Did you see our story about Monica Edwards Larson, letterpress artist and owner of Sister Black Press? We mentioned that Monica had purchased her press via auction from The Benedictine Sisters of Perpetual Adoration; there is far more to that story.
Monica began uncovering the press’s history when she discovered a poem still locked in the bed of the press and an apron—“Lillian Black” written in permanent marker on its neck strap—tucked into the press’s cabinet. Wanting to learn more about Lillian and her connection to the press, Monica reached out to the convent and eventually received a response from Lenora Black (Lillian had returned to using her birth name, Lenora), who told Monica a bit about the convent. When Monica asked if she could use Lenora’s name for Sister Black Press, Lenora humbly suggested another sister’s name instead.
When Monica went to visit Lenora in Tucson (a location to which the convent had expanded), she and Lenora discussed the printery, as Lenora called it, over tea. Lenora was not trained as a writer and a typesetter before joining the convent; working in the printery was simply the task assigned to her. Lenora worked on the devotional publications that were printed at the convent, first learning to typeset by hand and eventually learning desktop publishing and digital printing.
Among Monica’s treasured gifts from Lenora is a black and white photo, now enlarged and hanging on her studio wall, of the nuns in their habits, working at the production presses. Monica suspects the photo was staged; wearing flowing habits when running the press could be a safety hazard. Nonetheless this curious photo captures the essence of the printery, and one can sense what happened here. The stack of paper nearly as tall as the nuns are, ready to be run through the massive presses. The room clanky, noisy, and saturated with the smell of ink and machine oil. Monica’s press, an SP15 Vandervook, is smaller and was used to print publications’ galleys (proofs) before they were printed on the larger production presses shown in the photo.
Monica did indeed name her business Sister Black Press and published her first book in honor of Sister Black. Titled These Days: A Book of Hours, the book reflects Monica’s desire to use the press as a tool for change, and its publication marked a turning point for Monica, from commercial printing to more artistic work. “I wanted the press to be used to help heal this messed-up world,” she said. The book, featuring all women writers, “was [my] first self-actualized piece and the first book I published.”
Monica shared that Lenora, now in her mid-nineties and still fairly active, is happy and honored that the press is still in use. According to Monica, Lenora is intrigued that it is being used in artistic ways, which is very different than how she used it years ago when the press was considered simply a production tool.
Sister, typesetter, printer, artist—connected through a shared press and a love of the printed word.
[Cover image by Moon Lake Multimedia. All rights reserved.]
