I came across Officina do Cego, run by a group of crafts and art people in Lisbon, thanks to Kristine Martinova. She introduced us to the president of the Association, Nuno Ramos, who explained how they teach and make work using screen and letterpress printing. They make their own books, so also teach bookbinding.
Walking into the place I found machines that fondly reminded me of my early days in graphic design. I started young, around 15 years old, working during school holidays in the Maviyane Project.
These were the days before computers in the office and we did all the artwork by hand. I mean, totally by hand. We traced letters to make layouts and stuck things down with hot wax. We calculated the size of type that would work for a book using a formula and then sent that to the typesetters who sent us back rolls of text on photographic paper. If it wasn’t right the whole process had to be done again, causing delays, among other things. Attention to detail meant a lot more than it does now- it could end a project, or worse still a job.
We carried all of that experience to the computer age, thankfully.
It was a wonderful trip down memory lane. I might take one of their courses next time.
