Exhibition Graphic Design Letterpress Printmaking

The Print Project | The Golden Cabinet Exhibition

posted by Amber Weaver March 19, 2019

Presenting the Golden Cabinet exhibition, a curated exhibition of 30 letterpress posters created between 2013-2018. Golden Cabinet is an acclaimed experimental music night that takes for the acclaimed experimental music night that took place at the Kirkgate Community Centre in the small market town of Shipley, West Yorkshire. Each poster was created by Nick Loaring, one of the founding fathers of Letterpress publication Double Dagger and part of letterpress print platform – The Print Project.

Golden Cabinet’s ‘sonic attack’ attracted a hardcore of followers over its 5 years as well as the attention of the mainstream media and international artists. Taking inspiration from a type of music that is loud, brutal, and created a sort of in your face experience which was often repetitive and complex. Nick’s designs cleverly reflected this with repetitive patterns and fluid shapes fused with heavy layered elements taking centre stage in his designs.

All posters were letterpress printed by hand one at a time using a variety of materials such as washers, screws, vintage wood-type, MDF and more produced in a small edition of 30 or less. The type was carefully set by hand, firstly using what was available and then moving into hot-metal in 2014 as printing technology developed. Throughout the exhibition, the posters are organised chronologically as you walk through the space with the sizes and formats determined by exploiting the limits of two 1969 and 1972 flatbed proofing presses.