DOC The Turn to Ethics (CultureWork: A Book Series from the Center for Literacy and Cultural Studies at Harvard) by From Routledge in Arts-Photography

Review

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful. Covers more than youd think...By R. BlaisThis book is a departure from the standard narrative of a craft or hobby book; and as such; I think its one of those things; youll either like it or lump it. Me? I didnt lump it; but I enjoy comics toons anyway. The book was a quick read; but then again Im a quick reader. Ive only just gotten interested in screen printing; and have not yet created any of my own prints. But for the price; this book is a great value for an introduction and overview of simple to advanced processes.The book is in the form of 3 "zines"; comic books that are interspersed with profiles of artists and people in the screen printing trade.Chapter 1 describes the process of obtaining a screen and making simple prints at home. Described are the processes of attaching screens; using emulsion; burning the screen; and inking. After the 1st chapter is a profile of a screen printer; and then an "insert"; explaining that the comic is not intended as a "single source" for screen printing; and should be used as a "visual complement" to the booklet included in the "Diazo Photo Emulsion Kit". Then transparencies; photo emulsion; mesh count; supplies list; and curing cleaning are explained. Another profile follows.The next chapter; or "zine" shows our protagonists first experience selling shirts as a vendor in Berkeley. Its amusing and informative; and contains the F-word.Another profile follows; and the 3rd and last "zine" is about the authors adventures in a silk screen shop. And while Ive never worked in one; it seemed to be a good overview of a shop; and discusses techniques and equipment; such as color separations; fixing stained shirts; registration marks; coating screens; fixing mistakes; setting up the screens so theyll be centered; washing out the screens; taping the screens and setting up troubleshooting the multi-station press. This section is pretty detailed. Mixing ink pantone color matching is also touched on. Squeegeeing; color registration testing are covered next. Then on to curing checking the cure. After that; its on to discussing a couple of different techniques; flash-drying and reclaiming screens. after another misadventure; there is a small discussion touching upon different methods and techniques to achieve a few varied effects.After a thank you page; and another profile; theres a section about printing on paper; and building a vacuum table. Drying methods are talked about as well as troubleshooting. Then; another profile.At the end of the book are sections on manual color separations; cutting stencils by hand; squeegee moves (techniques); recommended reading; a last printer profile; a glossary; online resources; and some sample drawings to give you some inspiration.Unlike the other reviewer I found this book to be very informative. Yes; the narrative is different; but is by no means unreadable. Neither is it lacking in detail. Ive read a couple of other books; and none of them mentioned newtons (a measurement of force) or a durometer (a device to measure newtons). Of course its not intended as a book for "professionals" - the subtitle is "How to turn your home into a T-Shirt factory". Ive yet to read an honest DIY book that is intended for the reader to become a professional based solely on the information in that book; and for any profession; a book intended as a DIY is most certainly going to be rudimentary; and lacking in depth for professional knowledge.I found it accessible and thorough enough that coupled with a few online tutorials (yay Makezine.com!) and practice; Ill be making great prints in no time. And; Ive found a new catch phrase to describe someone that ticks me off. Youll know it when you read it.I hope you enjoy this book; should you decide to buy it.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. this book IS BAD; it tells you to do a bunch of ...By HILARY SEE PENNAthis book IS BAD; it tells you to do a bunch of stuff wrong as far as diy printing. the comic-style is pretty cool but the information is all wrong. i am amazed at how wrong it is; i donated this book with basically the same notation inside. DO yourself a favor and get "How to print t-shirts for fun and profit" by Scott O Fresener instead; its a much better resource for home printing0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. If you just need a little info - greatBy CodingChrisInformative for some short-run ideas you may have. I probably couldve found this information online at no cost; however.