SVA Letterpress

Letterpress printing is a passion of mine, and I was delighted to finally get back to work through the School of Visual Arts Continuing Education Program in New York City. Taught by the legendary Dikko Faust of Purgatory Pie Press.

The Inspiration

In 2010, I spent 6 months working with Angelini Design in Rome, Italy. I very much fell in love with Rome and wanted to create something that reminded me of the city and my time spent there. I was inspired by the tabaccheria & lottery signs, which are everywhere.

Setting Type

I started by collecting various wood and metal type to reflect the actual signage. Then I laid out my design on my intended poster size. I had a particularly fun time recreating the Italian Republic seal, below.

Inking Up

Here you can see how the layout came together with wood + metal type (always backward, of course!) and furniture (a.k.a. the spacing bars which provide white space, they are not inked).

Inked vs. not inked.

Color Variations

I was quite pleased with how my vision came to life. I would love to create a series of Roman signage-inspired prints.