June 15 | Intro to Intaglio, Etching (6 Weeks)

Please note that this class does not meet on June 22, so willl conclude on July 27.

Intaglio printmaking emerged in Europe well after the woodcut print, with the earliest known surviving examples being undated designs for playing cards made in Germany, using drypoint technique in the late 1430s. Engraving had been used by goldsmiths to decorate metalwork, including armor, musical instruments and religious objects since ancient times. Scholars and practitioners of printmaking have suggested that the idea of making prints from engraved plates may well have originated with goldsmiths’ practices of taking an impression on paper of a design engraved on an object, in order to keep a record of their work, or to check the quality.

In our 6-Week Intro to Intaglio course, beginners to experienced students will benefit from learning etching techniques, drypoint techniques, and plate wiping techniques as they move onto familiarizing themselves with intaglio printing. By the end of the multi-week class, students will finish an etching with multiple proofs of their plate in various stages.

With the completion of this class, students will not only produce an edition of prints that reflect the skills built throughout this class but receive authorization in etching at Spudnik.

Note when added to the cart the class comes up as Class: June 8 | Screenprinting Explorations (6 Weeks), it is a glitch in the system, it is indeed the Intro to Intaglio Class, you may proceed to check out.

June 18 | Letterpress Posters (4 Hours)

Join us for this fun, social workshop to see what letterpress printing is all about. During this workshop, you’ll be able to design and print your own poster using vintage type and a traditional Vandercook press

Each attendee will be able to choose from a variety of fonts in our collection. With these fonts, they will learn how to set and print their own short saying, phrase, or statement to create a professional one-of-a-kind poster. Our Teaching Artist will share what moveable type is, how it works, why it’s so special, and how its invention changed the world.

This one-day workshop combines an overview of letterpress printing and its unique history with hands-on making. It is a great way to try out a new craft and find out if you would love to learn the full process.

June 23 | Intro to letterpress (8 Weeks)

This course is the perfect introduction to letterpress printing. From its creation by Johannes Gutenberg in the mid-15th century until the 19th century, letterpress printing was the norm for printing text. Its use persisted in books and various applications until the late 20th century.

Letterpress printing evolved from simple platen presses, where paper was pressed onto an inked form, producing beautifully imprinted text and images. Over time, the flat platen was replaced by a roller in the flat-bed cylinder press, streamlining the process.

This course is the perfect introduction to letterpress printing, a centuries-old process that shaped the history of printed language. From its invention by Johannes Gutenberg in the 15th century through its continued use into the 20th century, letterpress has remained a powerful and tactile way to print text and images.

Over Eight weekly sessions, students will learn the fundamentals of letterpress printing, including hand-setting metal and wood type, understanding inks and paper, and safely operating platen presses. Instruction covers composing with a stick, adjusting letter and word spacing, building type forms, and printing with consistent impression. Students will also learn essential press skills such as locking up in a chase, basic make-ready, registering multiple layers, and proper press cleanup.

This hands-on class is ideal for creatives, designers, writers, and anyone interested in language as a visual and physical medium. No prior printmaking experience is required.

July 6 | Screenprinting Refresher & Authorization (4 Hours)

Note: Experience is required to take this refresher class.

This refresher & authorization workshop welcomes students with previous screenprinting experience who are feeling out-of-practice or fuzzy regarding the finer points of the process, or who have never printed at Spudnik before, and want familiarity with our facilities and offerings. Students should have already completed a one-day workshop or full class, although it need not have been at Spudnik. We also welcome printers that would like support working through a particularly complex project or reoccurring printing issue.

The class will review an assortment of skills such as selecting the best mesh count, applying the perfect coat of photo emulsion, troubleshooting and diagnosing exposure and printing issues, ink mixing, registration, and screen reclamation. Equally as importantly, we will address how to consider these technical factors and limitations when designing a project for printing.

During the workshops, each student will expose a screen, and work with peers to print a two-color image designed to hone nuanced printing skills. Students are welcome to bring specific questions about their next project.

To help build printing confidence at Open Studio sessions, students are invited to return within the week to put their freshly acquired knowledge to use. Through this workshop, students will not only brush up on old skills and become authorized to print at Spudnik, but are sure to walk away with new morsels of useful information regarding the art of screenprinting.

July 9 | Letterpress for Poetry (4 Weeks)

What better way to honor a poem than to set it in type by hand?

This four-week workshop brings together the art of writing poetry and the craft of letterpress printing. Students work on original poems and then do what poets couldn’t always do for themselves — set every letter, space every word, and print their work with their own hands on a press.

Over four sessions, students will explore the fundamentals of writing short-form poetry alongside the basics of hand-setting metal and wood type, working with inks and paper, and operating a letterpress. Instruction covers composing in a stick, adjusting letter and word spacing, locking up a chase, and printing with consistent impression. The result is a finished, printed broadside or small edition of your own work.

This hands-on class is ideal for poets, writers, and anyone drawn to language as both a literary and physical medium. No prior printmaking or poetry experience is required — only a curiosity about words and how they take shape on a page.

July 9 | Risography Explorations (4 Weeks)

The Risograph is an automated duplicator that efficiently produces multi-color prints with a distinct look and feel. Combining some of the best elements of photocopiers, screenprinting, and offset, risography can be an exciting medium for comic artists, writers, illustrators, designers, book artists, and more. 

Our Risography Explorations class teaches students to work with our machine. Beginning with a multi-color print, students will be introduced to risography techniques and mechanics. From there, they will create their own zine, mini-comic, or broadside to continue exploring the possibilities of the process. Students will also learn a variety of simple book forms that they can use for their independent project. 

Throughout the four weeks, students will learn best practices for designing and creating risograph prints, taking into consideration ink density, drying time, paper selection, and registration. Risograph machines are known for being rather finicky—students will also practice basic maintenance and troubleshooting, including how to change ink, reset and replace the master roll, and fix paper feed issues.

In addition to gaining authorization to print independently at Spudnik Press, students will have access to Open Studios to work on their projects.

July 11 | Text // Image-Etching + Letterpress (8 Weeks)

Intaglio etching and letterpress printing are two of the oldest printing techniques in the world, both dating back to around the 15th century. Etching, engaging the basic concepts of using resists and acids to create surfaces that are inked and printed, has been employed by artists for hundreds of years to create images, tone, and mark making. Letterpress, utilizing a raised inked matrix (often movable type) and a variety of machines to create consistent prints, revolutionized literacy and the spread of information throughout the last several centuries and is still not only relevant, but a highly sought-after and important method of printing in the modern age. 

Students of all skill levels will learn through this class both the basics of intaglio printing, incorporating the use of resists, acids, and inks to etch lines and tone into copper and produce images, as well as the basics of letterpress, learning the mechanics of the letterpress machine, typesetting, registering, and producing editions. Students will combine these two traditional printing methods to achieve prints that explore layering, language, composition, and image making. Each of the 8 weeks will involve becoming comfortable and knowledgeable in both methods, and will focus on two main projects. Students will be encouraged to work independently between classes. Students completing this class will become authorized to print at Spudnik through our Open Studio program.

July 12 | Experimental Narratives- Riso (4 Weeks)

Since the debut of zine culture and indie publishing in the 1950s and 60s, alternative comics and zines have forever changed the notion of narrative. By introducing visually led dreamlike scenarios, diary comics, fragmented storytelling, and DIY guides, these DIY movements—from punk to queer zines—opened up entirely new ways to share ideas. This entry-level class is perfect for anyone interested in Risograph printing techniques and experimental storytelling, offering a space to develop your printing skills and narrative voice in unison.

In this course, students will learn both digital and analog techniques for printing via the Risograph. You are free to explore any type of story, whether that takes the form of a comic, a pamphlet, a DIY guide, or a review. To inspire new methods of narrative building, we will also read and discuss a variety of local and non-local alternative comic authors. Students will gain authorization to use the Risograph machines after the very first class, and will solidify those technical skills through hands-on printing in the following weeks.

July 12 | Experiments on Fabric (4 Weeks)

This course introduces the full process of printing on fabric and garments, from coating and exposing screens to printing, reclaiming, and editioning. Students will print on flat fabric and apparel using both print tables and a T-shirt press, learning how images behave on different materials.

The class emphasizes hands-on practice, repeat printing, and registration, with time set aside for experimentation. Students will leave with a finished garment or small edition and the confidence to work independently in the screenprinting studio. Throughout the class, students are encouraged to bring their own fabric and garments to print on as well.

July 13 | Independent Study Letterpress (4 Weeks)

Note: this class requires previous letterpress experience

For printers who have a specific project in mind or want dedicated time to refine their craft, this four-week independent study provides the space, equipment, and structure to make it happen. This course is perfect for students with foundational letterpress experience who are comfortable with basic press operation but want a supportive environment to execute their own work.

Unlike a traditional structured class, there is no set curriculum or weekly syllabus. Instead, each student will design and print an independent project, bringing their own concepts to the press while being supported on a technical level. Through dedicated studio time and on-hand guidance, our teaching artist will be there to help with troubleshooting, registration, ink behavior, and typesetting logic. Students will be empowered to work through the nuances of their specific projects.

July 13 | Screenprinting Explorations (6 Weeks)

Screenprinting is an art form with a sometimes daunting degree of possibility. From bold graphic shapes to delicate and detailed halftones, almost any image you can think of can be created with a screen and some ink. So where to begin? 

In Screenprinting Explorations, students will be walked through the steps necessary to pull a successful print in a variety of styles and with increasing complexity. At every stage, students will be encouraged to experiment and explore, pushing the techniques and trying new things. Our eight-week class provides adequate time for new printers to complete a range of projects on paper and fabric. Along the way, students will become familiar with dark room exposure, mesh count, screen tension, ink consistency, and registration. In addition to developing A+ printing skills, this class will help students develop their imagery, be it hand-drawn illustration or digital files, to successfully translate to print. 

By the end of the class, students will know their way around the print shop, and be well equipped to continue printing independently at Spudnik Press.

July 15 | Bookbinding 101 (4 Hours)

This workshop focuses on styles of bookbinding that are low-cost yet dynamic, and well suited for poetry chapbooks and portfolio books. Students will learn how to choose materials and create simple book structures that best highlight the content within their book.

The lessons will address the logistics of organizing book forms and explore the book as a vessel for information, and how material choices can inform how the book is read. While the workshop will create blank books, each style of binding will begin with standard 8.5” x 11” paper to allow your content to be easily printed from a common inkjet or laser printer.