Lucio Passerini veteran

How long have you been printing?

1982

Describe your first encounter with letterpress

I had a box of visiting cards with my name printed in the centre as a gift from my parents, for my tenth birthday. I hated the typeface because the last letter of my name, o, looked too much like an a.
But the smell from that box was delicious. My name was set in a fancy script face, Scritto a lapis, that I encountered again and used forty years later.

Where did you learn?

Milano

Who was your most influential teacher?

almost fully self-taught

What super power would you like to have?

extra sharp vision

Do you prefer to work alone or with others?

alone

What do you most value in your friends?

sharing ideas

When do your best ideas occur to you?

biking, walking, reading, drawing ...

If you were to die and come back as a typeface, which would it be?

Joanna by E.Gill

What tool do you use more often than any other?

pencil

What books are currently on your nightstand?

David Hockney and Martin Gayford, A History of pictures
Primo Levi, il sistema periodico

If you could study with any printer throughout history, who would it be?

h.n. werkman

If you have your own shop, what equipment do you own?

Vandercook T4 proof press,
Norberto Arbizzoni Albion press, circa 1870 (loan from Tipoteca italiana)
Bendini etching press

If you could change one thing about your shop, what would it be?

better heating

When and where are you the happiest?

in the shop and in the garden

What’s your day job?

teaching lettering and typography

Do you use any other techniques or media besides letterpress?

relief and intaglio printmaking