News & Notes

On Helvetica, by Andrew Hoyem, for the Los Angeles Times

2008-04-09T07:25:00.000-07:00

The Grabhorn Institute recently sponsored a showing of the film Helvetica, which played to an overflow crowd. Arion Press publisher Andrew Hoyem opened the showing by reading from his essay on Helvetica, written for the Los Angeles Times. The text of the essay follows. How we love to celebrate anniversaries! Two years ago it was Albert Einstein, for the centenary of the Theory of Relativity.

Artists celebrate Kiki Smith's Sampler in New York

2007-11-27T13:00:00.000-08:00

A rousing gathering of Arion Press artists and friends honored Kiki Smith on November 3, during the Press’s yearly stint at the IFPDA Print Fair at New York’s Park Avenue Armory. The event marked the release of the book Sampler, with 200 poems by Emily Dickinson and more than 200 images by Kiki Smith (shown in photo above with the book). The title Sampler refers to a sampling from Emily

News of the Grabhorn Institute

2007-11-26T14:56:00.000-08:00

The Grabhorn Institute is the nonprofit arm of Arion Press, engaged in education and preservation efforts. Our programs include a lecture series, exhibitions, tours of the production facility, and apprenticeships in typecasting, letterpress printing, and book binding. Here is the 2007 Report Letter to supporters summarizing some of the institute's many recent activities. There is much to

God's Printer: Arion Press Folio Bible video from CBS Sunday Morning

2007-11-21T12:25:00.000-08:00

This 8 minute video segment from CBS Sunday Morning shows the making of the last Bible to be printed by letterpress in the Gutenberg tradition from hot metal type, crafted by hand in a small workshop in San Francisco. The video shows each step in the making of the Bible, starting in the historic Monotype foundry of Mackenzie and Harris, and also features the cylinder press in operation, the

Bay Area Backroads visits the Presidio

2007-11-21T12:06:00.000-08:00

KRON-TV's Bay Area Backroads show visited the Presidio of San Francisco recently. The 20-minute program included a very brief stop in Arion Press's M & H Type foundry. The video gives a nice overview of the Presidio's history, archaeology, current developments, as well as visits to four restaurants located on the grounds of Presidio, which you may find interesting if you are planning to visit

Emily Dickinson book on press with Twinrocker handmade paper

2007-10-08T14:12:00.001-07:00

From left to right, Jerry Reddan, Andrew Hoyem, Kenny Howard, and Blake Riley check proofs and press settings as sheets are printed for Arion's forthcoming Emily Dickinson collection, being printed in two colors with artwork by Kiki Smith. Jerry Reddan loading Twinrocker handmade paper into the press for the Emily Dickinson book. Jerry Reddan at the Miller press as sheets for the Emily

Kenny Howard on film titles and typecasting

2007-10-03T17:56:00.000-07:00

Photographer Lucy Gray recently interviewed Kenny Howard from M & H Type about his work on film titles. He also discussed typecasting (the non-Hollywood variety). The 34-minute slide-show/podcast is part of a series called "Lucy Talks Movies" on Podtech.net, and it includes numerous photos of the M & H typefoundry and the Arion pressroom and letterpress facilities. Here's how Lucy introduced

Illustrated Talk on RR Donnelley Sept. 10th

2007-08-30T14:01:00.000-07:00

The Grabhorn Institute Lecture Series is presenting an illustrated talk by Kim Coventry: “Printing for the Modern Age: Commerce, Craft, and Culture from the Presses of RR Donnelley.” The talk takes place September 10, 2007, at 6 p.m. Illustrated with materials from the RR Donnelley archive, this talk will explore the company's role from its founding in Chicago in 1864 to the 1980s with an

Exhibition of RR Donnelley's Four American Books

2007-08-30T12:05:00.000-07:00

In 1926, the nation’s largest printer, RR Donelley in Chicago, started planning a series of literary classics to be designed and illustrated by the best American practitioners of the day, producing: Richard Henry Dana Jr.’s Two Years Before the Mast, designed by Edward A. Wilson, Thoreau’s Walden, designed by Rudolph Ruzicka, Edgar Allen Poe’s Tales, designed by W. A. Dwiggins, and Melville’s

Jerry Reddan and Tangram

2007-08-30T09:54:00.000-07:00

An exhibition of Jerry Reddan's Tangram private press is on display through September 7, 2007 in the Arion Press gallery. The exhibition is titled "Pj’s on the Qt: selected Tangrams / more pieces to the puzzle". At a recent opening reception, Jerry explained the significance of the first part of that title, noting that "pj's" refers to "personal jobs" done in the foundry and pressroom "on the

Tours of the typefoundry, pressroom, bindery, and gallery

2007-08-28T15:39:00.000-07:00

Public demonstration tours of the historic printing and bookmaking facilities of Arion Press and the typefoundry of M & H Type are held Thursday afternoons at 3:00 and last approximately one hour. Tours of the production facility are conducted by craftspeople trained in typecasting, hand composition, letterpress printing, and bookbinding. There is a charge of $7.00 per person and reservations are

M & H Type goes Hollywood, thanks to Daniel Day-Lewis

2007-08-01T12:03:00.000-07:00

Look for a film credit for typecaster Kenny Howard of M & H Type when you view the forthcoming film starring Daniel Day-Lewis, There Will Be Blood. Day-Lewis and director Paul Thomas Anderson recommended M & H to do the titles and credits after the two of them saw the 1979 Arion Press Moby-Dick and were taken with the typography. Last month, Howard was busy hand-setting the film’s main titles in

Supercaster acquired for M & H Type

2007-06-29T12:07:00.000-07:00

For the typefoundry, we have acquired a late model English Supercaster from Woodside Press in Brooklyn, New York. The Supercaster will allow us to cast from 14-36 point American and English matrices, as well as 42-72 point English matrices. The Supercaster is a great addition to our already large collection of casting equipment. Our holdings include six Monotype Composition casters, six Thompson

Helvetica at 50

2007-05-17T12:12:00.000-07:00

The Los Angeles Times recently asked Andrew Hoyem to reflect on a typeface in the news. Here is part of what he wrote: “We love to celebrate anniversaries. In 2007, it's the 50th anniversary of Jack Kerouac's novel On the Road — and the 50th anniversary of a typeface called Helvetica. Amazing! A type of type, an alphabet of a certain style used for printing, is being celebrated for turning half a

Listen to Arion Podcasts

2007-04-20T12:19:00.000-07:00

Two recent talks by Andrew Hoyem are now available to hear online or download. On Oct. 7, 2006, he was the featured speaker at Oak Knoll Fest. His talk traces his career from the Auerhahn Press, through Grabhorn-Hoyem, and on through the launch, growth, and evolution of Arion Press. Listen online courtesy of Oak Knoll. On Nov. 18, 2006, Andrew Hoyem presented "Bible, Blake, Baseball, and Beckett