Scott McAllister was interviewed by Mark Kilfoil on CHSR's (97.9FM) program "The Lunchbox," on August 2nd, 2018.
MK: Scott, it’s nice to meet you this morning. SM: Thanks, good to meet you too, Mark. MK: So what is it you’re up to this week in the Barracks? What’s your art of choice? SM: My art of choice is printmaking. So letterpress printmaking and lino block cutting. MK: And we’re not talking just taking a pencil and writing block letters very carefully here. SM: Well, that’s part of it, see, but I do work with wooden type and lead type as well, so there is a part that’s hand-done and there’s a part of it which is machine-made, and I’m somewhere in between the two of them right now, working with the letters that have been made by machines, but also the designs that I cut myself. MK: So what attracted you to this work? SM: It was luck, happenstance, it was by no means and intention or anything I planned or thought I would do. I just kind of fell down the hole. MK: How long ago was that? SM: That was about a year ago in this discipline. MK: So fairly recently then. SM: Fairly recently, yeah. MK: So what was that initial bit of luck in this area? SM: Well, one person knew another person and I had to make some wedding invitations, so I did that using these little machines here, because I thought that would be quite a thrill to do. MK: So this is something that I would’ve thought very uncommon, because you can print a lot on a laser printer these days. Is it about the physicality, the use of these machines to do the printing that attracted you? SM: I’m gonna say it’s just a way of thinking. I don’t necessarily think any one activity is more physical than another, it just so happens that the behaviours that manifest in thinking through problems appeal to my type of brain and my type of occupational space. So it’s physical, but I’m also a computer programmer, and that’s physical too, it’s just a bit more minute. The detail happens in my brain and fingertips more than my physical body, and so they’re different but the same. It’s just maybe a different way of thinking. MK: So you could have started out with just a pencil and a piece of paper, but you also have these machines. Where did they come from? SM: So those are Rabbit Town Press machines there. So I just have a little bit of an arrangement that let’s me use them, but they came from history. They’re pretty old. MK: So these are old, historical machines. SM: Yeah, well, if history doesn’t tarnish their rust so much, maybe they’ll stay with us a bit longer MK: So tell me about the machine, how does it work? SM: Well, the basic idea is that you have a relief, so you have a part of a piece of material, usually that’s wood. Could also be lead or, in this case down at the Barracks, it’s linoleum. And you have part of that which is a raised surface and part of that which is a lowered surface. And the raised surface catches the ink, and the ink is applied by rollers, and then you put paper somewhere along that setup and the ink is transferred from the block to the paper by means of a little bit of pressure. MK: So basically a stamp. SM: Kind of like a stamp, yeah. MK: But obviously this machine is a little bit more fancy than your home stamp. SM: Yeah, but you can do a lot with a potato stamp. MK: Is that what the invitations were made with? The potato stamp? SM: They had a woodblock, which is part of it, but it was a lead type. MK: Now is this old lead type you’re connecting with history here or is it stuff you have made yourself? SM: It’s old stuff, they actually do make it still. So that’s the thing, I wouldn’t relegate this trait to history, I think from the outside it does look like it is a part of history, and that may be true, but it’s also part of our current moment here. So there’s a very big thing happening; they’re old, but they aren’t historical, these types of machines and techniques, and they’re being used again. The history is yet to be written with this discipline here. MK: There’s old phrases that come to mind, like everything old is new again, and it feels like a bit of a renaissance in a lot of different areas. Is this catching that wave of a combination of nostalgia or D.I.Y. or hands on? Do you think that’s part of it? SM: I think it’s the economy of it. I think people forget about this stuff, it gets cheap enough to buy, folks who couldn’t afford it before get involved, that’s myself there. And then those people who didn’t have to worry about paying off machines in the first place get to have a little fun with em. So I think a lot of it is just economy; stuff gets forgotten about, and then they get accessible, because the people who couldn’t quite pay the ticket price in the first place can finally get their paws on it. MK: And of course you’re lucky enough to work with Rabbit Town’s material already, so the investment was lower even for you. SM: That’s right. MK: So what’s the process of making one of these? I think you call it lithograph? These are the reversed images, right? SM: They are reversed. Lithograph is a bit different, this is linoleum. And that’s just the material, that’s just cork and linseed oil. So yeah that’s the reversed image; if you look at that block I’ve got down in the chase, it’s a reversed image. So all the letters are cut backwards, all the images are actually drawn right side up, so you can flip it. MK: Is that difficult to do or is that just a time-consuming element? SM: It’s fun, it’s good for the brain I think. MK: Do you actually draw them backwards or do you have to cut them out backwards? SM: Sometimes I’ll draw them backwards, sometimes a little computer magic will just flip the image for you. MK: It’s interesting that you’re into computers and these old machines, and yet you’ve found a way to bridge the two of them using the strengths of both. SM: Yeah, that might be right. It could be that the thread between the two is repetition, so maybe it’s just the fact that both are machines and machines are, from what I gather, made to repeat common tasks so the person doesn’t have to do it again and again, and so what fascinates me again about printmaking is that a person can have an original and many copies, and each copy just happens to be an original unto itself, because it’s a bit different. And that would be the same with an ink jet printer too, but you wouldn’t see the differences so much; I think it’s more fit to our appreciation or the way we see the world. MK: Well an ink jet is meant to complete it perfectly, and we try to minimize those differences. So do you feel that there’s a natural transformation every single time you run the ink across the stencil? SM: There’s got to be; can’t be avoided. Some people will try to avoid it, I guess it all depends on how you see it. MK: So the other thing about this, like you said it’s repetition, so you could make one of these and just print one sheet of paper or make one copy, but that seems like a lot of work for something that really isn’t meant to be repeated. SM: So that would be, I think, a monotype is what that’s called, or monoprint, and a person could do that. And the reason I don’t do that is because I like to try to get a bit more people getting the stuff I make. There’s a happy number where enough people who appreciate it get it and sort of understand it and want a piece of it in their lives, and I think that’s what I’m aiming for and that’s why I do additions and I do multiple prints; because I know there are people who are into it, and I want to find them. And there are people who aren’t into it, and that’s okay, and I’ve just got no business with them right now. MK: Art is always subjective, right? It’s all about the interpretation of the individual about the work. So what sort of things have you done so far? What kind of patterns have you done? What do you plan to do? SM: Well, I’ve been doing stuff that’s pretty self-aware. So like I’ve got this band poster that’s about band posters, and so it’s just a little promo piece. I printed a few of them, I put them around town next to other posters and what it says, see, it says “I’m with the band poster.” It’s just a little joke, and so I think that’s kind of what I’m after is just like funny things, and I like to fill them in with a bit of colour and bit of graphical illustration. MK: So normally I think people think of this as a single colour, but I see you add more colour to it. SM: Oh yes, a person can do different colour, different layers, all sorts of processes and techniques. MK: I would compare this in a way to screen-printing, is that a fair comparison? SM: Well, screen-printing has half-tones are different than sort of a full surface, which is totally smooth and carries the ink. So it’s close, you’re narrowing in on something, but for the folks who want to understand why it’s different, it’s kind of like, with screen-printing, you’ve got a screen and that’s made of mesh, which are parts that might not carry the ink to your surface, and sometimes you do that on purpose to make gradations. So a person can create a gradation of dots, some getting smaller, some getting bigger next to each other, and you’ve got a nice gradient. Now with letterpress, or relief printing, usually, not always but usually, as far as I’m concerned in my work, is a flat surface. And so there’s no real bumps or small holes that carry your ink, but there are exceptions to that. But when you’re working with linoleum, it’s like printing from a kitchen counter. It’s flat, smooth, you get a full ink transfer. That can be good for nice, colourful stuff. MK: Did you say something about doing layers too? Multiple prints on the same page? SM: Oh yeah, that can be done. MK: So what sort of compositions have you worked with for that? SM: Well, I’ve got a poster which I call my “Magna Carta.” It says “beer, meat, cigarettes. The essentials shall not be taxed.” And just in saying that, I’m still thinking about whether I agree with it, and it just so happens I heard someone say something to that effect on the CBC, so I’m putting it out there again, I’m thinking about it, getting distance from it. And that’s the three-colour print, that’s got a base layer of lime-green, which you see on the border for the snakes that are climbing upwards, then there is a pink, which fades into a sort of mauve colour, and that fade can be done by just putting two colours on the same roller. And then it’s finished off with a touch of black for some of the more outstanding typographical elements. And so it’s labour-intensive to do all those colours, because you have to clean the machine, you have to ink it up again, you have to reset your layout and pass all the paper through again. MK: So how long did that process take? SM: I believe that one took one to three weeks, if I remember correctly. And there’s a lot of fussing in there, so a lot goes on. It’s not just running the paper through the machine, it’s a lot of work on both ends. MK: And as I was saying before, there’s something about repetition, about the idea that you can produce many, many copies of this. But with something like this, it multiples the time for every copy quite considerably. Do you then consider it to be a mono print or is it just the prototype of doing a large run? When you invest that much time in all the layers, and obviously the test is the actual print itself once you’ve got it all together, are you really going to make that one perfect print or is it one where you do want to replicate it so you’re working on the process and then transforming it into a mass production, essentially. SM: Well now there’s another part of this whole situation, which is a person doesn’t see what it’s gonna look like til all one hundred of them are done. So it doesn’t always make sense to do a proof beforehand, so when I’m doing stuff for myself a lot, I’ll just kind of go with it on the fly. So I’ll go with the first layer and cross my fingers and when the second layer goes on, it makes just as much sense as it did in my head. Now if it doesn’t, then you’re thinking on your feet, and that’s the part of this trade which I think escapes a lot of the other ways that design happens. You know, a person can’t always see as far ahead as they want to, so a lot of the time I go into the shop and I have an idea of what I want to make, and I start making it, and when I finally finish it that day or a week later, it’s a whole other piece of work, and that’s because I don’t have a whole other computer I can go to to render the design out. I can’t just say “this is gonna be it” and then perform the steps to make it happen. MK: Why can’t you do that process? Could you not plan it out that way? SM: It wouldn’t be as fun. MK: So part of it is the discovery and what it’s gonna really turn into. The organic discovery, I should say. So you talked a little bit about it being repetition and things like this, but obviously when you’re a computer programmer, it feels like a very different mindset. Is that just an impression I have or is it something you’re purposely moving in different directions for? SM: It is a different mindset, there are part of it which are different, and I think at the end of the day, the part that sticks is the same; that I like to appreciate the problem solving. And my whole mindset here is that, if I was not doing this, I would do something else, and I would be just as happy doing it, if and only if I could find that part of myself that really felt like it had to fix something here. MK: So you like the challenge of the problem to solve. SM: I do, and I believe that’s what makes me a creative individual, makes us all creative individuals. It’s when we just sort of step back and say “what’s going on here? It’s not working, and I’m just gonna trust me gut and go with it.” Because a lot of the time, it’s just trusting your gut. MK: With the number of artists that I’ve talked to in some of my own experiences trying to understand art, it feels like happy accidents or synchronicity or serendipity play heavily into at least the initial stages of art, taking advantage of that one accidental spot on the canvas or the way the tree happens to fall in the forest, that sort of thing. Is that something you’re looking for in the beginning or does that only come about when you’re actually manufacturing the final product? SM: I think it’s happening all around, I think art just highlights it. And so I think that happens in my day all the time. I probably make a mistake getting out of bed the wrong way but don’t notice, and I don’t notice, but it’s gonna impact me for the rest of my day. I think art just highlights those things, is my feeling right now. It acts as a bit of a frame because a person, very considerably, is trying to express something of them-self or someone else, and in doing that and really going into the state of hyperfocus, all these other strange things of our life become apparent, become a bit more lucent. And I would suspect if a person were always in that art making state of mind, that would be the case all day, like “Wow! What a happy accident! Look at this happen and that happen,” and so on and so forth. It’s like a framing device maybe, it’s a meditation, it’s a philosophy, and it’s by no means exclusive to art-making, it’s just expressing yourself. Creativity and expression. A person can express themselves through all different disciplines and the arts, as we call them, just so happens to be one of the most evident and visual MK: So you started this work about a year ago, a very practical problem to solve; printing wedding invitations. What is your other artwork like? What do you draw from? SM: Well, I guess I draw from my experience. So I told you about the person I heard on the CBC, and then I told you about the band poster; I was playing music and so was thinking about band posters and I wanted to do something on posters so I needed the little promo piece. And now I’m here, so I’m at the Fredericton Arts Alliance casemates at the Barracks, and I’m printing currency. So that’s from up to now, and I’m just drawing on my being here and having to do something about the river. I try to make it fairly obvious, nothing too out of reach for a person to understand. MK: So how has the river impacted your thinking? SM: Well, it has told me that there’s a lot that’s happened in this province that I didn’t know about. There’s a lot happening right now I don’t know about, there’s a lot that’s gonna happen that I can’t even imagine. So it goes beyond my own experience. How much it exceeds my my own experience of understanding the knowledge; for this piece I’m working on, it’s really highlighted how the river maybe lost its spirit or really just became an easy thing? Don’t know how to put it, but I guess taken for granted, maybe. Always just there. Of course, it’s always been there, and that may be true, but it’s always been a bit different each time it’s been there, depending on how it’s been used. And maybe what I’m doing here is just bracketing a certain part of that usage, just saying “it just so happened it was used this way at this point in time,” and it was just something to think about. MK: And you mentioned currency is the medium? SM: That’s right, because as far as I can remember, and this is the limit of my own remembering, it was a trading thing. And so that’s all I know right now, that’s my entry point into it. MK: And so you’ll be carving or creating? It’s not a stencil; what’s the term? SM: It’d be a lino block. MK: And so you’ll be carving that this week and turning it into that? SM: That’s right. I’ll send you some, see where you can use it (laughs). MK: See who accepts it. So before doing this work, what was the kind of art that you were exploring? SM: It was poetry, I think writing. But I also did a lot of computer arts, so I was interested in interactive experiences with computers, like the clever ways they can be used. Just off the top of my head, there was a piece I did called “bye time,” and the whole idea was you go to the website and you open up the page, and you get a timestamp for when you visited the website, and you can buy that timestamp, saying you’ve been there, but you can never buy it again, you see, because time keeps moving forward, so you get one chance to buy it, to buy that time. And that was fun to make, that brought together like a commerce; paying for something, but then the idea of like web-making, staring vacantly into a screen, and then also wanting to mark your territory and say “hey, this was me who is here.” So I did stuff like that, weird computer things. MK: Cool. I think, although we see the use of computers in movies or in production, I love the idea that you’re using it in this whimsical way, which is where, in my mind, art really excels in kind of transforming the expression. Was that always your intention with computers, was that always something that was there or was that something you discovered as you starting working? SM: Well I like the way you say it: transforming the expression. I don’t know how to answer that but I have a thought, which is that there’s a way that computers are supposed to be used, maybe, and that’s the way which my brain <indistinct> to social networks, our emails, our Twitter’s, and all the things like that. And I guess it’s for communication, something like this. They’re definitely communication devices, at least that’s what history tells us; that the whole reason it is how it is is because DARPA wanted a network which wouldn’t be susceptible to any single catastrophe eliminating the entirety of the network. So the way the internet works is if you take the node away, take away a network point, you still preserve the integrity of it. It’s decentralized. So at it’s core, it’s a communication network, and I think using this, a person has to remember this, and with our net-making, I think what we try to do, myself and I see the artists doing this type of stuff, is we try to usurp that navi, like suggest alternatives or poke fun at the way it’s supposed to work or what’s expected. MK: That’s pretty profound, I like it. Is there a place that people can follow your work online in that communication or places people can see some of the things you’ve done, as well as works in the Barracks this week? SM: Well, seeing as I’m saddled to Rabbit Town, that’s a good start. Rabbit Town Press is on Instagram and Facebook, under that name. MK: Well, I wanna thank you very much for talking with me today. SM: Thank you, Mark. MK: And have fun. SM: Yes, I will. That’s what matters. Listen to the full interview here.
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