Cylinder Core Certificate Program
The hand-fed 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 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. Core classes must be taken in order, 1 through 4.
Click here to learn more about the Cylinder Core Certificate Program and how to receive a discount.
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. Students will have access to the Center's collection of wood type and cuts (images) for this project. Come ready to run an edition of your own 12 x 15" poster!
Competencies Gained:
Builds on skills from Cylinder Core 1 and 2
Knowledge:
Press mechanics and proper use of the press
Press/job setup
Proper cleanup
Skills:
Packing / make-ready
Adjusting paper guides
Adjusting roller height
Mixing ink
Increased familiarity with the cylinder (Vandercook) proof press
Materials to Bring
All tools and materials will be provided. Students can bring ideas for a poster-worthy short phrase, probably just a few words to set in large type.
Please note: Class projects are for learning particular skills and supporting class dynamics. Project ideas should be flexible, open to what class time and communal studio use will permit.
About the Instructor
Lisa Rappoport (she/her) publishes poetry broadsides and artists' books under the imprint Littoral Press. Since 1998 she has produced a series of broadsides by the poets who teach at the Community of Writers; she has also printed poetry broadsides for Lawrence Ferlinghetti and City Lights Books, the Watershed Environmental Poetry Festival, the Northern California Book Awards, and many others (last but not least, the Poets Pulling Prints series of the SFCB). Her poetry has appeared in Nostos, Five Fingers Review, Literal Latte, and elsewhere. She is the winner of the 1998 Icarus Poetry Competition and the recipient of a poetry residency at Centrum. Her poetry collection Penumbra was published by Longship Press in 2019. Her book The Short Goodbye received the Alastair Johnston Fine Press Award and was a runner-up in the Carl Hertzog Award for Excellence in Book Design. Lisa has taught at the New College in San Francisco, at a middle school in Lafayette, and in her own studio. Her work has been displayed nationally and is in collections throughout the U.S. You can visit her website at littoralpress.com
Past Student Reviews
“The workshop added considerably to my knowledge base and the instructor was superb."
“Lisa was very attentive and helpful. She had a good balance of letting us do the things we’ve already learned to do while providing a helping hand when we ran into issues or had questions.”
“Lisa offered a nice blend of guidance and patient support.”
Location
San Francisco Center for the Book
375 Rhode Island Street, San Francisco, CA 94103
Registration Policies
Please read over the SFCB Registration Policies before signing up for a class. Registration will close approximately three days prior to the start date of the workshop to allow the instructor time to prep materials for class. We recommend you not wait to register, as workshops that don't meet our minimum enrollment will be canceled, sometimes as much as a week in advance.
Workshop fee
(includes materials fee):
$225
SFCB's Windgate Scholarship Fund is dedicated to providing need-based financial support to individuals interested in learning bookbinding, letterpress printing, and related book arts. Click here to apply.
Prerequisite(s):
Cylinder Core 1 & 2
Class session:
Sunday: June 29, 2025
9:30am-5:30pm
If this workshop is full, please click this link to add your name to the waitlist. If a seat becomes available, we will contact you.