Print Lecture

Print is basically ink being applied to a surface and transferred to another, which can be done by engraving onto a block or plate.

Printing has been around for a long, long time. Generally, things have more meaning and sometimes more value if they have physical existence, i.e. printed out as opposed to seeing something on a screen.

It evolved in eastern culture around 200 AD, various themes would come through for example woodcut onto cloth. Many prints started to become artefacts, representing religion capturing information and beliefs. Gradually the word spread about print and western people began the process in 1400 AD. Similarly with moveable type, it was discovered in Asia in 1000, and gradually travelled west until Gutenberg's press was created in Europe in 1400.

Some more facts about type:

• Type became heavily associated with class structure
• By the 18th century 1000 000 000 pages were being printed every day
• It became a method of mass communication
• Metal type began to replace wooden type, due to the higher durability
• In 1884 lino type revolutionised revolutionised the way newspapers worked allowing them to filter into popular culture.
• Before the invention of type, newspapers only had 8 pages!
• Print doesn't lie

Going back to class structure, in the 1900s mass communication seemed to trickle from the upper class right down to the working class in the context of people having the most money shouting the loudest. In particular this included the creation of war propaganda posters, and using print to push and manipulate people to join the war. All of this needed print making.

In the 1930's, mid war, people tended to make decisions based on things looking nice. Germany was very cunning at this, which showed in their cleverly designed propaganda posters. Literacy was really starting to grow in this era, as well as visual literacy, as it didn't matter if you couldn't read due to the pictures being so informative.

In the 1940's screen print began to evolve, as well as tabloid newspapers which weren't such a good thing. As print was so heavily trusted by any reader, tabloid newspapers and other publishers began to notice this trait and produce articles to exploit its readers into misinterpreting manipulated information. Which still happens to this day.