Screen Printing - June/July 2017 - 36

shop talk

It's a small World,
after all

As I take Mr. Vegt through the building back to our screen
and graphics studio, he laughs. He tells me back in the 1970s,
he used to work here! Turns out our building used to house
the Comox District Free Press, and had a massive four-color
web press that published the local paper and scores of flyers,
Coincidence is a funny reminder that the best
papers, and other printed material. It was one of the largest
part of the job is the people.
employers in the region, and probably the biggest printer on
Vancouver Island outside of Victoria. Ernst ran their litho
andy macdougall, asdpt
camera, shooting PMTs and resizing type as well as making
plates. He did paste-up, stripped film, cut Rubylith, rubbed
down Letraset, and all the crazy things graphics people did
recently had a "full circle" moment with a fellow I had never
prior to the arrival of the computer.
met before - or so I thought. But it turns out our paths had
He moved away decades ago but stayed in the game,
almost crossed any number of times. This phenomenon probably
transitioning into digital production. In the back of his mind,
happens to people in many occupations, but I know from
he always wanted to return to the Comox Valley, and so a few
experience that in the graphic trades, it happens all the time.
years ago, he and his wife moved. He
When we "met," this guy, Ernst
isn't retired, but he is more focused
Vegt, handed me a mailer and hand"I felt a lIttle IntImIdated
on what he loves. Coast Imaging
written letter I sent him over 20 years
showIng off our studIo - In the
Arts' client list includes printing
ago, when I was flogging some of the
wIde world of graphIcs, we are
companies, artists, book publishers,
first inkjet film available in Canada. I
essentIally spot-color hacks.
galleries, photo labs, photographers,
had forgotten the piece, and looking
But it turns out the lure of
signage companies, and others with
at the prices made me laugh out loud
the squeegee impresses even
excellence in drum scanning, art
- here was one instance where costs
the slickest of the slick."
repro capture, proofing, and G7 qualihave dropped by half.
fications as certified by Idealliance.
The really strange thing to me was
I felt a little intimidated showing
our recent reintroduction. It came
off our studio - in the wide world of
through my daughter, Naomi, the
graphics, we are essentially spot-color
book designer. Turns out Ernst, who
hacks. But it turns out the lure of the
ran a high-end scanning and separasqueegee impresses even the slickest
tion company down in the Vancouver
of the slick. Ernst told me he took
area, photographed and scanned
a workshop in screen printing back
artwork and photos for many of the
in the 1970s and has always wanted to use it as an artistic
books she worked on, and he knew her and her work. When
process to reproduce his own photography. After seeing what
she mentioned growing up on Vancouver Island and her dad
could be accomplished, he left our meeting with a handful
being a screen printer, Vegt put two and two together and
of inkjet films to try out in his printer and a bunch of our old
said, "Aha - Mr. Silkscreen."
films he would test for Dmax, and said he would be signing up
Naomi sent us a mutual note and told me I had to meet
for an Intro to Screen Printing course in the very near future.
Ernst, who had recently moved to our Comox Valley
I gave him a copy of my book - the one my daughter created
community, far from the big city. So we made contact by
while in school that led to her job at a major publisher, which
email, and he came in to see me last week. This is where the
led to her meeting Ernst, and led him to me. Full circle.
circle starts to get filled in.
I look forward to him coming to print with us, because I
Some of you may know I work at a place called Wachiay
know I'm going to learn as much from Ernst as he will from
Studio. It's part of Wachiay Friendship Centre. The center
me. Over lunch, we started talking about mutual friends in
provides a range of services for urban aboriginal people and
the industry and the new crop of young designers and
their families in our community, from legal, health, and housmakers in our region. We've already started planning a
ing assistance to early childhood, preschool, and afterschool
graphic workers meetup/barbecue/lawn sports derby. Not
programs for kids and parents; dry food and hot lunch proonly will it be fun, but it will really complete our circle, and
grams; elders' lunches; and more.
help create new ones.
We run a social enterprise screen shop that earns money for
the center, provides training in graphics, printing, and audioAndy MacDougall is a screen printing trainer and consultant based on
visual media to native youth, and helps create small screen printVancouver island in Canada and a member of the Academy of Screen
ing businesses. Although focused on the needs of First Nations,
& Digital printing technology. if you have production problems you'd
Inuit, and Metis people, it is open to all. It's a really welcoming
like to see him address in "Shop talk," email your comments and
place - Wachiay means "welcome" in the Cree language.
questions to andy@squeegeeville.com.

screenprinting

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