Cylinder Core 1-4 :: 4-Day Intensive

 Registration is closed for this event

May 9th, 2016 9:30 AM

  • Instructor: Mary Laird
  • Workshop Extra: Core Curriculum, Certificate Program
  • Workshop Type: Printing
  • Workshop Status: Closed
  • Workshop Start: May 9th, 2016 9:30 AM
  • Workshop End: May 12th, 2016 5:30 PM
  • Sessions: 4

Cylinder Core Certificate Program

The handfed cylinder proof press, also known as the Vandercook press, has a special place in both print history and in teaching book arts. Immediate and accessible, yet nuanced and specific, it is the press that introduced many of us to letterpress. The four class Cylinder Core Certificate Program allows students to move quickly through the press basics while also addressing relief printing in general. Students who finish the four core classes are qualified to rent press time as well as move on to more advanced classes and techniques. Click here to learn more about the Core Certification Program and find out how you receive a discount.


Cylinder Core 1 :: Experience Letterpress!

Dig in to the tradition and history of letterpress printing and get your hands dirty. Learn about the process and practice of setting type, mixing inks and pulling impressions. In this class you will learn how to print your own cards! 

Cylinder Core 2 :: Power of the Broadside

Build your letterpress skills: learn advanced justification, typesetting, and composition. Put it all together to print a broadside of your own design.

Cylinder Core 3 :: Posterized

Develop your letterpress design skills and aesthetic while increasing your letterpress versatility: learn to set up the press, refine your registration skills, and run an edition. Learn more about packing, roller height, and make-ready. Come ready to run an edition of your own small poster!

Cylinder Core 4 :: Digital into Analog

Bring digital back into analog in this final core course and learn to print from photopolymer plates. Apply your letterpress skills to artwork created digitally to make fantastic plates for printing. Walk away with a stack of greeting cards printed from polymer plates.


Materials to Bring: None.

Workshop + Materials Fee: $700.00

Date & Time: Monday-Thursday, May 9-12, 2016 :: 9:30am-5:30pm

Location: This workshop will take place at 375 Rhode Island St, San Francisco, CA 94103

Note: Please read the SFCB Registration Policies before signing up for a class

REGISTRATION WILL CLOSE 3 DAYS PRIOR TO THE START DATE OF THIS WORKSHOP.


About the Instructor | Mary Laird

Mary Risala Laird, MFA printmaking, University of Wisconsin, Madison, has been doing letterpress books since 1969 as Quelquefois Press. She partnered in Perishable Press Limited editions from 1969-84. Ms. Laird has taught letterpress at San Francisco State University, Kala Institute in Berkeley, Naropa University, and at the San Francisco Center for the Book as well as workshops in Utah, Idaho, Colorado and Washington state. For fifteen years she worked with the entire 7th grade class as a guest artist, making handmade journals. Her focus in printing is poetry. She binds the editions she prints.  Her work is in many collections across the country, including Stanford, UC Berkeley, Library of Congress, UW Madison, the British Library, Yale, University of Washington, and UC Santa Cruz. She has three grown children, lives in Berkeley with her husband John Malork, and is a member of the Sufi community. Currently she serves as a board member at the San Francisco Center for the Book.


Past Student Reviews

"Very impressive organization and talent!"

Hands on, encouragement to work at our own pace but excellent support and teaching. I went from beginner to feeling confident that I can use the press on my own in 1 week! Amazing!"

"Knowledgeable and helpful with a fabulous sense of humor!" 

375 Rhode Island St
San Francisco, CA 94103-5133
United States