The Hamilton Wood-type and Printing Museum located in Two Rivers, Wisconsin is an amazing historical site, that has been preserving wood-type and printing instruments for many years. It’s a shame that something this notable doesn’t receive more recognition nationally that what it already has. I personally feel that if we can preserve history of how our ancestors made a daily living, then this museum too should have more impact on citizens of the country.
As a graphic designer today, I feel very inspired and lucky to have the technology that has grown with us throughout the years. A lot of manual work was done back then, for instance finding the correct leading and type pieces, cleaning them, and storing them back in their proper positions adds a lot more that you would be putting into projects. One positive aspect that I did gain from this movie experience was the quality the wood-type produced. The difference in this type allowed the letterforms to be a bit more textured than our standard print methods do today. I would love to have the opportunity to use wood-type to create some sort of poster. I think this distinguished look could still be quite popular today in art and amongst graphic designers everywhere.
It’s a shame that this museum is a bit left in the dark. There is so much hidden truth, knowledge, and history behind the doors at 1619 Jefferson Street, and even by selling wood-type pieces, it still wont hold as much meaning as the museum itself does. I feel that I gained quite a bit of knowledge by watching this film. I was used to hearing stories and facts about woodtype and printing, but to see it with my own eyes through a film-documentary made it that more enlightening. These days were so used to having the computer and printers do all the manual work, we almost forgot how we got to this point in life and where it all developed from. On another note, I would really love to take the time and visit the Hamilton Museum, and not to mention trying out the sundaes there too!!!
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