Archive for May, 2010

Printing Business Cards for AIGA Minnesota

Monday, May 24th, 2010

AIGA Minnesota Business CardAIGA Minnesota is a group consisting of consummate professionals who are very clear about what they like and what they don’t like. So when I was approached about printing the business cards for their Board of Directors, I knew that I needed to be on top of my game.

My contact within the organization, Joe Isaak, made it easy to work with such a formidable group of people. In the end it was not difficult to print the job given the clean design that they presented me with and the Classic Crest 165 pound paper which was donated to AIGA by Neenah.

Traveling Show

Thursday, May 20th, 2010

Travelers Book and BoxThis project was an enjoyable trip to take.

One of the members of the Travelers board of directors was stepping down after many years of working with the company and Carolyn Porter (of Porterfolio) was asked to come up with something special as a parting gift.

Carolyn had worked with me in the past on a presentation piece for Nelson Mandela and called me again to work with her on this project. She designed the book and worked with me to determine the structure of the box. 

The 18 page book is printed, letterpress, in 3 colors and is quarter bound in red leather with custom made marbled end sheets.

The modified clamshell box is covered in a gray silk cloth (as is the book) and is held shut with a one-of-a-kind stainless steel closure.

At the end of the journey we were all pleased with the outcome and were glad to have taken the road less traveled by.

And that has made all the difference.

Three for the Road

Monday, May 10th, 2010

French Paper and CSAWhen Gutenberg was working on perfecting his printing process in the 1450s the major source of power was water (well, that and draft animals). In mills across the world water power was used for, among other things,  the grinding of grain and the beating of pulp for the making of paper. In 2010 French Paper is still using a water powered mill to create perfection in the form of their delicious whip cream 140 pound cover stock.

This is the paper that the gang at Charles S. Anderson Design Company chose to work with when French, CSA and Nomadic Press teamed up to produce this poster showcasing the interconnectivity of all of our skill sets.

Think about it. If CSA had no paper or printers to work with then what would be the point of their coming to work every day. If French existed in a world void of printers and designers then why crank up the macerators at the beginning of the week. If I never had a design to print or the paper to print it on then I would not be a printer and would probably be up to no good. 

Together we complete each the other and thrive on the creativity of the work of those in related fields.

A great deal of that creativity (and a fair amount of basic hard work) went into completing this piece. Starting with the making of the paper and the imagining of the design, and culminating with the letterpress printing of the finished poster. Now that it is all said and done one might consider it water under the bridge.

Or, better yet, water through the hydroelectric generators. Power to you French. Thanks CSA.