An entry · Work · Life
Letterpress Printer
Ink, metal, and pressure. A page you can feel with your fingertips, made by a person.
From curious to committed
Your first steps.
A first visit can be enough. It can also be the beginning.
Meet the craft
Set a line of type and print your own cards in an afternoon.
Explore experiences →Give it another afternoon
Notice what you want to come back to. Ask the teacher what regular practice would look like, and what support you would need.
Keep a note for next time →See the working day
Composition, lockup, and running a press, taught hands-on.
Explore ways into the work →These are starting points. A workshop is not a professional qualification. Entry requirements and recognised training depend on the work and the country.
Before you walk in
A few things worth asking the host before you book.
- Is this session suitable for someone who has never tried it?
- What should I bring, wear or prepare?
- What is included, and are there any extra costs?
- Can you accommodate my access needs?
- What could I try next if I enjoy it?
Teach this craft? Share what beginners ask you →
Showing Montreal, and 24 elsewhere are hidden
Show every city →Work it
Do the work.
Jobs, apprenticeships, and training that put a person in the room.
Ways in
- Course
Learn at a print shop or studio
Composition, lockup, and running a press, taught hands-on.
- Route in
Book arts and printing program
Formal training where the old presses still run.
- Route in
Rent press time
Once trained, studios rent the presses by the hour.
Ways in, gathered by hand.
Add yours to the atlasLive it
Live the hour.
Experiences, classes, and places where the presence is the whole point.
Ways in
- Workshop
Letterpress workshop
Set a line of type and print your own cards in an afternoon.
- Open day
Print-shop open day
Watch the presses run and smell the ink; many studios open their doors.
Ways in, gathered by hand.
Add yours to the atlasWhy the human is the point
Print went instant and weightless, and a few people kept the slow, heavy, beautiful way alive. The letterpress printer sets type by hand, letter by backward letter, inks it, and presses it into paper hard enough to leave a bite you can feel. Every sheet is a small physical event. It is the opposite of a file: limited, tactile, and made by a person who chose each character. Some words deserve to be pressed into the page, not just displayed on it.
Kept nearby
