Photos from the Cowell Press

At the Cowell Press, preparation is key.

Poet and Cowell Press instructor Gary Young says setting a poem in type gives it “heft. It becomes substantial.”

A student carves a linoleum block for his project.

Ruebi Jimenez preps one of the aging Vandercook Presses before making a proof of her fine-art poster. She says the class is a way to slow down in a world of multi-tasking.

A student works the old art of printing as he sets metal type in a wood form.

Ruebi Jimenez makes sure type is set tightly in the form.

Paolina Fisher, an art major at Cowell College, carves a linoleum block that reads “All My Friends Are Science Majors,” a playful reflection of her college experience.

Megan Barrett, an art history major at Porter College works on her poster. She and student Alexis Kageyama are putting together a portfolio of Cowell Press work.

Alexis Kageyama, a sociology and psychology major at Cowell College, said the class is an outlet for her creativity.

Instructor Gary Young checks a student’s proof. His poet’s eye and handyman skills serve him well in the class.

Type is held in a wood form as it has been done for centuries.

The world of words and tools come together at Cowell Press.