Letterpress at the Mancos Common Press

My summer fun has pretty much been revolving around the Mancos Common Press, that great 1900’s newspaper shop historically restored as an educational print studio and run by an inspired group of community members. In May I had a fantastic time there as artist in residence with my friend and collaborator Jamie Karolich. And lately I’ve been at the Press a day a week, working with the equipment and exploring creative ways to work with letterpress.

It’s a whole new world of printmaking for me but tied to an historic craft of moveable type printing that originated with Johannes Gutenberg in the 15th century. The equipment in Mancos dates to the late 1800’s and was used to print the Mancos Times up until 1970. Today the letterpress world is a vibrant subculture of artists and printing geeks who are making beautiful work on old presses, using historic wood and lead type combined with modern innovations that keep the craft exciting and relevant.

I feel that I’ve happened onto something exceptional with the Mancos Common Press. It’s such a unique resource here where we don’t have a lot of art-related facilities or opportunities. It has community connections and history, and tools and resources to learn and explore a creative craft. I’m hooked and excited to find ways to integrate letterpress into the creative work I’m already doing. And I’m also continuing to look for ways to share what the Press has to offer.