About the Press

The press’s work is rooted in traditional forms and methods of setting words on paper. It is about creating beautiful, valued artifacts, always in service to the text. Any imagery is carefully selected to honor the author’s words.

The goal: worthy vessels for writings with urgency and relevance for our time. Most texts are contemporary; techniques such as hand-set type and hand sewing are consistent with those common prior to the industrial expansion of the publishing industry.

The press conceives and initiates its own projects, and welcomes commission work as well. Most of the work is collaborative, engaging authors, artists, and others in a conversation shaping the project. Each project unfolds in a unique way, and the conversation often yields unexpected rewards.

Sandy and Keith
Sandy and Michael

Proprietor Sandy Tilcock has over 30 years’ experience designing and producing limited-edition books, broadsides, commemorative awards and other forms. Her work, built on a long-standing relationship with her faithful Vandercook 219 hand-cranked cylinder press, is known for its elegance, precision, and the sensitive integration of text and image.

Sandy’s career in book arts began with a passion for binding books by hand. Her bindings have won awards for their creative design and mastery of detail.

Grounded in traditional techniques, she also calls on her creativity in producing alternative book structures. lone goose bindings reflect the principle that form follows function; books are made to open freely and to be read.

Sandy began making protective boxes for some of her books in 1983. Since then, her innovative variations on the basic clamshell box and impeccable craftsmanship have earned the respect of collectors, artists, photographers, printmakers, and others across the country.

Over the years, Sandy has shared her passion and her knowledge of book arts in many classes and workshops throughout the western US. She continues to seek opportunities to teach, and finds that, for many, an introduction to this craft is an unexpected revelation, a valuable antidote to the speed and commotion of our information-overload age.

The Art of Being Unseen is an annotated catalog of Sandy Tilcock’s letterpress work with commentary by writers, artists, and other collaborators, published in 2014. Click here to view of PDF of this book.


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