In the studio with Justyna & Mei-yun
At the beginning of February, two new interns left their art academy to join the studio for four months. Justyna, printmaker and graphic design student, has been supporting the team with her experience printing with riso; while creative writing student Mei-yun “Mei” has been using and sharing her knowledge as a writer to assist the studio. Before they leave and continue their journey, let’s hear about their Riso Pop experience.
Justyna
“Hi everyone, my name is Justyna. I’m from Wrocław, Poland, but I’m currently studying at the Willem de Kooning Academy here in the Netherlands. My own work is always related to print in some way, whether it is riso printing, screen printing, cyanotype or 3D printing ceramics – it has to have a physical aspect to it.
Since I was little I have been interested in architecture, but in my final year of high school I realised I was more interested in the shapes and forms rather than the technical aspects. Eventually I applied for Graphic Design.
The first time I tried riso was right after coming to the academy. It wasn’t love at first sight. However, a year later, when I used it for another project, something ‘clicked’ and my interest was sparked! I like the analogue feel of the digital technique, and the vibrant colours.
Riso Pop has been a great direction for deepening my knowledge of risograph print, mainly CMYK and small in-house publishing. I have also gained a better understanding of the community aspect: learning how to work with people that don’t necessarily work in the creative field, while developing effective ways to share my knowledge. I have discovered that I want to continue teaching others as part of my professional career.
That said, I’m really going to miss the team (and Tjido, of course)! We have been working on many, many projects together. Each day has brought its own challenges and tasks, and I enjoyed how diverse they were."
Mei-yun
“Hi, I'm Mei-yun, a student at ArtEZ University of the Arts, located in Arnhem. At the academy, we cover various approaches to storytelling, but I mainly focus on prose, audio and non-fiction. I’m particularly drawn to fiction, but I’m also interested in telling other’s stories.
Choosing Riso Pop might seem like an unusual choice for someone not necessarily equipped in the graphic field. The reason I came to the studio is because I wanted to gain experience in a different field and work environment, and try out a new print technique (one that holds such great aesthetic appeal to me). Self-publishing and copywriting isn’t really part of the Creative Writing curriculum, but I think those skills are essential for writers, especially since not many end up taking the ‘traditional’ route (getting your novel published by a renowned publishing house).
“I first came across Riso Pop on Instagram. Aafke has a strong social media presence, and her page looks very polished. But what you don't see on the reels, posts, and stories is all the work that is going on behind the scenes. I got to experience what it means to be truly part of an organization: learning to plan, promote, appeal and organize effectively and how to tackle big projects with a small team. We have been working closely together for four months, so I’m going to miss everyone too.
Writing has been a challenge sometimes, as Riso Pop’s commercial tone differs from my usual ‘artistic’ writing style, but it has been a nice challenge to take on board. I loved working with the riso printer for my personal project, and I’m definitely going to print some more zines :)
Can you share your personal project?
Justyna
“For my personal project I have created a series of 3 posters that showcase some memories I made here at Riso Pop. I was inspired by Czechoslovakian matchboxes from 1960, and wanted to experiment with a style that is different from my own, using simple shapes and bold colours.
I started out by creating collages, which I then digitalised in order to refine them. I pushed myself to be very precise with the way I used colours, since it is quite different to my way of working with riso. I am excited to share these posters as they are best evidence of how I have developed as an artist during my time at the studio.”
Mei-yun
“As a way of testing my internship knowledge and skills, and practice with self-publishing, I chose to create a zine and print it with riso. The final product: a short story paired with some visuals, mainly riso photos. The past few months, I've come across various photography prints that we use as examples for our CMYK workshop, and I find the results particularly stunning!
Quick summary of the story (an English translation as it is written in Dutch) : one evening, a young woman receives a strange request over the phone. Would she be willing to take care of the statue in the forest on behalf of Ulla? What follows, is a journey back to her hometown and her teenage years.
The real challenge was formatting and editing in InDesign to prepare the files for printing. The first attempt resulted in a rather stiff and editorial-like outcome. I had put my text in two columns, which wasn't really suitable for a zine. With tips from Aafke, I improved the layout. Studio assistant Yuteni guided me on how to create the visuals, while colleagues Chris and Justyna helped me with the actual printing process!
It may have become a small booklet, but there's a whole production team involved. I'm very grateful for everyone's help!”
