Lecture - Print Culture & The History of Print 1

Print is a topic I am personally very interested in and fond of, as a lover of analogue processes and physical forms of art as opposed to those viewed on a screen. The history of print can be traced back to around 1450, with the invention of the Gutenberg Press, with which moveable type could be arranged, laid out and printed from, allowing the mass production of printed material. For the first time large volumes of print was able to be produced, the Gutenberg Bible being the first major book to be printed in Europe. From then on, everything stemmed from this revolutionising invention, to where we are today, which is coined the 'late age of print' by theorist Marshall McLuhan.

Centuries after the Gutenberg Press, there was a divide in society and art was considered a thing only for the higher classes. Art schools taught the traditional 'arts', namely painting, sculpture, architecture, music and poetry. There was strong elitism within society in this regard, and life was very fixed; the rich were rich and the poor were poor. With the advent of the Industrial Revolution between 1760 - 1840 this class divide became even more apparent, causing what is considered as 'the making of the working class'. Cities were booming as new technology was being realised, factories started being built and consumerism was born out of large scale production. Factories owners and factory workers illustrated the clear separation between the classes with industry creating this physical divide, and people adopted an awareness of their place within society and the world. The arts and culture of the ruling class was still very much restricted from the lower class, which eventually caused those in the latter to start creating their own organic forms of culture, un-dictated by those above them. Great works started being reproduced, many made careers as engravers to create renditions of paintings to sell and distribute; art for the people, by the people. In the mid 19th Century Illustrated London News featured pull out poster prints, bringing art to the living rooms of the masses to frame and hang, allowing anyone to own art, to possess what was once owned solely by the higher class. Design schools also began to open, which focussed more on vocational and industrial educations than the disciplines taught at art schools. This sparks a debate on culture and the conflict between popular art and fine art, with people such as FR Leavis believing that culture should be for the elite and should be dictated by the minority.

As a sort of backlash, there was an attempt by fine art to present itself with an 'Aura', that is to portray itself as otherworldly, mysterious and less attainable for those not involved with it, a step back towards time before the Industrial Revolution when art was for the elite. This was and still is achieved with and by institutions, galleries with admission fees and steps leading up to them, famous paintings behind bullet proof glass and barriers such as the Mona Lisa. But as mentioned in the history of the image lecture, this Aura is often challenged and threatened, especially when art leaves the institutions, or when it is recreated on mugs or other memorabilia; another way that the common people can have art in this homes to own and enjoy. This cult-like snobbery is still apparent today, which I will touch upon in the second entry for the print culture lecture part 2.

There is somewhat of a middle ground in this conflict between popular art, considered as cheap and for profit and a threat to the value and aura of fine art, which is seen as important and to be worshipped and respected. William Morris in 1877 coined the term 'The Lesser Arts' to refer to art that 'does not either stir our emotions deeply, or strain the attention of the most intellectual part of our minds'. He was a self-titled advocate of art that was perhaps not considered as the Great Arts, but was accessible to most. He set up a print co-operative to create printed material that did not compromise on quality, but was available to the masses and the people. There are many many similar co-operatives, creatives and collectives who are doing similar things today, some still with mechanical printing techniques, but that is all featured in number 2 of this Lecture and blog entry.