Letterpress Fine Printing

John is an advocate of the craft of letterpress fine printing, the history of the book, and the cultural heritage of printing. He is a past printer/director of the Silver Buckle Press, a working museum of letterpress printing at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

The antique Albion printing press in our print shop is operated entirely by hand — much like the first press Gutenberg used well over 500 years ago. Manufactured in London in 1847, we use the Albion to produce our limited edition projects.

Handset lead type and other relief printing techniques are used to imprint text and images on handmade and other archival papers. The letterpress process pushes the ink deep into the paper fibers leaving an impression you can see and feel.

This process is perfect for the production of very unique presentation documents, special event invitations, and short books for professionals, businesses, organizations, and individuals. John also prints on a mid-century classic Heidelberg Windmill letterpress.