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A W E N P R E S S (pronounced Arrrrwen) is the private press of artist and printer Helen Moss of Creetown, Scotland. I work in the tradition of publishing entirely handmade, and limited edition private press books and prints.
Awen is an ancient Welsh word meaning 'inspiration' or intuitive knowledge, specifically that which inspires the bards, poets or soothsayers. Personified, Awen is the energetic muse of all creative folk, a divine inspiratrice or, in modern language: the flow state. It is also a name I hope will bring a little feminine magic and balance to the private press scene. The mission of the press, is to publish beautiful handmade books and prints, to raise up Scottish women writers and other artists, and to carry positive messages of hope and respect for Mother Nature. Love, must be the answer. |
I make acrylic engravings or lino plates from intuition, based on my painting practice and regular drawing or monoprinting on glass, exploring contemporary expressive printmaking within the tradition of the letterpress book crafts. The text is all hand set using a variety of moveable metal types, locked into a chase and printed on fine papers with the final book being hand sewn and bound in house. Printing is a slow and beautifully off grid, low impact artform using antique tools, materials and machines, and a wide variety of skilled processes. The workshop was gifted to me by my husband Graham Moss of Incline Press, and I print on either an 1846 Albion Press, a 1914 Arab platen press, a Harrild proofing press from the 1880's, or - if I ever get up the nerve - Graham's 1950's Autovic.
Contemporary publishing is no longer sustainable, and even digital artists are subject to AI theft. Letterpress is listed as an endangered craft, but perhaps as a slow artform it can make a meaningful contribution to the regeneration of the low impact, traditional publishing model begun in the 1880s with William Morris' Kelmscott Press, which rejected mechanisation and raised up the voices of his day. On our move to Scotland in 2025, it was Graham's vision to teach the whole range of book arts and to support new private press printers, a vision I hope to serve in a small way, in the future.
Contemporary publishing is no longer sustainable, and even digital artists are subject to AI theft. Letterpress is listed as an endangered craft, but perhaps as a slow artform it can make a meaningful contribution to the regeneration of the low impact, traditional publishing model begun in the 1880s with William Morris' Kelmscott Press, which rejected mechanisation and raised up the voices of his day. On our move to Scotland in 2025, it was Graham's vision to teach the whole range of book arts and to support new private press printers, a vision I hope to serve in a small way, in the future.
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