Summer Hours

An afternoon learning risograph printing at Posy Press; plus, book-inspired vacations, the Moroccan national soccer team, and other good things.

Hello readers,

How was your week? Are any of you vacationing anywhere fun, or World Cup-ing somewhere? Are you celebrating Juneteenth today, or finding the best summer reads? Whatever you're doing, let me know how summer is treating you.

Here is a snippet from my summer so far: A couple of months ago, I wrote about risograph printing here and I've been twitchy to take a class ever since. One reason: It seemed fun. Another reason: A project I've been working on has me curious about different printmaking processes. So I signed up for an introductory workshop at Posy Press, which is a delightful design and risograph studio here in Atlanta. Then, I spent a good bit of time hand-wringing about what to print.

As you know, I've been trying to draw here and there, but my efforts haven't been yielding anything I'd want to use for this. My kid said that it would be "more satisfying" to print something I had drawn than it would be to print a photograph I had taken, but I disagreed. I didn't want thirty so-so prints. I wanted something I could frame and hang, or frame and give to someone else.

So I decided that the above photo would be perfect for this. I took it on a very sunny day in Marseille, which has become one of my favorite places in the world. There is no filter on this picture, and no retouching or enhanced coloring or anything. It's just bright, happy color.

After uploading the photograph to Spectrolite, I separated the blue and sunflower hues in the photo to get it ready for printing.

From there, it was on to the printer, which looks like an old copy machine. You load the printer with the first color drum you need for your project, and center your print on the top to create a rice paper stencil that will be used to create the final print. I printed yellow first, and then blue on top of it. This was the result:

What I enjoyed about the process is that it reorients your relationship to perfection. For example, if you look at the upper right and left sides of the photo, you can see where the colored stencils hiccuped a little during printing, and so things are just a hair off. But those imperfections are part of the charm, and one of the many reasons why I'm going back soon for community print night.

Here's to merry little imperfections, new tricks, and summer!

Until next week, friends,

Paige

Writing prompt: Nobody's perfect, right? Write about why that's a good thing.

What saves a man is to take a step. Then another step. It is always the same step, but you have to take it.

-- Antoine de Saint-Exupery

Endnotes

Booking Book-cations

It's summer, so maybe you have a beach trip planned, or a cruise, or a little weekend jaunt somewhere fun. Maybe, just maybe, you've booked a journey that's inspired by one of your favorite books or authors, or that provides conditions that are perfect for a leisurely reading binge. According to a recent article in The New York Times, the flight tracking site Skyscanner said that 55 percent of travelers have booked a trip inspired by a book, or would consider doing so. And a Vrbo trend report noted that 91 percent of its respondents were interested in trips centered on reading and relaxing. Those statistics are interesting, given the fact that the number of people who read for pleasure has dropped by 40 percent since 2003. Maybe in a world of constant updates and notifications, travel purveyors see that they can offer once avid readers a quiet spot to reconnect with reading, and mix with other likeminded book nerds too. Who can say? Just wondering: If you could take a book-inspired trip anywhere, where would it be and what would you do while there? Or, have you ever bought novels to read that were tied to a trip you've planned? If so, what were they and how did they make your journey even more memorable? Hit reply and let me know.

Don't Sleep on the Atlas Lions

In the 2022 World Cup, Morocco became the first African and first Arab team to reach the semifinal. This year they're back and eager to prove that their tournament success wasn't a fluke. So far, so good. Their first match against perennial powerhouse Brazil this week was a really feisty one that ended in a draw. The New Yorker recently ran a piece about just how much expectations have changed for this team, whose fans think this just might be the year they reach the final. Are we witnessing the rise of a new soccer juggernaut? We'll see where things stand a month from now. But tell me: Who do you think is going to win it all and why?

Things I'm Enjoying

"Los Porfiados" (The Stubborns), the 14 inflatable, interactive sculptures on display in front of the High Museum of Art until November 29. Michelle Obama's absolutely marvelous speech at the Obama Presidential Center's opening yesterday. The stunning official portrait of the Obamas by artist Njideka Akunyili Crosby. Lois Romano's An Inconvenient Widow: The Torment, Trial and Triumph of Mary Todd Lincoln. Jack White's latest single "Dollar Bill." Tommy Housworth on Whimsymaxxing.

Question for you

I like to keep my dear readers happy. So, is there anything you'd like to see more of, or less of here? Any themes or topics you'd like to see me cover? Anything you're wondering about? Please hit reply and let me know what it is so I can be sure I'm delivering things that tickle your fancy. Thank you!