[please forgive cross-posting] For Immediate Release Contact: Jane Turnis; (719) 389-6138; [log in to unmask] NATIONALLY RECOGNIZED CAMPUS PRESS CELEBRATED IN NEW ART EXHIBIT The Press at Colorado College Tells Story of a Passion for Printing COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. April 13, 2004. Students remember passing dampened sheets of Rives Heavyweight paper to Jim Trissel, watching as he precisely placed each sheet, stamped it with a press-mounted plate, and handed it back. For 22 years they worked with this impassioned artist at The Press at Colorado College, and today, they continue to create finely made books, keeping alive an art professorıs sense of discovery, his love for the aesthetically beautiful book, and a legacy of fine printing that made its mark nationally and internationally, including: Three publications included in the New York Public Libraryıs exhibits ³Seventy from the Seventies,² ³Eighty from the Eighties,² and the current ³Ninety from the Nineties.² Several books collected by the Newberry Library in Chicago A book produced on commission from the Arts for Nature Trust of England as a 75th birthday gift for Prince Phillip, Duke of Edinburgh From April 17 through May 16, the fine art of such handset, letterpress-printed books created at The Press at Colorado College will be celebrated in a new exhibit at the Colorado Springs Fine Arts Center: ³The Press at Colorado College: The Pressroom as Classroom.î After its Colorado Springs run, the exhibit will travel to Scripps College, the Newberry Library in Chicago, the Minnesota Center for Book Arts, and the University of Arts in Philadelphia. On April 24, book-art fans can visit The Press at Colorado College (at Jackson house, on the southeast corner of North Nevada Avenue and San Rafael Street on the Colorado College campus, Colorado Springs) for a free open house where they can view the limited-edition books created there since 1977. The first press was brought to Colorado College in the mid-70s by then-provost Jim Stauss, who enlisted Trissel, a professor of studio art and art history, to help transport it. But Stauss died shortly thereafter, and the press sat unused for several years. In 1977, it came to life--as did Trisselıs interest. Trissel, whose father and grandfather had both worked as printers, took a sabbatical from 1977 to 1978 to immerse himself in the technology, design and history of printing. He sought out and learned from the very best in the art of fine printing, and he began to collect classic typefaces. In 1979 Trissel, five students and another faculty member printed Wendell Berryıs ³Reverdure,² one of the first books issued by The Press at Colorado College. An initially disgruntled Berry--he had earlier refused to sign any books--saw the finished 100 copies, and immediately signed them all. That book was selected for ³Seventy from the Seventies² at the New York Public Library. In the ensuing 20 years, Trissel and his students turned out nearly 40 books, including some that he authored, including ³LETTERpressworkBOOK,² currently on display in the New York Public Libraryıs ³Ninety from the Nineties² exhibit. At least 200 students--about 10 each year--worked with him, tweezering letters and spaces into place, aligning registration so a color would print perfectly on pages as they were fed into the press, one at a time. It was painstaking work; often a year or more was spent on one book. Sometimes only 25 copies of a particular book were made. Trissel was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in 1998, and died in 1999. The Press at Colorado College, now under the supervision of press coordinator and former Trissel student Brian Molanphy, continues to print books--poetry, history, sacred literature, historical documents and more--and students continue to learn the fine art of printing, carrying on the legacy of the fine campus press. The catalog for the exhibit ³The Press at Colorado College: The Pressroom as Classroom² is available for purchase ($15) at the Colorado Springs Fine Arts Center, 30 W. Dale St., Colorado Springs, (719) 634-5583; or at The Press at Colorado College (for $15 + $2 postage/handling), 14 East Cache la Poudre Street, Colorado Springs, Colorado 80903, (719) 389-6376. The catalog features essays by Trissel, former student / now faculty member and poet David Mason, former faculty member and poet Joan Stone, curator and book-arts expert Betty Bright, and Newberry Library curator Paul Gehl, as well as images of some of the pages created at the press. Exhibition and open house information: Saturday, April 17-Sunday, May 16 Exhibition opening: "The Press at Colorado College: The Pressroom as Classroom," an exhibit on book arts and fine-quality books printed by The Press at Colorado College. Exhibit will tour to Scripps College (August 26- October 18, 2004), the Newberry Library in Chicago (early 2005), the Minnesota Center for Book Arts (fall 2005), and the University of Arts in Philadelphia (spring 2006) after this show. 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Tuesdays through Saturdays, 1 p.m.-5 p.m. Sundays. Colorado Springs Fine Arts Center, 30 W. Dale St., (719) 634-5583, $2-$5. Saturday, April 24 Open House: Demonstration of The Press at Colorado College, as well as viewing and sale of the high-quality books produced there since 1977 using letterpress printing, calligraphy, and other book-arts printing techniques. Offered in conjunction with "The Press at Colorado College: The Pressroom as Classroom" exhibit at the Colorado Springs Fine Arts Center, April 17-May 16. Noon-5 p.m., Jackson House (southeast corner of North Nevada Avenue and San Rafael Street), Colorado College, free; RSVP to Brian Molanphy at (719) 389-6376. About Colorado College Colorado College is a nationally prominent, four-year liberal arts and sciences college that was founded in Colorado Springs in 1874. The college operates on the innovative Block Plan, in which its 1,900 students study one course at a time in intensive 3-1/2-week blocks. Editorıs Notes: For more information online, visit: Colorado Springs Fine Arts Center: HYPERLINK "http://www.csfineartscenter.org/newexhib.htm" New York Public Library: HYPERLINK "http://www.nypl.org/press/nineties.html" Photos are available upon request. __________________________________________________________________ Mail submissions to [log in to unmask] For information about joining ARLIS/NA see: http://www.arlisna.org//membership.html Send administrative matters (file requests, subscription requests, etc) to [log in to unmask] ARLIS-L Archives and subscription maintenance: http://lsv.uky.edu/archives/arlis-l.html Questions may be addressed to list owner (Kerri Scannell) at: [log in to unmask]