In honor of our latest Kennedy Prints project, the Bookish Letterpress series, we’re rounding up all our incredible collabs with master printer, statement maker, and genuine joy-of-a-person, Amos Kennedy.
With six editions under our belts, every new endeavor with Kennedy is a new, exciting, and unchartered adventure. From our yearlong letterpress subscription to our celebratory anniversary edition, each piece of work that Kennedy produces is a lesson in love—the love of craft, the love of ideas, and of course, the love of letterpress.
If you’ve read any interviews with Amos or seen the aptly titled Proceed and Be Bold, the feature-length documentary about his life and work, you’ll know that his oft-proclaimed humility is laced with subversion and that his unlikely path to becoming a printer is the stuff of legend. His approach to printing challenges assumptions about race, work, what art is and who it's for.
A rabble-rouser with a cause, Kennedy’s energy is infectious, his irreverence inspiring. His prints convey his imperishable passion, and his determination to move others to action, to encourage people to put their brains to positive use. He has a predilection for powerful quotes and potent phrases, conveyed via sharp graphics, bold typography, and curious color combos of overprinted text. His hand-pressed editions are a gutsy balance between controlled chaos and planned precision. A thumb print, a thick splotch of ink, an unexpected smudge—it’s all part of the appeal.
