RISOGRAPH RESURGENCE

Published in 2015 in Uppercase Magazine, Risograph Resurgence is a summary of research I did exploring an emerging international Risograph printing scene and the artists/studios/collectives who use it. The research would eventually inform the exhibition Prints & Inks: International Risograph Edition I featuring the artists that I interviewed for the article.

The text of the article I wrote can be found below, along with magazine spreads. If you are using this article to inform your work, please ensure attribution/reference to the author - thank you!

Risograph Resurgence
By Melanie Yugo
Published in Uppercase, Issue 25, April/May/June 2015

The Risograph is a relative newcomer to the print world. But for a growing amount of artists, designers, publishers, studios and institutions, this printing machine is quickly becoming a definitive creative tool in today’s graphic art, design and publishing milieus.

From the outside, the Risograph looks like a photocopier. But its insides work differently. The machine is essentially a high-speed stencil printer. A file is sent through a computer or an image is placed on the glass of the machine.  The stencil of the image is transferred to a master sheet, which is wrapped around a cylinder filled with coloured ink. Fluorescent pink is a favourite of users. Ink is pushed through the stencil onto the paper as it passes through the machine.

What comes out are high-quality, tactile prints, similar to a silkscreened print, created with less setup time, less equipment, and lower costs overall. At the same time, they exhibit a handmade aesthetic, or,  as Ben Freeman, co-founder of Ditto Press, the first production studio in the UK to carry Risograph printing, notes “a human element”.

This makes the Risograph ideal for creative content produced in multiples, from zines to art books to posters to album covers.  Artists and independent publishers are able to achieve various styles and goals with the machine; highly graphic art and design or shapes filled with halftones work best.  For example, artist JP King,  who founded Toronto-based publisher Paper Pusher, creates Risograph work informed by the utopian geometry of Modernism. Risograph illustrations by Clay Hickson, who also runs Chicago-based Tan & Loose Press, reflect postmodern design combined with a splash of airbrush. Graphic designer and director of Glasgow-based Risotto Press, Gabriella Marcella, lists the shapes and motifs of The Memphis Group as inspiration for her Risograph work.

The Risograph was developed in 1986 in Japan for large-volume print jobs in offices, churches and schools, before giving way to toner-based photocopiers. Its use for creative purposes was arguably not one of founder Noboru Hayama’s intentions. Many recognize Knust, a print workspace in Nijmegen, Netherlands, as a pioneer in this area. Founded in 1983 by Jan Dirk de Wilde, and later joined by Joyce Guley, Knust was a collective looking for inexpensive ways to produce underground zines and comics. After experimenting with other stencil duplicators, they purchased their first digital Risograph in 1997. Word of their stencil printing expertise and publications spread outside Nijmegen, with artists and graphic designers travelling to use their facilities for projects.

The Risograph’s renaissance in the last several years is in part due to the Internet and a global network of users who are eager to share their creative work and knowledge. Most acquire older Risographs through sites such as Craigslist or eBay. A growing amount of information is now available online through wikis, mailing lists and forums, such as project photos, where to buy obsolete parts, and paper types. For example, Issue Press founder George Wietor, who is based in Grand Rapids, Michigan, initiated The Atlas of Modern Risography to map creatives around the world who are using the Risograph in their practice. Its successor, stencil.wiki, is a platform for sharing knowledge such as repair tips, model types, and colour charts. He recalls his first encounter with the Risograph was discovering the work of UK-based Landfill Editions online, which convinced him to purchase his own machine.

Offline, studios such as Freeman’s Ditto Press and the not-for-profit collective The Rizzeria in Sydney, Australia, offer workshops or drop-in hours for the public to use their Risograph. Academic institutions are now integrating the process into their curriculums. International art book fairs have also increased the Risograph’s profile. As de Wilde and Guley say, “Not so long ago we were the only ones at art book fairs with Riso books…If you now go to the New York Art Book Fair (NYABF), you will find dozens of Risoprinters.”  It was at the 2011 NYABF where Djohan Hanapi, Marilyn Yunjin and Muhammad Izdi of Knuckles & Notch, a Singapore-based Risograph publisher, first discovered Risograph zines. Now these fairs expose them “to different kinds of artists that share similar experiences and leave us feeling part of the Riso community.”

The word “riso” means ideal in Japanese, but using the Risograph for purposes other than for what it was created means making mistakes is part of the process. Most design with the Risograph’s strengths and limitations in mind. Misregistration of colours is a frequent occurrence. “The capacity for experimentation is huge,” says King, who includes testing ink densities and playing with halftone screen patterns as part of his process. “Aside from things like print size and colour palette, the inherent limitations of the process dictate a lot of the design decisions I make. It’s a balance between figuring out what boundaries to work within, and which ones can be pushed, “says Hickson.

It’s difficult to predict the long-term impact of the Risograph. Some hope its increased use will lead the Riso Kagaku Corporation to develop a machine specifically for creatives. Others are concerned that Risograph printing will become fetishized, or that its resurgence will be short lived. But as Marcella notes, “When you strip away the trend aspect of it, it offers a very sustainable role.” Not only has it allowed artists to reclaim printing as an experimental process, it allows for more control over the production process.  A collaborative network of creatives from across disciplines has developed. Even further, the machine could become a recognized tool for disseminating ideas in an affordable and democratic way. For example, King imagines a future where the Risograph will be part of everyday life, with “local Risograph clubs, where people of all generations gather to produce printed matter for their communities.”  

At the moment, many would agree that while Risograph printing remains a niche process, its place in printmaking seems to be more secure every day. As Wietor says, “It’s definitely out of the church office and more and more part of the vernacular of the art, design and publishing world.”