Moveable Type, a 1982 Chevy van that has been converted into a fully functioning letterpress
print shop, will visit UW March 13-14.
Prepare to get your hands dirty. With a little black ink, that is.
Kyle Durrie and Moveable Type, the name of her mobile print shop custom-built into the back of an old delivery truck, will be at the University of Wyoming this week.
Durrie, proprietor of Power and Light Press, will present a lecture at 7 p.m. Wednesday, March 13, in Room 111 of the Visual Arts Building.
Moveable Type will set up shop on the west side of the Visual Arts Building parking lot the morning of Thursday, March 14, and just off Simpson Plaza that afternoon. Durrie will provide printing demonstrations, studio/truck tours and tales about life on the road.
“Kyle is a young woman who is enjoying seeing her artwork move out into the world. In a digital age, it is particularly interesting that letterpress has had a resurgence, especially with younger artists,” says Mark Ritchie, a UW professor of art. “It is physical, low-tech and, perhaps, embodies a nostalgia.”
According to the Moveable Type website, Durrie is a letterpress printer from Silver City, N.M. Through a fundraising campaign she started in 2010, Durrie was able to purchase and convert a 1982 Chevy van in to a fully functional letterpress print shop. The shop includes a small table-top press (an 1873 Golding Official No. 3 model) for printing smaller work, and a larger proof press, which can print large posters.
Participants will have the opportunity to make prints that they can take home.
“We actively bring many visiting artists to campus that present artists at a range of points in their careers and with varied reasons to engage in visual art,” Ritchie says. “Kyle's Power and Light Press studio is a unique opportunity for our students and the broader public to engage with a young artist. Her work is a great bridge between visual art and creative writing.”
The UW Art Department sponsors the event. The lecture and activities are free and open to the public. For more information, contact Mark Ritchie at marrit@uwyo.edu, or visit www.type-truck.com or www.powerandlightpress.com.
