It's beyond beautiful in Vermont today. We got a couple of inches of powder overnight, and the sun's out to create shadows on stark white.
To me, these are Lettra Light days; when the natural world can be replicated with letterpress impressions on a pillowy white paper. These are also days to have some fun with the camera as Lettra Light enhances the influence of press on paper.
Facebook is arguably one of the most visible "faces" of paperless digital communication. So when they select paper to express holiday thanks to their advertisers, it's time to sit up and take notice.
And it's not any old paper - it's Crane's Lettra - that soft, pillowy paper that has advanced the art of letterpress printing.
I won't spoil the beauty of this piece nor comment further on what could be perceived as some form of irony. But I will say congratulations to the folks at Facebook, Oscar Printing Company in San Francisco, and to designer Ben Barry for a job well done on paper.
Well, maybe one quick look:
It's no secret that I love letterpress. There are so many wonderful pieces being created by incredibly talented people. And from what I gather, the art and process has been elevated by the introduction of Crane's Lettra papers.
Being a paper geek, the first time I got hold of a piece of Lettra, I knew this stuff was special. Beautifully textured and a "pillowy" structure that just plain invites the press to do its thing.
Back to the art and artisans. I ran across Studio on Fire recently, and this was my first exposure to their work.
They designed and letterpress printed this poster for the Sweet Hair poster show featuring 37 Minneapolis artists. All prints were hair-inspired, handmade and created just for this show. A portion of proceeds benefited Locks of Love.
The 18 x 26 poster is a single color printed on 220lb Crane Lettra Pearl White. The type intertwines with a .30 point stroke that flows throughout the poster, making a nice deep impression on the cotton stock. The quote is a Chinese proverb that reads “You cannot prevent the birds of sadness from passing over your head, but you can prevent their making a nest in your hair.”
I now make regular pilgrimages to Studio on Fire and their blog Beast Pieces to get my fix of eye candy.
Here's another favorite:
You owe it to yourself to spend a little time with these folks.
Today was just one of those days. Nothing going wrong, just working away at the normal stuff, sort of feeling sorry for myself because I had to be indoors on an outdoors kind of day here in Vermont.
As I walked past my photo "studio," that sunshine that I was bemoaning was reflecting just so off a piece of letterpressed paper. I tore open a box of samples from the field that I had been putting off for a few days, in hopes that there might be some beautifully-designed and beautifully printed letterpress work while the light was still good. What were the chances? As it turned out...pretty good.
So a day that was dragging along all of a sudden flew by as those five elements converged: Light, Camera, Design, Paper and Letterpress. Some day I hope to add a sixth element - talent - but that will have to wait.
Have a look.
Above are elements of a wedding invitation designed by Elizabeth Peters of Arzberger Buening Stationers in Charlotte, N.C. Arzberger also provided the letterpress printing on 179# Crane's Lettra Pearl White paper.
I received an e-mail recently from Geoffry Gertz at Sparked.biz in Brooklyn, passing along a letterpress card project with artwork by Igor Kopelnitsky.
Gorgeous stuff at first glance, with depth of meaning that brings your eye and mind back to the images seeking greater understanding.
Now, I have been told I’m not the brightest knife in the drawer, and this casual diagnosis of my intellectual prowess was once again proven correct as I pored over the images on the cards: I know this guy. I should know this guy. Who the heck is this guy?
Ding! Well, not actually Ding, but Google.
Igor Kopelnitsky is, of course, illustrator for the Op Ed Page of the New York Times. His whimsical style satirizes societal themes both political and global. In addition to the Times, his work has graced the pages of The Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, and Wall Street Journal, among others. Born in Kiev, he originally studied physics; but upon the publication of his first cartoon, Igor left the sciences for cartooning and illustration.
Geoffry said the art card series offers eight humorous original designs printed by Peter Fraderdeus of Exquisite Letterpress on Crane’s Lettra paper. “Each design is a unique and amusing commentary on issues ranging from energy independence to the evolution debate,” said Geoffry. Themes and titles include Play Date with the Devil, Bright Idea, Heavy Thoughts, Don’t be Shy, Balancing Act, Peace Out, Drill Baby Drill, and So Evolved.
Geoffry is the director of Sparked.biz, a new art and design collective, collaborating with artists and illustrators to infuse their unique concepts and visions into well-crafted art products. Geoffry’s work has spanned diverse design markets from international design such as Perry Ellis, Issey Miyake and JOOP!; to large-scale fast fashion for Limited Brands; and most recently, the celebrity influence as the Creative Director for Hillary Duff. His designs have been featured in numerous influential style magazines. He is also a design consultant in the fashion industry and an Adjunct Faculty member at the Fashion Institute of Technology.
Make sure you visit Geoffry’s beautiful Sparked.biz website here.
You’ll be glad you read this far. Geoffry has offered to give away four sets of Igor’s art notes to readers of The Crane Insider. To enter for a random drawing, send an e-mail to Geoffry at contest[at]sparked.biz. We’ll let you know who the lucky winners are on April 13.
Good Luck!
The next holiday season is a long ways away, but since the weather outside is frightful, I figured it would be OK to show you a really cool holiday card from last season.
I'm a sucker for all things Arts & Crafts, and this particular card comes from Aneita Fern, the exclusive home of fine Stickley furniture for the Dallas/Fort Worth area. In addition to the classic arts and crafts styles, they carry contemporary furnishings, a wide range of accessories, including the world-renowned Frank Lloyd Wright collection, and a variety of fabulous gifts.
Designed by Elizabeth Fenimore and printed by Mitchell Hill Print Solutions, this holiday card evokes memories of a vintage Vanity Fair or New Yorker magazine cover.
The card was printed on Crane's 110# Lettra paper with a Ryobi Duplicator press and Top Level ink. Foil treatments were added with a Kluge press and Nakai foil. The designer used Lettra in order to use the foil stamp and not have the back of the card be affected by the Kluge. The job was run “backwards,” in that the foil stamp was printed first, with the offset then registered to the foil.
Enjoy.
I was sent a package of samples from Austin Press in San Francisco the other day, and wanted to share with you the letterpress artistry of Kimberly Austin on Crane's Lettra paper.
Located in the historic San Francisco Shipyard, Kimberly creates beautifully crafted ephemera on her vintage presses. Inspired by a collection of rare books and alphabets, Austin Press offers a rich assortment of ready-to-write and custom tailored note cards.
Enjoy.
I love visiting my friend Dianne at Crane. There's always something interesting to chat about, and Dianne shares my enthusiasm for both history and design. Dianne works in Crane's Business Papers division, so she gets to see great stuff printed on Crane papers. And she is very kind to save things for me, especially since I've got this Friday Eye Candy thing to do every week.
As I note in my blog profile: I make pulp, I make paper and I marvel at what the creative spirit can accomplish with such humble materials. This is a great example.
