April 3, 2024
MCLA invites the community to an open studio event in Bowman Hall for 29 PRESS during Berkshires ArtWeek.
The open studio will be held on Friday, May 17 from 1-6 p.m. in Room 30 of Bowman Hall. This event is free and open to the public.
Join artist and MCLA Professor of Art Melanie Mowinski in the PRESS Room for a peek at the cylinder press, platen presses, crazy paper cutters, and, a Risograph duplicator.
Use the Vandercook (cylinder press) and Golding (platen press) to print the final layers of a mantra giveaway card with the text: “It always seems impossible until it’s done.” Contribute to the creation of a collaborative four-color zine using the Risograph.
Risograph printing will happen at 2, 3, 4, and 5 p.m. Each print demo will feature a different color. A zine folding demo will follow at 5:15 p.m.
A 2025 CMYK Risograph calendar created by Mowinski’s do-it-yourself (DIY) publishing class will be on view and for sale along with a selection of Mowinski’s sample artist book structures created during class demos. Proceeds from all sales will be put towards the purchase of another ink drum for the Risograph.
Mowinski is a professor of art at MCLA and formerly ran PRESS: Letterpress as a Public Art Project operated on Main Street from 2011-2016, which now lives on the MCLA campus in Bowman Hall. Learn more about Mowinski at www.melaniemowinski.com or on Instagram @melaniemowinski
About MCLA
At MCLA, we’re here for all — and focused on each — of our students. Classes are taught
by educators who care deeply about teaching, and about seeing their students thrive
on every level of their lives. In nearly every way possible, the experience at MCLA
is designed to elevate our students as individuals, leaders, and communicators, fully
empowered to make their impressions on the world. In addition to our 129-year commitment
to public education, we have fortified our commitment to equitable academic excellence.
MCLA has appeared on U.S. News’ list of Top Ten Public Colleges for nine consecutive
years, ranking No. 7 for Liberal Arts Schools in the nation for a third year. The
College's continued commitment to affordable education and economic prosperity is
reflected in its inclusion on U.S. News' list of National Liberal Arts Colleges for
Social Mobility since the organization adopted this ranking in 2019; MCLA is No. 1
in the state, No. 2 in the country, and No. 22 for National Liberal Arts Colleges.
These rankings measure how well schools graduate students who receive Federal Pell
Grants. Learn more at www.mcla.edu.
