The blogger starts screenprinting

First recollection of screenprinting was printing at my college Colgate University, helping a friend do a limited edition (about ten shirts) Mr. Natural (R. Crumb character) shirt that also said, "Keep on Truckin."

Until recently I had this shirt, it was a primitive print on shirt just a primitively tie-dyed.

We printed the shirts in the "Old Bio Building" which soon was at the time a rundown art space. The Olin Corporation had donated a new bio building and stipulated that Old Bio was to be torn down. The next t-shirt I remember working on was "Save Old Bio" shirts which I honestly cannot remember if we had stenciled or screenprinted. Activism so often does not succeed, but in this case we did start a campaign which did indeed save Old Bio and it stand until this day.

This was about 1971 and I think we hand cut the Mr. Natural stencil. I was helping my friend Peter Brown (now a PHD researcher in biology I think) because back in the day the water-based inks dried so fast you needed extra hands to keep moving or else the screen would permanently be clogged.

Start at the Beginning

“Start at the beginning and then go through till you come to the end.”

Alice in Wonderland, Queen’s advice to Alice

I'm not sure where I'm going with this blog, but starting at the beginning was the advice received here.