ALAN QUALTROUGH . KISS & BITE LETTERPRESS STUDIO

LETTERPRESS: A CENTURIES-OLD CRAFT

Kiss & Bite letterpress workshops are held at our base in Ocean Studios, Plymouth, and introduce you to the craft of setting type by hand or reduction lino cutting.

Workshops cater for beginners as well as those with design experience. If you arrange a workshop you could typeset and print lines from a favourite poem, make a unique greetings card, print a lyric, or speak your mind with a political poster.

The centuries-old craft of typesetting and letterpress printing is a welcome antidote to the all-consuming digital world. The slow and haptic experience of handling type and mixing ink builds a different relationship to the use of language and publishing, offering a new connection to words and their power. The printed outcome is special too; create either an impression in the paper with extra force (the bite) or lightly touch the type against the paper (the kiss) to create a wonderful range of textures.

Workshops run with a maximum of two attendees to ensure you enjoy a fulfilling creative day. The cost per person is £55 for a one-day session including most materials, 11am-4.30pm. Upcoming available dates are most Friday, Saturday, and Sunday sessions throughout winter and spring. Email aqualtrough@gmail.com for further details and to book or use the form on the Contact Page.

Kiss & Bite reduction lino print workshops cater for beginners as well as those with design experience. You can source your own images or artwork or find something of interest to sketch in the historic Royal William Yard.

Reduction lino is a relief process in which the same block of lino is used to print all the colours of an image—often more than a dozen. After a drawing is transferred to a piece of lino, each colour is carved and printed in sequence, beginning with the lightest colour and ending with the darkest to produce an edition of prints. Each time a colour is printed, the corresponding section of the lino is removed, and the artist moves on to the next colour. Once the process has ended, the lino block cannot be used again. The results can be spectacular, creating beautiful lines and texture.  Check out the brilliant work of Scarlette Homeshaw, who taught me, to see what can be achieved.

Reduction lino workshops are held over two days with a maximum of two attendees. The cost per person is £110 for the two-day session including  most materials, 11am-4.30pm, available on Fridays, Saturdays or Sundays throughout 2020. Weekdays also available on request. To book or request more details email aqualtrough@gmail.com.