(Copyright: The Daily Texan)
The University of Texas’ Art Building has a new Risograph printer that helps students create attractive small-scale projects at a low cost.
The Daily Texan reports that the “new Risograph printer on the second floor of the Art Building” enables art students from the University of Texas “to give their small-scale projects a handmade feel.”
The Risograph printer, which resembles a Xerox copier, has the ability to “print a range of seven bright colours” but can “only print up to two colours at a time without smudging.” Although this increases the drying time required, and despite the fact that “the machine is unpredictable”, the effect it creates seems to be proving popular with the university’s students.
There is currently a team of five students, known as ‘fellows’, who operate the printer and use it to create print jobs for other students. Their fellowship program started in January this year, following an open call for fellows by studio art senior lecturer, Jason Urban, in 2016.
Among the five chosen is studio art senior, Jessica Vacek.
“I think a big thing with the Riso is experimentation,” Vacek said. “You understand the machine is going to take your image and do what it wants with it.”
The printer uses “eco-friendly, soy-based ink”, explained new fellow Kendall Bradley, and its unpredictability arises from “the surprising way it overlays colours on the page each time a new print is made.”
“I think people are really intrigued with the process and a lot more excited by the results than they assumed,” Bradley commented.
Often students “stick around” to watch their print jobs being completed. These jobs “typically cost $5 to $15” (€4.29 to €12.8).
“Students will still be very engaged with the fellows when they process jobs,” Urban said. “Students can ultimately be as hands-on or as hands-off as it suits them.”