Artistry in Print

Since the 15th century, the letterpress has been used to produce printed materials from chapter books to movie posters. Although now overshadowed by more time-efficient methods, the process of selecting type, finding the perfect paper and experiencing the finished project remains immensely rewarding, says Karen Zimmermann, associate director and professor at the University of Arizona School of Art.

“Many people find it meditative,” says Zimmermann, as a Vandercook press hums in the background, delicately transferring a light blue coat of ink to paper. The letterpress is a form of relief printing, where the desired text or image is raised and transfers ink to paper when printed. At the Book Art and Letterpress Lab, students are using this technology to express themselves and tell stories artistically.

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“It’s a combination of teaching people about letterpress technology and using the book as a creative medium,” Zimmermann explains. “We’re encompassing a space where people can create projects that are talking about issues that they are researching, passionate about and want to share with others.”  

The lab specializes in book arts, in which students combine traditional methods like letterpress and bookbinding with new technologies like RISO printing, which is a combination of photocopying and stencil duplication processes, as well as digital and laser engraving. Students have used lab resources to create community zines, which are small booklets focusing on local issues, personal stories or niche interests.

Sela Margalit, a junior majoring in studio art, is taking the course “Letterpress and the Multiple.” For her final project, she wanted to share her love of music.

While digging through the many drawers of type, Margalit discovered Turista Gorda NF, a font she recognized from singer Lana Del Rey’s 2023 album “Did You Know That There’s a Tunnel Under Ocean Blvd.” The album’s cover pays homage to the cover of the soundtrack to the 1966 Natalie Wood movie “This Property is Condemned.”

“I really liked the union of vintage and modern styles. I use engravings, which are basically stuff that was donated from old newspapers, advertisements and photographs,” Margalit says. “I love bringing old lost things to new art, because I’m basically re-exposing people to cool ideas.”  

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Visitors to the lab will find more than just art students at work. Open to the university community, the lab also attracts graduate students from the creative writing program who collaborate to print poems and stories. Zimmermann recalls an honors student from the nutritional sciences department who created a multilayer print depicting the digestive tract for her studies.

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“I very much enjoyed the community that existed in the lab,” says John Gialanella ’12, who has a master’s in fine arts from the U of A. “It was always exciting to share that space with so many people, all coming to the book arts and letterpress studio for very similar and very different reasons.”  

Gialanella has put what he learned in the lab to good use as an assistant professor of print production in Western Washington University’s design department.

“For many of us, we grew up hitting Command-P on the keyboard, and that was the extent of our printing experience. Before the computer, someone had to hand-set each and every letter, period and space that needed to be printed. A press operator had to keep a machine running, inked and fed with paper,” Gialanella says.

“Understanding the amount of craft, time and energy needed to do something that today is so trivial was an awesome experience for me.” 

‘It’s a combination of teaching people about letterpress technology and using the book as a creative medium. ... We’re encompassing a space where people can create pro-jects that are talking about issues that they are researching, passionate about and want to share with others.’