Hatch Show Print by Jim Sherraden
With so many sessions to attend at the conference I had very briefly considered not going to this one. I had read the book and I was wondering if Jim’s session would cover a lot of the same ground. I was wrong. I really gained a great deal from Jim’’s session.
I could really tell that Mr. Sherraden spent a great deal of time preparing for this presentation. This session was chock full of examples of Hatch work, past and present. There two screens were constantly showing two different slides that related to each other. It was an excellent way to see two different blocks for one poster or to see the block and also see the final poster. Jim had put some of the recent work in the presentation, which was great to see. He even had work that was done within the last two weeks.
I was also greatly encouraged to see some of the great and more experimental design that is coming out of the shop lately. Jim has delegated much of printing and design of the new posters over to the interns and staff. While still using the original Hatch fonts these designers are achieving a new and innovative look. I appreciate the vintage justified Hatch poster, but it is great to see some different looks come from the historic type and blocks. He also has a great policy to encourage the staff to move on to other jobs, so more people can come in and learn this unique craft.
Jim is so comfortable on stage and it is obvious to see why he has been able to take Hatch to where it is today. I was impressed with how he handled questions from the audience. He not only took great care in answering the question, but he also asked for the persons name. Even more impressive is that he remembered the names latter on in the session.
It is fun to see what has and is being done at this 125+ year poster shop. They are preserving a unique part of American history. It is also very encouraging to hear some of Jim’s plans to ‘take off the black gloves and put on the white gloves’. He is planning on starting a library, display and gallery space on the second floor. He is doing great work in preserving these fonts and blocks, not by storing them under glass, but by using them on daily basis. This makes me want to get back home and get my own l920’s letterpress up and running.
