Archive for the ‘Uncategorized’ Category

Some of you out there in the internet ether may have noticed Google, Wikipedia, Etsy, Yahoo, any many other big sites speaking out against SOPA & PIPA legislation today. It is a scary thing when one uninformed person can shut down an entire website with no recourse for appeal. This is what the new legislation is proposing. Anyway, I won’t rant, you can read about it yourself:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:SOPA_initiative/Learn_more

This blog post is actually to support a smaller voice. Kelly Tankersley from Etsy’s 88editions has created a wonderful Treasury in support of Black Out Day. It is a fabulous collection. Check it out, favorite it, and spread the word!

I came across an artist today that I just had to share with the world. Riusuke Fukahori creates 3-dimensional sculptural paintings by layering paint and resin. It is so unbelievably realistic that you just have to see it to believe it!

I don’t often get political, nor do I write about it. But I have found an intersection of letterpress and politics that seems worth mentioning in today’s disastrous economic climate.

Recently ‘Obama for America’ held an art contest to find a poster to promote the American Jobs Act. For those who don’t know, the American Jobs Act is a bill that President Obama proposed to Congress in mid-late 2011 that would create a lot of new jobs through infrastructure projects and tax cuts (I’m not quite sure how the tax cuts will put people back to work, but it is part of the bill). And anything that helps put Americans back to work is a good thing in my book. In any case, Congress has yet to pass it.

So, the Obama campaign designed a contest wherein artists could submit posters that show support for the American Jobs Act. Here’s where the letterpress come in. The winner of the contest is Philadelphia artist, Amanda Benton. Her poster was inspired by antique letterpress broadside posters.

Benton explained her stylistic choice: “The whole idea was to bring more attention to the American Jobs Act and get people involved. And the text on my poster included all the themes we could choose from. I like the whole idea of [the American Jobs Act]. So, I thought it should have a broadside important announcement feel to it.”

You can buy a copy of Amanda’s poster in the ‘Obama for America’ store here.

Amanda says she is excited about winning the contest. She wants her poster to highlight the current economic problems and help the process of recovery. “I like the whole idea that it would be a good kick-starter for the economy and getting people back to work,” she says. “Other than the Jobs Act, there hasn’t been much of an effort to do that. It’s very typical of Obama to make a compromise between Democrats and Republicans—and the American Jobs Act involves ideas that both parties have supported in the past.”

Amanda’s prize, however, was less inspring. For her effort, Amanda received a framed copy of the poster signed by President Obama. Yes folks, that’s it. No monetary reward, no art or research grant, no job offer. Just a signed poster. Did anyone in Washington D.C. think about the fact that they were trying to support the American JOBS Act when they settled on the contest reward? How does a signature help stimulate the economy?

Amanda is making the best of it though. She says, “getting a framed and signed copy of it is awesome. It would be awesome if I got paid for it, but if it helps promote the Jobs Act and it gets passed through, that alone would be a great payoff for me.”

In the 1930s FDR rolled out his New Deal plans that employed hundreds of people across the country. This included artists. Mural artists painted post offices and courthouses, and the Federal Theater Project employed actors, writers, and production hands. And these are just two examples of the artist programs.

While it seems almost impossible that any type of New Deal will pass Congress today, it is nice to hope. And the least the ‘Obama for America’ folks could have done was to offer Ms. Benton $100 for her trouble.

The up side to all this is that Letterpress continues to inspire. The traditional beauty of the broadside highlights the poster’s message and puts a smile on your face.

References:
Interview quotes from: Randy LoBasso, “Meet Amanda Benton, the Philly Artist Who Won the Barack Obama ‘Art Works’ Contest,” The Philadelphia Weekly, Dec. 27, 2011. LINK

American Jobs Act: Wikipedia Link

The New Deal: Wikipedia Link

Porcuprints will be participating in Free Shipping Day on December 16th! For those of you who are unfamiliar with this strange day, it is a day when many online retailers offer free shipping to customers with delivery by Christmas Eve.

Each store has their own promotional methods. To get free shopping from me, Porcuprints, just go to Etsy, add a print to your cart, and enter coupon code FREESHIPDAY2011 at checkout!

To go directly to my Etsy Store, click the Etsy logo!

You can also click on the free shipping day badge to see all the other wonderful online shops participating in this event.

This weekend I attended Crafty Wonderland’s “Colossal Holiday Sale.” Held at the Oregon Convention Center, the show brings together over 200 local artists and craftspeople from the Pacific Northwest. It promotes itself as an opportunity to “BUY LOCAL! BUY HANDMADE!” and support local artists.

My attendance was as a shopper, not a seller. I wanted to check it out and it did not disappoint. Some old favorites of mine were there, like Fortress Letterpress, and many local artists who I have never seen before!

However shallow it may make me seem, I did arrive early to get one of the “goodie bags” for the first 150 people. The bag included some letterpress cards and postcards, which I was excited about. It also had a couple of pairs of earrings, and some magnets, all of which are going to make great Christmas presents!

The Framework Design Lab had a surprisingly fresh booth that stood out to me. The Framework Design Lab is actually a graphic design student group of Oregon State University that was luck enough to be accepted into the show. It was great to see students getting their work and creativity out there! You can learn more about the group here: http://frameworkdesignlab.tumblr.com/

The only thing I purchased was a felt bacon Christmas ornament from PickleThings. It is truly adorable! I bought it as a present, and I have already wrapped it up, or I would have taken a picture of it.

All in all, it was a great craft show and I would definitely go again. Hopefully next year I will have the ability to enter as a seller, instead.

For more on Crafty Wonderland, check out their website here: http://craftywonderland.com/

And to see a list of other vendors who attended the show: http://craftywonderland.com/vendors/

Rebecca Tomb, on Etsy as BeckyTDesigns, just featured Porcuprints on her blog!

Here’s her feature!: http://beckytdesigns.blogspot.com/2011/12/featured-etsian.html

My latest listing on Etsy has just gone live! It is a hand-colored version of “Don’t Play Koi with Me!” I used calligraphy inks and watercolors for the color. Also, I added a calligraphy gold ink in the tail and body to make the koi fish scales pop!

Click on the image to see the Etsy listing and more photographs!

Every part of the Kelsey press has finally been put back together! And here are pictures!

The only thing missing are the roller hooks. The old ones are bent and I believe we will have to make new ones. Other than that, it’s finished.

This is what it looked like BEFORE:

And AFTER:

The next step is to make a beautifully crafted wooden base for the press. This will stabilize the press and have handles for more easily carrying.

“Don’t Play Koi with Me” was featured in a wonderful treasury this evening! Kelly Tankersley from  88editions put together a treasury featuring some wonderful artists, including my piece.

Thanks Kelly! You made my day!

It’s that time of the month again! December’s First Friday Art Walk is upon us! Don’t forget to show support for Etsy sellers on December 2nd.

For those of you who don’t know, FFAW is Etsy’s version of going on a First Friday art gallery walk/tour. Except here you don’t have to leave your couch. Just cuddle up to your loved one, or a nice glass of wine, and search Etsy for “firstfridayartwalk.” I promise you will discover some extraordinary artists!