The Printing Process

Really the printing process is not too complex. Apart from that free copier I mentioned before, I utilize an exacto knife to cut out cover stencils and cheap spray paint (dollar general brand typically) to give them some color.


Here is 2nd Guesses



and this was the original 3 Speeches.

After cutting stencils, cropping covers, arranging pages, printing the art, pasting the editorial, and stapling the content I'm generally good to go and set to distribute the latest issue. Its tiring and time consuming if I have to do alone and amazingly more efficient with extra hands, as all work tends to be. I'm all for anybody that wants to lend a hand so you can see how to do it yourself. Then you can commandeer creative control over the production of the next one.

Stay active...

Bud Ries
Linoleum print, 2007.

Feel free to print this off and distribute it to your friends. If you're reading this from an office space where you have access to free printing, 100 copies is a mandatory order and the least you can do for me. Try slipping it in to your nest door neighbors mail slots or putting them underneath windshield wipers in a parking lot.

A call for advice during my summertime lag

Despite having all the necessary tools and supplies at my disposal (including 50 manilla covers already screen printed), I've been dragging my feet on production of the PAPR*PAPR. In fact, up until this post, I'd pretty much stopped moving forward with this "project." The problem is rooted in the fact that I'm still very uncertain what I'm doing, ie: what's my motivation, what kind of response am I looking for, and even what did people like about the first two issues.



Here's a little note I wrote myself in my sketch book this past month. It is as close as I've come so far to pinning a mission statement. Truly, one of the greatest impetuses was access to a FREE photocopier on Tulane's campus. Lame as it sounds, the fact that I technically wasn't supposed to use it fed my renegade impulses and made me feel a little subversive.

The point is I found a cheap and abundant source for printing paper that I wanted to seize upon. Now I've gotten to the point where I'd be willing to actually pay for those resources at Kinko's if I had to (and I probably will once I get back to school and find said-copier has an access-code installed).

But whether I like it or not that raises the stakes of the production. The PAPR*PAPR has begun to teach me very basic economics. The last two issues I've given away for free, as my goal was to make the PAPR*PAPR as accessible as possible. But what I'm struggling with is giving the paper value. I've poured a lot of time and energy ( but not too much money) into this project and so far the return has been minimal. How do you all think I could get a better return on this?

I'm thankful for the praise people have given me and hearing,

"Oh Bud! I read your magazine and thought it was really cool"

is encouraging but only to a point. The reason I've been inactive recently is because I've run out of motivation to carry on and the reason I've run out of motivation seems to be because I have no idea of the value of what it is I've got.I need a little more "something" to keep me pumped about staying up late in a fluorescent lighted office basement at night. If I could tie it into to some other projects people are working on that would be awesome. The PAPR*PAPR definitely needs to grow bigger and beyond me.

Until then I'ma get back to the presses and cook up something cool to look at. I just have to work through this rut I'm in and I would like to hear some advice from you in the meantime.

B