11/30/2012 4:34 PM

Giving Thanks

By Frank Radosevich II
November 21, 2012

A Bradley art professor and student are giving thanks this year with a hand-crafted Thanksgiving-themed print made for an online arts magazine.

The project came about after Tom Biederbeck, an editor with Felt & Wire, an arts blog focusing on papermaking and letterpress work, approached Bradley graphic design professor Robert Rowe.

Rowe and Jake Guzan, a senior studying printmaking, set about designing and producing the card, which they printed by hand from the University’s Vandercook press.

“I was thrilled that they thought about us,” Rowe said of the offer from Felt & Wire. “It shows that our letterpress program has attained some national attention.”

The card’s color scheme of deep reds brightening to mild golds was inspired by the view from the studio in Heuser Art Center. The large south- and west-facing windows on the second floor offer a fantastic view of the vibrant autumn sunsets.

Guzan and Rowe also added some visual Thanksgiving cues to the 12.5-by-19 inch card. The letter “V” in “GIVING” became a cheering hand hoisting a cup while the “A” in “THANKS” morphed into a pair of hands offering a pray.

Rowe said he and Guzan printed roughly a dozen of the cards at Bradley’s studio. The Heuser studio regularly offers classes for both students and the public in letterpress and book arts and also serves as the meeting place for a community letterpress group.