Hand and Eye apprenticeship Day 10

I wasn't in on Day 9 so there is only Day 10...

There were a few packing, posting duties, apart form that most of the work I got to do are dissing the types.

I did also get to witness something interesting - I got to see some old types that are either damaged or are no longer needed turned into ingots for the super caster machines to turn into new types later. It is done by literally melting the types in a big metal pot, where all the impurities would surface and be cleared, and then the rest being pour into moulds and cool down to be used for the super caster to produce new types.






Overall in the last 2 weeks I got to learn something about letterpress, a basic understanding and appreciation of the process, and experienced a bit of what it is like being an apprentice. Being an apprentice was a really good way to learn, you really immersed in the culture of the place and carry out tasks as and when necessary, and I am very thankful that Hand and Eye offers such a position.

As for letterpress itself, what struck me the most were all the clever and careful considerations into the design of all tools in the processes - from the type itself to the trays that are designed, how the human mind and hands work, how to work in the most simple, straight forward and efficient manner.

Lastly, the art of letterpress, that of craftsman is becoming increasingly rare in the days of rapid technology, I am glad to see a small but a strong resistance to this trend. More importantly, having experienced myself the connection between the hand and eye, I cm glad to have experienced this tradition and know what it feels to work with your head, you hand and your heart.



Thanks very much to Phil and Nick for their time and this wonderful opportunity!
You can find Hand and Eye and the Internship application at the website
www.handandeye.co.uk

Hand and Eye apprenticeship Day 7 and 8 - Proofing and various

I have finished the final proof - it took about 12 proofs! All design and type set by me from beginning to end!
On Tuesday(Day 7) I was only around for half a day, and today has been a very busy day with packing and light duties around the place so there are no much new things I could add to inform you, but think I would now talk about Dissing ( from Day 3) in greater details.

PROCESS FOR PUTTING THE TYPE BACK - MORE DETAILS (From Day 3)
1. Now that I have finished, now it is time to put the types back in the case. Here I have pictures demonstrating how to do it, to be done with both hands but of course one of them is holding the camera.... First you approach the type from one side, ideally have the type on your left and pick them up with both hands, thumb and index finger squeezing the type front and back, with either middle or ring finger pushing the type on either side to ensure all will stay together before you slowly urn the type upside towards you....

2. Once you turn the type around, take away the top piece of leading and try to squeeze steadily and not too tightly as shown so they won't fall. Ideally don't hold these over the case, it would be a nightmare if they fall onto all those types that are already sorted.

3. Now pick out a word one by one and then read it upside down and put one type at a time into the case - , after a while you would speed up!

At the end of the day it is common sense with a bit of coordination....

Hand and Eye apprenticeship Day 6 - Proofing

Today I basically did some light duties around the place and did a number of proofs of my forme. The proof picks up absolutely every single details so it is very important that you know your stuff and what you are doing because the proofs are un forgiving. A few things I learnt are all about the Proofing Press...

1. Remember to add ink, because after the third print it will need more - and I thought there was something wrong with my type that they were not flat!

2. Do not add too much! If you do worth putting in pieces of paper one at a time to soak up some ink. In my case I did three pieces.

3. If you are going to add solvent to any type, you have to wait another 10 mins minimum before it will take ink again.

4. There was a problem with the last few lines of my proof and I kept thinking I had to change the type and then Phil pointed out that I had to hold on to the later on the roller until the last minute to ensure the paper doesn't change position, a slight move could mean a fuzzy image.

5. When you clean the Press do not add too much solvent - otherwise there is no friction and the rollers will not rotate!


This is me at Hand and Eye, the machine on the right in the photo is the proofing press that I have been using the whole day today, and spent half an hour cleaning at the end of the day.

Here is what I single handedly type set myself, the end result is not bad, after 10 proofs......

Here is the proofing press

Hand and Eye apprenticeship Day 5 - Proofing

I spent all day doing proofing, and one of two light duties around the place. I must say that I expected to do more duties around than what I have been given. I ended up spending most of the time using the proofing press, doing proofing for my type and at the end cleaned the proofing press with white spirit ( a solvent). I did about 3 proofing today, and it was very hard to get it right actually, either spelling, spacing, types being wrong, put upside down, worn out type, line wasn't straight - I have so much respect for the master typographer setter, what a task! Anyway here it is....

1. Now that the type is done it is time to move it to a flat surface, in H and E it is called the stone, a flat working surface for checking types and is to be kept cleaned and dry at all time as not to effect the smoothness of the surface. It involves me pushing the type at the edge when the galley I have the type click in perfectly with the edge so the types could be slide across.
Always keep in mind that you use both thumbs and first finger of both hands ( one of mine is holding the camera) so the 4 sides of the type are keep together.

2. Once slide across it is time to set it in the 'Chase', an empty frame. Once the chase is filled with the type and all the furniture and quoins to secure it, then it is called a 'Forme'. Note that it is handy to line it up with the lengths it has been assigned to, and the furniture ( little I beams) are laid so that the strongest axis is align with the type. Quoins are always kept on one side on each axis. Ensure nothing less than 6 point leading is used, and if it is in used put them away from the quoins so they don't get bended, and the quoins in between furniture rather than have direct contact to the side of the chase.

3. When putting everything in place first do finger tight on all the quoins, then adjust each one a bit, until all are done and then start again, this is to ensure equal pressure is applied from all sides at the same time so there is no distortion. Once all are done lift the forme slightly to see whether everything is secured, and then bang it lightly at the side to ensure nothing falls off. After that use the wooden piece and the hammer to tap the type lightly to ensure they are all level and again lift and check all are still in place after.

4. Now it is ready for the proofing press. I won't go into too much detail as all proofing press maybe slightly different, but the basics are; for serious prints the forme has to be locked in place, but for my first attempt just checking spelling etc magnets at either side is fine to set it. Rubber based ink is used as it doesn't dry out quickly - an advantage when not much ink is needed but it is needed to do proofs throughout the day on the proof press.

And then you roll and get the proof and review it until you get it all right!

A note about cleaning the machine - use white spirit and wipe with cloth....more next week...

Hand and Eye apprenticeship Day 4 - Type Setting

Today I learnt to do type setting, which is very exciting!
Hand and Eye seems to have established a real program for all the interns, we all get to do a page of type setting, and these are later dissembled by the next intern. Anyway here it is, quite a lot to do.....


The Process;
1. Sounds silly but basic really - first you need to know what you are type setting, the type you want to use and its size, and whether you want any variation within, such as bold, italic or small caps etc. I chose Garamond.






2. You then decide on the total overall width you want for the lettering and get some foundry squads, each measuring 4 Ems, so for 36 Em length I need 9 to set the measuring tool, and also double check with the brass measuring rule.




3. I chose to have a 36 length, I then use it on the measurement tool, where I start picking individual type as shown. Try to keep you thumb on the type so they don't fall off and move both hands around so they don't remain stationary and you get tired.



4. A test for the type they fit the measurement correctly at the end is by tilting them slightly, they should sit at an angle with their own weight nicely, meaning they are tight enough, but make sure they are not too tight otherwise it will cause problems later on, when you try to lock them in place. Fit them with a point space ( hair) or 1/2 point where necessary.



5. Here is the types and lines slowly building up, a quick tip is to just pick types and check them at the proofing stage, otherwise it will be too slow, when you pick the letters you have to assume they are all correct. Make sure you use leading , 6 pt at least on either side to secure the line of types!

Once done we can move on to Proofing tomorrow.

TIP:

Handy to use the brass measuring rule at the bottom where you pick the type as it has a smooth surface and they sit nicely there, and hence more accurate.

You can check whether the types are lining the right way but checking whether the nick is there on the surface half way down the font metal line ( a little dent in the middle of the side of the type as clearly shown) They are on the spacing as well except hair and 1/2 points.

Hand and Eye apprenticeship Day 3 - Diss and Supercaster

More 'Dissing' today. I was given a very fine 6 point Gill Light type to work with and it was hard work, but I am really getting to know the process and familarise myself with the layout of the timber tray to put the types back in. Looking at the letters and the words in reverse is going to help me with the exercise in the coming days -  when I am doing the reverse and looking for each type to set together!



The most tricky part working with such small type was the spacing bars, there are basically 5 types.

The standard is ''Em'', a square shape space which is measured in a 12 point unit proportional to each type size
1 Em =

2 En(s)
3 Thick(s)
4 Mid(s)
5 Thin(s)

and then it goes down to hair ( thin metal)
and 1/2 point hair(thin copper, aluminium or paper)

Here is me trying to figure out why there seem to be many different thicknesses by putting them one by one and measure by eye and stack next to an Em to work out what they are. After 3 hours of sorting out I finally realised there are 2 types of Ems here, and all spacing are slightly off and they are not the 5 types as set above as they are set by a machine rather than originally by hand where every piece is accurate, which leads me to the super caster....



This machine MAKES all the metal types. In the old days it is connected to a machine called 'monotype' which is like a type writer but instead of typing out letters on paper it types out metal type, all assembled together. Phil is able to be self sufficient with his type, and also efficient in putting together a large collection of font with this machine. The one thing to note though is  although all the type would be correct, the spacing may not be, as I found out after 3 hours without knowing the type I worked on was done by this machine and not by hand! For accurate spacing they have to be produced specifically as Ems and not left over from a cast primarily to produce new metal letters.



These are the 'matrices' that is essentially a mould to be used in conjunction with the caster. These are pretty important in the production of type and I was told by Nick , who works at Hand and Eye along with Phil that each would cost about £1,500.

Hand and Eye apprenticeship Day 2 - Diss

I learnt about 'dissing' the types today, basically 'distributing or dissembling the types back from an assemblage to the separate cases.

It is very time consuming but you get to learn so much about the fonts and have a better appreciation of what it takes to print with precision. There are often some spacing pieces inserted between the fonts, these fine things are called hair ( hair space!) and it goes down to 1/2 point hair, the pursuit of perfection is astounding.

The Process -

1. Here is the specimen of what a 'Forme' is - all the types within this is to be dissembled. The frame on its own is called 'chase'. With the type and all set up it is called a 'from'.



2. This is the detail of the actual type. After it was assembled together, or more accurately, 'typesetted', it was used for printing and now finished and ready to be dissembled. It has been cleaned with solvents and a hard brush to get rid of the ink used for printing,  it is now ready to be dissembled and each individual type (each letter) to be put back to where it belongs. Note all the other metal pieces in varying shapes that hold the type and space together.




3a. These pieces of metal are called 'furniture' and the flat pieces are called 'leading'. they come in different sizes and are there to hold the type together for printing.



4. These are 'quoins', they are used on either side to help tighten all the bits that holds the type together. They are used to adjust the remaining slack not filled by the furniture, as it is not always perfectly fit. There is also the 'quoin key' also shown to tighten and un-tighten the quoins.




5. Now take all these pieces to the work space, identify what type they are and the sizes. Take note that sometimes the sizes and fonts maybe slightly different, such as small caps, italic etc so diss each carefully and separately. A paper form lets me know exactly which part of the timber tray I am to put each individual letter.



6. Being inexperienced, I needed the type distribution table right in front of me, together with a timber tray where I put the letters back. Note that I don't put them directly back into the actual drawer because if I did make a mistake, I would have to look through 100 of 's' before I can find the mistake, so it is safer to put them on a case, double check them before putting them back with the other lot.



7. This is basically the type that I have to put back. Every single letter, every single spacing between the words, letters ( for these two are the units measured in 'Ems' see notes on Day 3) and lines ( usually leading, range from 1 pt to 6pt in thickness and varying lengths)




8. Eventually they all went back in this drawer when everything is in the right place to mix back with hundreds of the other identical letter, which got put back in the drawer afterwards.

For further tip on picking up and dissing the type please see Day 7 and 8.

Hand and Eye apprenticeship Day 1 - Getting to know the place

I started my 2 weeks apprenticeship at Hand and Eye Letterpress. It is an opportunity that I have waited for a year since I found out about them at the end of 2009. I applied in late November when I heard that the internship for 2011 was opened and was kindly offered a place by Phil Abel, the owner of Hand and Eye.

I am interested in letterpress because I can see many similarities between that and my love of screen prints. There is typography involved as well and I would really like to know the process. Also I love the idea of preserving a tradition, and paying tribute to the many past and present master printers who have created and maintained this wonderful skill. Printing in the Letterpress way is attention to detail by eye produced by the hand, one needs to be  very much present and I love it.

Hand and Eye is a letterpress company that still adheres to the traditional letterpress method but also uses some modern technology as necessary. However, most of the process is carefully monitored and controlled by hand and eye, and that is why it is called Hand and Eye!

Basically the idea of the internship is that I, like many before me and no doubt many more after me, will come to help out with some light duties in the company, and in return Phil will teach me some basics of Letterpress and typography. It is a wonderful idea and a great opportunity to many who have always wanted to know about letterpress and worked in a friendly and mentored environment. It is quite old school and I love the idea.

The web site for Hand and Eye Letterpress is

http://www.handandeye.co.uk

Yesterday was my first day as an apprentice there and it also happened to be a very busy day for Phil, so he settled me down with an excellent introductory book to Typography. 'Typography' by Carl Swann



The book gave me quite a good introduction on Letterpress, but it is to be the next 2 weeks that I will really get to understand and appreciate what is said in the book, through the real hands on experience.

In the afternoon Phil operated on his 50 year old Heidelberg printing machine and explained some basic operational procedure to me.

The best thing about the machine is it is all there for the eye to see. It maybe a machine at the end of the day but it is different in the sense that you can see and understand how it is operated, you can see how it is working and what to do to maintain it. In some way it is like a bicycle - you can understand and work with it.

It still prints beautifully, Phil printed 3 jobs in a short space of time and they are all excellent quality, there really is no difference to the quality that could be produced on a more complicated modern printing machine. I supposed it is also largely due to Phil's skill but it does demonstrate that such an old machine could still work very well when looked after properly.