The beauty of letterpress printing

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AIRSIDENan Fung PlaceTKO PlazaThe MillsNF Impact Partners

Letterpress printing: A journey that connects crafts from around the world 

Creativity doesn’t come out of anywhere. It appears when something is being transformed and given the sentiment, meaning, and form that are representative of that era. Many of the once-popular styles of craftsmanship are gradually disappearing and not being properly preserved, which also means that there will be less and less inspiration to spark creativity. Among those disappearing skills, there is letterpress printing. 

Letterpress printing is said to have shaped modern society. Bi Sheng who invented movable type blocks for printing during the Northern Song Dynasty (around 1041-1048) was one of the pioneers of letterpress printing. In Europe, the first mass-produced book by letterpress printing is the Gutenberg Bible that came about in 1455. Hong Kong used to have many movable type printing and casting companies, however, as offset printing began to flourish, the once-valuable movable type printing machines became obsolete and were sold as scrap iron. 

It takes concerted effort of aficionados throughout the entire world to preserve a craftsman’s skill. Nicole Chan and Donna Chan, founders of Ditto Ditto, a Hong Kong-based letterpress printing studio, first came across and immediately fell in love with an antique letterpress machine that was sitting in the International Printing Museum in Los Angeles, US on a random afternoon a decade ago. After the duo returned to Hong Kong, they became determined to bring letterpress printing back to the modern world. They connected with the Letterpress Community in the US and after an extended back-and-forth, purchased two refurbished tabletop letterpress machines from a craftsman. 

Although tabletop letterpress machines are easier to work with, they have their limitations in terms of output quality and possibilities. Determined to get the best printouts, the duo returned to the International Printing Museum to participate in their workshops to learn how to operate old-style letterpress machines. By chance, they took over a huge Heidelberg Windmill from an old printing master in Hong Kong. 

Whenever the machine works strangely or there are technical challenges, they will visit the very few remaining printing studios in Hong Kong to ask for advice and borrow machine parts. Along the way, they realized that it takes the effort and devotion of various people to preserve a craftsman’s skill. 

As the world continues to go virtual, printing is valued for its ability to reconnect people. These days, Ditto Ditto not only receives local orders, but also produces prints for customers in Japan, Europe, Australia, North America and many others. With their postcards traveling through international mail systems, their footprint is now all over the world, even to places they have never been before. Printed matter takes us on a journey and connects us with people around the world. People’s dedication and devotion to preserving letterpress printing has given this unique style of craftsmanship a second life. 

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