Saturday, December 13; 10am–4pm CT
In this in-person workshop, you’ll learn a variety of inking and typesetting techniques that break away from traditional typography and letterpress printing to reimagine the shapes of our alphabet.
We’ll use metal and wood type to create texture, pattern, and abstract forms and produce one-of-a-kind pieces that celebrate the visual qualities of letterforms. You’ll leave with a handful of singular prints—complete works in themselves or starting points for new compositions to complete on your own. This workshop is all about experimentation, surprises, and reveling in the hidden potential of type.
Ingrid Ankerson (she/they, Ypsilanti, MI) is an educator, graphic designer, maker, and letterpress printer from southeast Michigan. With an undergraduate degree in Journalism from the University of Wisconsin and a graduate degree in Creative Writing and Publishing Arts from the University of Baltimore, she has worked as a web and print designer, writer, editor, and instructor since the early days of the internet. She is full-time graphic design faculty at Washtenaw Community College (Ann Arbor, MI) and has taught letterpress workshops from her studio, Signal-Return (Detroit, MI), and Penland School of Craft (Bakersville, NC).
This visiting artist workshop is offered in coordination with Just Letters, an exhibition featuring letterpress work that focuses on type as image at Bethel University’s Olson Gallery, October 30–December 19, 2025.
Level: Beginner. Experience is required. Participants must have taken Letterpress 1: Printing Basics or a similar introductory letterpress workshop before registering for this workshop.
Certificate: 6 hours, Category B or C
Pricing
Market Rate: $180 (10% discount for MCBA members)
BIPOC/Financial Scholarship Rate: $90 (10% discount for MCBA members)
Pay-It-Forward Rate: $270 (10% discount for MCBA members)
$20 materials fee
MCBA offers two scholarship types for workshops—Financial Hardship Scholarships and BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, People of Color) Scholarships—to honor equity and increase access and artistic opportunities for those who have historically been underrepresented in the book arts. For individuals to whom these scholarships do not apply, register at the Market Rate or support MCBA's commitment to making scholarships available by registering at the Pay-It-Forward Rate.