Warren Casey, dean of the College of Arts and Humanities, wanted the college to participate and have a presence during the inauguration. Casey asked each of the departments to brainstorm ways they could be involved and Daniel Adams, professor of art, and Stacy Gibson, associate professor of art, decided they would create the invitations. Gibson designed the invitations and Adams was in charge of the printing and production.
With help from Tom Buterbaugh, who is chair of the communications committee for the inauguration, Gibson and Adams began brainstorming design ideas last spring. They loved the quality and classic feel of letterpress, Gibson said, and with that in mind, they began the design process.
“It was hard for us to think ‘what symbol would we put on the invitation?'” Gibson said. “We made a list of all the iconic imagery of Harding and I came across the seal and thought it was very classic and ties in with the university and with our mission.”
Adams said he could transfer the image as a silk screen, which would allow Gibson to lay type over it. Typography gives off a personality and a mood, which Gibson said she took into consideration when searching for the perfect fonts.
“I knew that the printing process is so beautiful that the layout of it was just to enhance that process,” Gibson said. “Because of the history of letterpress and its classic feeling, there is no imagery on the invitation. We love that when you touch the paper you can feel the printing and the letters.”
Once Gibson finished the design, it was up to Adams to turn it into a finished product. First, Adams burned the image of the seal onto a silk screen and then screened it onto the matte black paper with a glossy ink. After the ink dried, he was ready to begin the letterpress process.
The foot-peddled press used was built in 1937 and until about 10 years ago, Adams said it was the primary press used by Harding Press. Adams printed 4,000 invitations, which is the largest letterpress project he has worked on.
Despite expanding technologies, letterpress printing is making a comeback in certain niche markets, especially for wedding invitation printing, Adams said.
“One of the reasons letterpress has come back is our ability to still work on the computer and send files and have those files created in a letterpress form,” Adams said. “I work with computers all the time so working with the press is a balancing act; when I work with the presses, everything slows down, which is not a bad thing.”
Gibson and Adams showcased the printing process used at the “Night with the Humanities” event last night.
Additionally, Gibson and Adams have a letterpress show that will be up through October titled ‘Inked & Pressed.’ The inaugural invitation plus photopolymer plate will be on display.
