makin' art

Every time I walk into the printshop, I'm confronted by art. It's inspiring to see the two artists I share studio space with making and doing and experimenting and starting over when it goes bad.

It's a constant challenge: am I an artist? a crafter? a designer? a business owner?

All of the above?

Last week I got the chance to really create something out of nothing, and not think about pricing, or product shots, or checking the ink color with a client--be an artist, as it were. It's the one-hundredth anniversary of the Vandercook printing press, and I lucked into a spot on the poster exchange. I put it off until almost the last minute...this artist is a real procrastinator.

My idea was to tell my Vandercook story--make it mine. Here's the first color setup, on the press.

Pulling proofs: I have a soft soft for palimpsests.

And now a question for you: how do you balance the not-for-profit creative process with the need to make rent every month? Any suggestions?