Stepping outside the automated world with screenprinting and letterpress.
The Printed Matter Press (PMP) may be one of Houghton’s less visible student organizations, but when they set up shop, they stand out. The self-described “team of designers, printers, printing assistants, marketers, and sales students,” appears during Homecoming Weekend, at the Arts and Crafts Fair, or prior to a major holiday. Visitors will see their table, neatly arranged with a collection of cards, T-shirts, and posters for sale, all designed and handmade by the team. More present among the Houghton community during these sales, PMP nevertheless remains active all year, working to design and print a variety of products from tote bags to notebooks and cards.
“It’s a fairly big time commitment,” said junior Mason Wilkes, who is a recent member. Ten members attend regular meetings where they anonymously submit designs and vote on which to print. Then, as a team, they meet in the Stevens Art Studio to either screen print the designs onto T-shirts or to use the college’s century-old letterpress to print cards, notebooks, and posters. According to senior Laurissa Widrick, a member since 2012, the group will often hold midnight printmaking sessions.
“We’ll all be up at the studio at the same time printing, packaging, and getting everything done for the upcoming sale,” she said. “There is always something for everyone to do, whether it’s printing, packaging, folding T-shirts, cleaning screens, or just making sure we have good music playing.”
While PMP uses college facilities to create their products, they provide all of their own supplies. Senior Alex Hood, who has acted as “a sort of director” for the loosely structured organization over the past year, oversees their finances with assistance from faculty advisor, interim art professor, Alicia Taylor. For the most part, the students themselves control the business aspect of the organization. Taylor helps with logistical issues, such as paying for tickets to the international printmaking conference that the group attends yearly.
Since the group’s inception over five years ago – a joint effort between students and Jillian Sokso, former art professor – one of PMP’s primary goals has been to raise funds to attend an annual conference held by the Southern Graphics Council International, the largest print organization in North America. This year, seven PMP artists, along with Taylor, are currently attending the conference in Knoxville, Tennessee between March 18th and 21st. They will attend exhibitions, demos, and keynote speeches offered by high-profile printmakers, as well participate in open portfolio sessions.
“It is a gathering to try and concentrate as many printmakers in one spot as possible,” said Wilkes about the conference’s attraction. “[Printmaking is] a growing market right now again, but it is still a niche thing. There really aren’t that many studios out there.”
The conference gives students an excellent opportunity to make connections in the printmaking world, and even to advertise their own work. Last year, students took a suitcase of their inventory and sold it during the open portfolio. Senior Katie Kloos, a member of PMP for three years, recalled the positive reaction the group received for their work at last year’s conference.
“People loved it. It was really reaffirming to have people who know about letterpress and screen printing like and buy our merchandise.”
Right now, PMP is winding down for the semester, with only one event officially scheduled before the end of the year: Take Back the Night. As in past years, the organization will set up a table to live print their “Take Back the Night” design onto T-shirts or paper.
Though several PMP artists are about to graduate and are currently focused on their own senior art shows, members are working to ensure that the organization endures. The group is always looking for new members to keep the legacy going.
It isn’t just the teamwork that goes into sales or the pride the group takes in their work that makes them so intent on keeping PMP going.In a world where goods are often pumped out in identical batches by machines, they know what they’re doing is special. It’s the kind of work, says Widrick, that allows one to “…step outside that automated world for a while, and into one that’s more personal and meaningful.” Through their work both on campus and off, PMP invites the Houghton community to step into that world with them.