can make a beautiful variety of designs for a special “hello” on any occasion. In this virtual workshop, learn the basics of carving stamps safely and create both a large central design and modular accent images. Then, use these stamps to create mailable cards for any occasion. Instruction will cover strategies for using patterns and other techniques to make the most of your supplies. Consider registering yourself and a friend or family member and make festive notes together!
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Letterpress 1: Printing Basics (December)

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with Erin Maurelli
Saturday, December 14; 10am–4pm CT

This in-person letterpress workshop offers an introduction to MCBA’s print studio—including key equipment, tools, and terminology—in addition to an opportunity to experience the satisfaction of printing a message through the hands-on process of letterpress printing. Get to know MCBA’s wood type collection and learn beginning typesetting with wood type. Learn the basics of working with a flatbed cylinder press, including operation, safety, and care while building skills using the equipment with support from a teaching artist. In pairs, choose a text (three to five words) and print your own small edition of posters on a Vandercook press. 

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Autobiographical Comics

with Camilo Aguirre
Saturdays: January 11, 18, 25; 9:30–11am CT

As part of his art practice, Camilo Aguirre explores relationships between personal anecdotes and historical narratives to highlight the participation of every person in the weaving of the social fabric. Learn strategies and formats for autobiographical comics that feature your experience through written memoir and drawings. Each session will feature a topic—language of comics, memoir comics references, and script structure and approaches—and will begin with a presentation and examples followed by exercises designed to support participants in building their skills to write their own autobiographical comics. Sessions two and three will begin with friendly group conversation about works-in-progress. Demonstrations will be drawn digitally but participants are welcome to draw in any format they choose, from digital drawing on a tablet to pen/pencil on paper. This workshop is designed for those who would like instruction and guided practice in illustration and drawing. Intermediate-level illustrators are welcome as well.

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Letterpress 1: Printing Basics (January)

with Bethany Rahn
Saturday, January 11; 10am–4pm CT

This in-person letterpress workshop offers an introduction to MCBA’s print studio—including key equipment, tools, and terminology—in addition to an opportunity to experience the satisfaction of printing a message through the hands-on process of letterpress printing. Get to know MCBA’s wood type collection and learn beginning typesetting with wood type. Learn the basics of working with a flatbed cylinder press, including operation, safety, and care while building skills using the equipment with support from a teaching artist. In pairs, choose a text (three to five words) and print your own small edition of posters on a Vandercook press. 

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Digital File Preparation for Screen Printing

with Michelle Lee Lagerroos
Wednesdays: January 15, 22, 29; 7–9pm CT

Photoshop is the perfect way to convert your photographs to screen-printable positives and to preview your layers before ink hits the screen! This virtual workshop is a guide to using Photoshop for screen printing, including converting grayscale images to halftones, using threshold filters for easy posterization, and other tips and tricks. Participants will not be screen printing in this workshop, but they will have the opportunity to turn photographs into positives, which can later be screen printed in another workshop or independently (depending on the prior experience of each individual). Participants must have a general knowledge of screen printing as well as access to and familiarity with using Adobe Photoshop independently.

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Book Arts Project Planning

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with Monica Edwards Larson
Thursdays: January 16, 23, 30, February 6; 6–9pm CT

Do you have an idea for a book arts project, but you aren’t sure where to start? Learn practical skills to guide you in taking actionable steps to move your project forward confidently, in this in-person workshop. With guidance, you will establish the scope and concept of your project; explore specifications—such as materials and techniques; learn strategies for project planning, including developing a project timeline, creating a mock-up, and estimating a budget. Projects may include: a portfolio of prints, artist’s books, installations, or any other project related to print, paper, book. Each session will include demos, friendly critique, group discussion, and troubleshooting.

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Introduction to Screen Printing: January

with Ben Etten
Saturday, January 18; 10am–4pm and Sunday, January 19; 10am–1pm CT

Get familiar with MCBA’s screen printing studio and practice the photo emulsion process, from positive creation and screen coating to exposure and reclaiming. Each participant will complete an edition of multi-layered screen prints and come away from the workshop with the confidence to work independently at MCBA’s Screen Print Labs.

Create your design positives using hand-drawn artwork and/or cut paper stencils. Bring your sketches and ideas to the workshop. Final designs should fit on a letter-sized sheet of paper (maximum width 8.5 inches) and may include up to two colors.

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Letterpress 2: Setting Type (January)

with Bethany Rahn
Saturday, January 18; 10am–4pm CT

This in-person letterpress workshop focuses on setting metal type and building familiarity with printing on the Vandercook press. Learn how to navigate MCBA’s type collection, how type is stored and organized, and how to arrange it in a composing stick for setting a text. Training will be provided on line justification, kerning (space between letters and words), and methods for holding type together (or “locking up” a form) for printing. Procedures for maintaining a community type collection and print studio will also be covered, in addition to a review of basic press operation, care, and safety. This workshop is an excellent refresher and opportunity to get reacquainted with MCBA’s presses and print studio.

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Letterpress 3: Two-Color Prints (January)

with Bethany Rahn
Saturday, January 25; 10am–4pm CT

Letterpress 3: Two-Color Prints focuses on printing multiple layers and building printers’ confidence using Vandercook presses through practice. Printing more than one layer involves printing the same piece of paper multiple times with unique forms (raised type or image) and ink colors for each layer. Careful registration to make each layer align as designed requires planning and troubleshooting. 

In this in-person workshop, learn how to choose colors and mix ink as well as techniques for adjusting color on the press to create unique effects. Participants will also be introduced to MCBA’s larger Vandercooks, the 219 and Uni 3, which have the capacity to print larger forms and can be more comfortable for taller printers. Procedures for maintaining a community print studio will be reviewed in addition to basic press operation, care, and safety.

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Screen Print Cards: January

with Michelle Lee Lagerroos and Kirsten Olson
Saturday, January 25; 1–4pm CT

Get familiar with MCBA’s screen printing studio and print your unique design on a set of cards! Learn the basics of screen printing using hand-drawn artwork, cut-paper stencils, and darkroom techniques. Instruction will cover design, screen exposure, ink, and printing on paper. Cards may be a call for action, kind words for a loved one, or anything else you think up! Bring your sketches and ideas to the workshop. Each participant will come away with ten cards approximately 4.25 x 5.5 inches in size.

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