Join us for an open-ended, hands-on letterpress workshop with Ben Aleshire, featuring Snowfort’s 1961 Vandercook Universal III. Ben will demonstrate the fundamentals of the press—how it operates, how to set and lock up type, and how to print—while participants get a close look at working with both metal and wood type from our cases.
RSVP Below!
We will print a broadside at the event, and all participants will get to take one home. Attending this workshop is an important step in the process of freely using the letterpress.
Here are a couple prints that Ben made on the very same machine as the one in the Snowfort basement, from before we purchased it from BluSeed Studios in Saranac Lake:
Ben Aleshire at his gallery
About the Presenter
Benjamin Aleshire is a letterpress printer, writer, and multidisciplinary artist whose work bridges small-press publishing, performance, and visual art. As the founding editor of Honeybee Press (2009–2015), his broadsides and books are held in special collections at Yale University, the University of Vermont, and St. Lawrence University. His work has been supported by the Vermont Arts Council and recognized with the Chighizola Poetry Prize. Aleshire’s wide-ranging creative life has included stints with Bread & Puppet Theater, touring internationally with Village Harmony, performing with circus and cabaret ensembles, and playing trumpet with the band Vermont Joy Parade. He holds a B.A. in Romance Languages from the University of New Orleans and an M.A. in Nonfiction from NYU. Alongside his ongoing work as a photographer and exhibiting artist, he serves as a book reviewer for Seven Days, poetry co-editor of Brazenhead Review, and contributing editor to Green Mountains Review, bringing a deeply experiential, hands-on approach to the traditions of print and craft.
RSVP
The cost for the event is a sliding scale, $20 – $40/person, which includes materials. Pay in person (cash or credit accepted).