Eye Magazine

Much of the work Anthony Burrill presented (see ‘Over the rainbow’ in Eye 75) focused on a single, simple message. His works become almost like monuments to the printed word, whose simplicity forces us to consider not only the message but also the physicality of language itself – the space that it occupies. The imperfections of woodblock printing are cultivated and celebrated, giving a rough edge to language – they reveal emotion like a faltering voice.

There was a distinct sense that the audience was being asked to consider the work shown in the context of ‘here and now’, even when presented with work from the past – the story of one of the last great ‘jobbing’ letterpress printers, Desmond Jeffery, (see ‘Early adopter’ on the Eye blog) was retold by designer Jono Lewarne and curator Charlotte Hetherington. These artefacts, rather than becoming rarefied, were discussed in relation to what they were being used to say, and why, questioning what their value might be for designers today.

The Catalan collective L’Automàtica delivered a moving presentation that seemed to sum up a situation that could become close to any of us, and for its honesty was perhaps the most captivating of the day. We learned how the economic situation in Spain has meant that designers and artists have to be resourceful and creative with what they have left. By reviving an out-of-business printshop and keeping the printer on to teach them, the group of young artists and designers have been using the press to print messages of social and political activism.

Here, an outdated method of technology has become what it once was: at the heart of the distribution of ideas to bring about change. In a time when there is an apparent loss of confidence in the messages of corporations and governments – letterpress seems to speak in a voice that we can trust.

Further purposes for letterpress were presented; ‘6x6’ (see forthcoming article by Alex Cameron) – a collaborative project supported by the University of Brighton and the London College of Communication – has connected six colleges through the use of letterpress as tangible way for students to learn about typography through making. Dylan Kendle of Tomato showed us how he has incorporated letterpress prints into digital animations and film, and how ‘playing’ with process has informed his experiments with digital media.

Peter Nencini’s presentation also illustrated how the formal aspects of letterpress can inspire ways of working with other media. How notions such as modularity, constraint, grids, systems and the relationship of ‘tool’ to ‘form’ can influence ways of approaching design, whether the outcome be a typeface or a fabric pattern.

Much of the power of what we saw and heard was due to the variety of speakers selected. Dixon and Gridneff selected speakers most of whom work outside the traditional letterpress community. We learned that it is often those without formal training in traditional letterpress techniques who are offering new and inspiring ways to use it.

What was apparent in all the speakers was a desire to make work that has something to say – whether through the content of the message or the processes by which that message is communicated.

Eye is the world’s most beautiful and collectable graphic design journal, published quarterly for professional designers, students and anyone interested in critical, informed writing about graphic design and visual culture. It is available from all good design bookshops and online at the Eye shop, where you can buy subscriptions, back issues and single copies of the latest issue. See Eye 84 at Eye before You Buy on Vimeo.