This past week, we started printing the first of four broadsides for our collaborative piece: What We're Made Of.  The imagery consists of various star charts designed in InDesign and printed from polymer plate, as well as linoleum cuts of drawings I have done to accompany the poetry. The poems were written by my friend Judith, and were inspired by NPR's Stardate series. The four prints will be housed in a portfolio case. Our goal is to print an edition of 25.

On our first day of printing, we successfully completed the imagery for two of the four broadside. I still have some imagery to complete and proof for the other two. Judith has been hard at work setting the type for the poems. All but one of them will be printed from metal type. One will be printed from a polymer plate because we do not have enough Lydian available in the studio. 

More images to come soon as we progress.

On July 17, I married my partner in a private ceremony overlooking Emerald Bay. It was a beautiful, simple ceremony that allowed us to focus on each other rather than everyone else. We invited two friends to join us, along with our pup (of course). It was a perfectly lovely day that allowed us to truly enjoy making a commitment to one another without worrying about if everyone was having a good time. We ended the evening with a moon lit dance under the stars (she's so damn romantic!) to some of our favorite songs (Brandi Carlile, Mat Kearney and a few other talented musicians who take us back to our very first weekend together).  I couldn't have asked for a better day to celebrate my love for her.

If you had asked me five years ago  I would have never expected my life would come so far and change so much. Growing up in a Catholic family (where family was modeled by the traditional/biblical husband and wife), I never allowed myself to explore outside of those boundaries. I knew for a long time that something wasn't right, that I didn't quite fit the "mold," but I didn't allow myself to even think about it. Years later and many lessons learned, I finally came to terms with who I was, and lucky for me this amazing woman wanted to be a part of my life. In the past four years, I have grown so much and changed so many things about my life that I never thought possible. I have taken so many risks and pursued my passion for art, and I couldn't have done it without the love and support of this incredible woman. Thank you beautiful.

This summer continues to get busier and busier. Casey is off of work for a few weeks, and of course, my schedule has picked up as her time frees. I suppose that is how it goes though. We have had lots of visitors already this summer. While Casey was still working, my sister and her family came to Reno for the first time ,followed by Casey's sister and her boyfriend.  We've visited the historic town of Virginia City, where we had a ghost tour of the Washoe Club and experienced some spooky occurrences. We also spent some time hiking in Tahoe, shopping in Truckee, and visiting Pyramid Lake.  It is always fun to have visitors and go explore our surroundings a bit more. And still one more visitor to come at the end of this month.

In addition to all of the visitors, I recently gave a demo with fellow artist Carol Brown at the Incline Village Library. The library was celebrating their 10th anniversary and someone had donated a Kelsey Press. Carol and Katherine Case of Meridian Press spent time restoring the press in time for our demo. We demonstrated how to ink the press and print, offering visitors a take away and sharing a bit of history about printing and presses. 

On top of all of this, I have been working on some collaborations with local artists. I have two in the works right now in addition to my own projects. One with my talented poet and professor friend Judith, and one with poet Jared Stanley. 

Judith is a retired linguistics professor and volunteers at the Black Rock Press. She is a beautiful poet and friend, and I am thrilled to be collaborating with her. She has written a series of poems inspired by Stardate (an NPR broadcast).  Judith is working on setting the type for the poetry, and I am working on the images. There are five poems that will be printed and housed in a portfolio case. We will work from metal type and polymer plate and linoleum images. Our goal is to create an edition of 25.  We will begin printing this week.

Jared Stanley is also a local poet and writer. He currently teaches at Sierra Nevada College.  Jared and I are working on a small editioned artists' book based on some of his writing. We are in the beginning stages of the project. Small mock ups are made but text is still in the works. The piece will (hopefully) include a performance aspect as well. More information to come as we continue working. 

And finally, I have been working on my own projects: a book project based on an old mining town, a 2016 calendar project, and a book project on school shootings. Here's a few images of the calendar project. More to come on the mining town and school shooting project. Here are a few pictures of work in progress on the calendar and some test prints I did for the Black Rock Press. 

This summer has brought some new beginnings in regards to my art too. I am now a member of the Artisans Market Place (AMP) in beautiful historic Truckee, California. AMP is a true co-op, featuring 18 artist members. The shop features a variety of work from talented folks. All items are handmade by local artists. 

We are located in Brickelltown in the Titus Home. The Titus Home was built around 1912. It was designed by architect Will Bliss for Frank Titus, Sr., a railroad engineer.  AMP is just minutes away from Donner State Park and Tahoe. Find us on Facebook and be sure to "like" us so you can keep up with all of the local events and happenings. And if you are in the area be sure to stop by and say hello. 

Here is a listing of the artists in our shop and their websites:

Nancy Beckert of All Strings Considered
Andy Blanchard of Tahoe Blue Pottery
Susan Bower of Truckee Threads
Julie and Ashia Burke of Absolute Jewelry
Colton Cox
Chrisi Donovan
Jennifer Ellis
Tim and Michele Erskine of Erskine Photography
Dan Gaube of Art Naturally Speaking
Trina Gold
John Jeffery and Nancy Kendrick of Sounds of Solace
Doug Jones 
Patty Lassaline
Rebecca Maidman of Rivka Designs
Jill Stevenson
Beth Wilson of Isabel Mirabeau Jewelry Designs
Greg Zerbel of Neat Tweets
And of course me:  Jaime Lynn Shafer 

The following photos were all taken by Doug for AMP unless otherwise indicated. 

I've been working on a series of broadsides based on the ideas that I initially put forth in my thesis project. My thesis project was the result of months of research on the history of marriage in the United States. From that research, I started reflecting on the idea that we generally make decisions about our life based on the people that surround us. Most obvious is the fact that as children we wish to please our parents, guardians, or siblings. But when do we stop trying to please the people in our lives and begin making decisions based on our needs and wants. For some people, me in particular, I couldn't let go of the idea that I needed to please my parents/family. So the decisions I made were based on what I experienced in my upbringing. Raised as a catholic, I had certain ideas about how I should live and what was acceptable. These ideas, of course, were combined and influenced by the opinions and ideas set forth by those I loved (and still love). So what changes cause us, as individuals, to step back and make a drastic change or alter our belief system dramatically? For each of us this is different. For some, we never stop trying to please those around us, and for others, well, they may never have cared what anyone thought to begin with. 
This print is the first is a series. Right now I have two additional prints in progress. This piece is letterpress printed on a Vandercook Proofing Press using wood type and a reduction linoleum block (4 colors). Printed in April of 2015 at the Black Rock Press.

Since I began working at the Black Rock Press, I have had the opportunity to assist in the monthly printing of the Showprint with The Holland Project.

Showprint is an all ages calendar of events featuring exciting happenings (music, art, film, etc.) along with art by local artists. Each month a different artist is asked to carve a linoleum block, which will be printed in an edition of 200 on the back of the calendar. The calendars are free and are deposited around Reno in various locations (Sundance Bookstore, Bibo Coffee on Record Street, The Black Rock Press) Since my arrival and the revival of the Showprint, we have printed 6 calendars with plans to continue throughout the summer months.  

The calendar is created and designed by Denali Lowder along with Garret Caulfield with a little design help from the folks at the Black Rock Press. The artist each month changes.

This past month I spent some time creating and printing the Proceed and Be Bold poster in order to promote our upcoming Mid-Month Movie Monday at UNR. Since we are screening a movie about Amos Kennedy, I figured it was most appropriate to create a poster inspired by his work. Be sure to check out Kennedy Prints and see his work.

I had a bit of printing help from my co-worker, Shoko. She is new to letterpress but wanted to help. So once I had things set up, she helped print. 

There were 8 press runs total on this print: light gray, yellow, yellow-orange, pink, rainbow roll, and black (three separate runs). 

If you are in the Reno area be sure to join us for the Mid-Month Movie Monday on March 23rd. 


Here are a few pictures of the printing in progress. 

I was asked to participate in The Holland Project's monthly Showprint. Showprint is an all-ages calendar produced in cooperation with the Black Rock Press. Generally, I meet with the folks at Holland at the Black Rock Press and assist in printing 200 copies. The calendar portion is laser printed and the linoleum is printed on a Vandercook. These prints/calendars are then distributed throughout the Reno area at local independent stores such as Sundance and Bibo Coffee for free. 

This month I was asked to be the featured artist. Here are a few pictures of the work in progress and the final printed version. Thanks to the folks at The Holland Project for thinking of me.

This past Sunday I had the opportunity to teach a bookbinding workshop at The Holland Project. The Holland Project aims to provide art opportunities (among other things) to people of all ages. 

Since I arrived in Reno, I have been assisting The Holland Project with the printing of the monthly Showprint, an all ages calendar of events that is distributed at various places around Reno for free. You can pick up a copy of the Showprint at Sundance, Bibo Coffee (on Record Street), or the Black Rock Press at UNR. 

While producing the Showprint, we talked about the idea of a bookbinding workshop which I taught this weekend. The workshop was a huge success and it was a privilege to meet so many wonderful people of all ages. I taught basic pamphlet stitch and stab binding techniques. Each participant made a minimum of four small soft cover books. 

Thank you to all of the people who came out and Kaitlin Bryson of The Holland Project for organizing.

Yesterday I spent the entire day in the studio. I worked on this print (above) that is based on a traditional Eye Chart. The original Snellen Eye Chart was developed by a Dutch eye doctor Hermann Snellen in the 1860s. The chart is used to measure visual acuity. It has eleven lines of letters. The first line has one letter. Each line thereafter increases in number and decreases in size.

I used a quote by playwright, poet, and artist August Strindberg which reads, "There are poisons that blind you and poisons that open your eyes."