hands
on press residency

The Hands on Press residency invites artists whose practice focuses on small editions of printed matter. The main objective of the self-directed artist-in-residence programme is to set up an opportunity for artists, illustrators and/or visual researchers to explore their own creativity through self-publishing and riso-printing, in the context of Kaunas, Lithuania and its creative community.

The residency programme aims to build a bridge between self-publishing scene in Kaunas and other cities, thus creating a possibility for further collaborations and cultural exchange. Moreover, it is expected for artists-in-residence to create work that reflects (directly or indirectly) on their experience in Lithuania, producing not only a printed edition, but also giving an opportunity for the artists to have a peek at what Lithuania and its creative scene has to offer while getting involved in it.

The residency is funded by Nordic Culture Point (Nordic-Baltic Mobility Programme for Culture)

Artists in residence

Laura Merendi

︎ 2023.08.24-10.24

Laura Merendi is a freelance graphic designer from Estonia. She graduated Estonian Academy of Arts in 2020 and since that worked there in the graphic design department as a technical assistant, risograph master and a lecturer. As a designer, she has mostly worked in the cultural sphere, designing for a cinema, local exhibitions, short films etc. She values the everyday, the local and the absurd and likes it when design doesn’t take itself too seriously but still has dignity.

Julia Nascimento

︎ 2023.06.19-08.20

Julia Nascimento is a Brazilian illustrator and cartoonist based in Sweden. She is passionate about storytelling and autobiographical narratives, and she makes cross-cultural themed work pointing out elements that connect us all. As part of her artistic practice, she has collaborated with international artists, and had her work published in books and periodicals in Brazil, Japan, USA, UK, and Sweden.

Tokyo was her home for nine years, where she began self-publishing zines and comics, and organizing and participating in events and exhibitions. There, she co-founded ToCo – the Tokyo Collective, a collaborative project in which artists are invited to tell visual stories about a selected theme. In Japan, she also discovered risograph printing in 2017 and was immediately fascinated by this technique with its experimental nature and wide range of possibilities. She says it was a game changer! In 2019, Julia co-organized the international riso group show Meet Me Here. The group, consisting of 13 other artists, had one exhibition in Osaka and another one in Tokyo.

This is Julia’s first time in Lithuania, and she’s super excited! She believes it will be an amazing opportunity to broaden her network and learn about a new culture. She’d like to spend her days of the residency exploring Kaunas rich cultural life, trying new food, seeing its architecture, learning about its history, sketching, and also meeting new people, as well as deepening her printing knowledge with Gabrielė and Inga at Hands on press.

︎ M ore info about artist

About Hands on Press

We are an independent printing press and a self-publishing studio located in Kaunas, Lithuania, established in 2021. The studio is run by designers and illustrators Inga ir Gabriele. We love analogue printing techniques and we hope to introduce them in creative ways to a wider audience. We work mainly in the fields of art & culture, designing, printing, bookbinding for a variety of clients, ranging from national institutions (museums, libraries, cultural centres), cultural organisations, small businesses, to private clients (students, artists, enthusiasts of small presses). We continuously explore our own creative practices and have recently established a one-piece gallery at the premises of the studio.

You can read a bit more here and see a bit more here.

If you have any further questions, don’t hesitate to get in touch via residency@handsonpress.lt

The residency is funded by Nordic Culture Point (Nordic-Baltic Mobility Programme for Culture)

The Hands on Press residency partners and collaborators that we are very grateful for are:

Lugemik Publishing (Estonia)

Kuš! Komiks (Latvia)

Globe Art Point (Finland)

Museum of Everyday Life (Iceland)

Kaunas Artist House (Kaunas,Lithuania)

Kaunas Gallery (Kaunas, Lithuania)

Catalysti (Finland)

Kaunas Full of Culture magazine (Kaunas, Lithuania)

PAM + Reading edge (Sweden)