The trip began in London. Jon’s first international flight went smoothly, and soon they were on the Tube heading to their stay in Kentish Town. It always takes time to adjust to the drivers being on the other side of the road, but they quickly got a feel for the neighborhood and set out to explore. Over the first couple of days, they visited  many of the city’s best-known sites, including the Tower Bridge, Buckingham Palace, Big Ben, St. Paul’s Cathedral, and Trafalgar Square. They were nervous but excited for the first shop visit. 

The first shop visit of the tour was to Hand & Eye Letterpress in Whitechapel. Hand & Eye specializes in printing beautiful hardcover editions of classic novels and recreations of rare album cover sleeves for vinyl records. They met with owner Phil Abel and his associate Robert Hetherington, who showed them the shop and shared their experiences with printing in London. To celebrate their successful first visit, Enzo and Jon enjoyed a few pints and bags of Taytos—naturally.

The next day they met Graham Bignell, who runs New North Press and Graham Bignell Studio, where he conserves and stores works of art. They weren’t able to meet with partner and graphic designer Richard Ardagh, but Jon fawned over the incredible zines on display. One of the main things that drew them to New North Press was their 3-D printed font, A23D. Seeing old technology blended with the new was fascinating, and they admired how New North Press continues to push the boundaries of letterpress in the 21st century.

Next they stopped by Nice & Graphic in Peckham, where owner Michelle Dwyer (a fellow American!) inspired them with her work in teaching the community about letterpress. Her optimism shines through in the bold colors and striking gradients that define her work.

The next morning, they headed to the London Centre for Book Arts, “an artist-run, open-access studio offering education programmes for the community and affordable access to resources for artists and designers” (LCBA website). 

Jon had to head back home to Phoenix on November 16. But before he left, they made sure to visit the Tate Modern, where a massive exhibit of Mike Kelley was on view. Kelley is one of Jon’s biggest artist influences, and being able to see so much of his work together was super inspiring.