Friends of Transit Print Invitational

Marnie Galloway of Monkey-Rope Press

What a show! Last night was the opening reception of Transit Residency's Print Invitational at the I Am Logan Square gallery as part of Chicago Artists Month.  I was proud to contribute three prints from the CTA Announcements series and the first of the bicycle subculture pugilists prints. This sneak-peak picture was shared by Transit before the opening...

...but the gallery was so packed last night, I couldn't get a photograph of the work myself!

The crowd spilled out onto the sidewalk in front of the gallery, amiable and full of delicious treats from Paper Moon Bakery and locally brewed craft beer by Revolution Brewing.

Congratulations again to Transit Residency for organizing such a wonderful show!

New Prints in the Shop

Four new prints in the shop! We've got a deep sea, shiny metalic "bioluminescent" jellyfish; its warm-water cousin; a cicada-killer wasp chasing a cicada; and, our personal favorite, a tea-time Jolly Roger flag. 

**3 cheers to Evanston Print and Paper for studio time, coffee delivery and light-hearted camaraderie.

Summer Round-Up

It has finally happened: the high temperatures later this week will dip in to the upper 50s, pumpkin-flavored everythings are available with irritating regularity at coffee shops and bakeries city wide, and citizens everywhere are discovering orphaned gloves and single cough losenges in newly aired-out jackets. Summer is over and fall is settling in!

We here at Monkey-Rope Press are settling back into a long-overdue work flow after a heartily enjoyed summer hiaitus, but that's not to say that we've been without news:

• Earlier this month, Chicagoist and Gapers Block picked up on our CTA Announcement print series. Any and all publicity that hilariously modulated voice acting can get, the happier we are! 
• The first chapter of Monkey-Rope Press's first graphic novel, In the Sounds and Seas, is now available at both Quimby's here in Chicago and at Comix Revolution in Evanston. If those are too local for you, the book is also available on our etsy store.
• Last but by no means least, we printed wedding invitations for beloved pals, fellow nerds and sociology PhD candidates this summer. I offered to print their invitation before I knew what they wanted, and couldn't have been more tickled or excited by their idea. Who needs cherry blossoms and cursive script when you can have gigantic robots destroying the Las Vegas strip?

This brown, cream and metalic-bronze linoleum block print was printed on Cream Cordtone Speckletone French Paper on a Vandercook 4 proof press at Evanston Print and Paper Shop. Unfortunately, Las Vegas was not damaged in the production of this print.

Looking forward into the coming layering seasons, we look forward to adding new prints to our shop page, publishing small experimental comics and settling into Chapter 2 of In the Sounds and Seas. Now it's time to put on a kettle for tea and settle in to business. Happy autumn, one and all!

Printing the Cover

Linoleum block relief carvings for both the cover pattern and text

The first color: half and half black and sliver ink for a muted-metalic grey, on French's Dur-o-tone Steel Grey paper

First color printed...and look at what's on the wall! Way to go!

(Many thanks to Evanston Print & Paper for accomodating our last-minute press needs.)

Metalic silver ink for a popping title

The first trimmed-down mock-up of the cover of In the Sounds and Seas (vol. 1 of 6).

This afternoon I drop off the cover stock to Salsedo Press, who is offset printing the text block of the book and folding/coallating the press pages. For the first time in 6 months, this project will be out of my hands. I reckon that means it's time to get started on volume 2 this weekend!

A print in its natural habitat

A few months ago an old acquaintence--librarian, bibliophile, friend of the book arts and all-around swell lady--was passing through town and purchased my personal favorite print, Johannes Gutenberg says Way To Go!  It was a lovely reconnection, and though I was sad to see her leave, I was happy that a beloved print was finding its way to a home where I knew it would be appreciated with the same balance of earnest geekery and flippant irreverence that I intended.

This morning my email was graced with a printerly update: the Gutenberg print in its new home! I'm sure everyone else appreciates how (intentionally) funny the placement of the print above the home inkjet printer is. 

Way to go, Louise, and thanks for the update!