Levi's Print Workshop Part 2

While I was creating the type poster detailed in the last entry about my Sunday afternoon at the Levi's free open print workshop on Valencia @ 17th here in San Francisco, I was able to have an illustration of mine made into a silk screen print: a two color version and a single color one.



The characters came from a mural that I did in Errol's room detailed in a previous blog entry. That mural unfortunately had to be painted over, so when this opportunity came up, I wanted to bring these guys back to life in another medium.

Also, I've been heavily inspired by the book "The Whimsical Works of David Weidman (and Also Some Serious Ones)" that I recently picked up at Green Apple Books, and I wanted to make some artwork based on his playful forms.
After making a list of phrases that would work best with the image, I chose one that Anila told me is a common quote used in the Jain community. Thought it fit just right!

The one sunny day this week and I'm indoors most of the day...but, hey, it was well worth it!


Since I had a two color max for the print, I submitted my artwork as two tranpsarencies, one for each color layer I wanted to use.
While doing the other project, Ed, this great, hard-working staff member over there at the workshop's silk-screen section, burned my transparencies onto the silk screen itself.


They were really booked with a bunch of folks doing t shirts, wedding programs, and other massive projects that day, so I couldn't try my hand at applying the paint. Ed was the only one who could do the printing.
A sheet of the printers paper I brought was placed on the decks, and Ed switched on a vacuum that would make the paper tight against the surface. He then ran a line of ink at the base of the screen and squeegee'd the ink over the artwork.


After an hour and some change, I was able to get the second color applied on top of the last color.
Easier for me to write about this than it was for Ed to work that big squeegee!
As a tip for his efforts, I made sure to leave him some cold bottles of PBR before I left with my finished prints.


While waiting the layers to dry, I took advantage of the great print & font books they had set up in the space. In a cozy sofa section of the workshop, folks were drawing and busy with prepping their artwork to use in the other presses they had available.


The best part of hanging out in the space was seeing the faces of random people excited in working on their own projects with type blocks or hand-cranking these massive printers.
Watching people's eyes light up like this was contagious...I'd rather get infected by the unbridled enthusiasm of strangers than by bird flu any day, folks!

Here again is a link to more info about the free workshops: http://workshops.levi.com/visit/

Folks in New York & Chicago, watch out for the Levi's workshops coming your way!

Levi's Print Workshop Part 1

Yesterday I took advantage of the free open workshop that Levi's has temporarily set up on Valencia @ 17th here in San Francisco.
Had a poster ready to get silk-screened, but while waiting for my turn, I put together a little poster from their collection of wood type.
Saw this quote in a scene in "Easter Parade," a 50's musical with Fred Astaire. A needlepoint artwork of this phrase hangs framed above a piano where Judy Garlands sings a tune.
After noticing this small sign as a background element in that film, I always wanted to reproduce it in a unique way.

After picking through their collection of type, I assembled the phrase within a "chaser" which is a metal frame that contains the type blocks.


Like a cross between Jenga and a jig-saw puzzle, I had to squeeze in wood blocks and small pieces of lead in between the letters & words to keep them tight within the chaser.
After about a half hour, with the tireless help of a great volunteer, I was able to get my blocks nice & tight within that metal frame, so that if you lifted the whole thing up, not one bit would fall out.


Here's the cool, ol' letter press that I used to make the print.
They inked up that big disk at the top & attached the chase sideways on the printer's side.
This ain't no Canon laser jet scanner/printer combo, I tell ya!


As part of lowering the lever, these big rollers collect ink from that big disk & then ink the type blocks. At the final push of the lever, the chase is pressed against the paper and that's what actually makes your print...cool, aint it?


Left out to dry for an hour or two, hoping that nobody in that huge crowd that's crammed in the workshop at that time absent-mindedly sets their Four Barrel latte on one of the prints!


Kinda blushed when one of the head print guys complimented my work & took a copy for their workshop.

I made it on the wall, folks!

Stop by and have a look before the end of August 'coz that's when Levi's closes shop and moves on to another temporary workshop in NYC. Though next time they're not doing print but photography...and in Chicago they're doing music workshops.
Here's a link to some info: http://workshops.levi.com/visit/

Garage sale flier!

Every little thing you make should have a little design thrown in...even a flier I made for our garage sale tomorrow!