In the heart of San Francisco’s artistic Mission District is Levi’s Workshop a new kind of hands-on gallery that is celebrating the history of print and design from now through the end of August. I was amazed when I stepped inside how open the space was and how readily available the staff were to show you demos of vintage printers or give you a quick lesson in silkscreening. (I’ll admit I could have spent a few hours there playing with the silkscreening station myself!) Joshua Katz’s of Levi’s remarked on opening night how amazing the DIY atmosphere was with everyone stamping to xeroxing their own ‘zines. It’s a great way to spend a crafty afternoon and getting lunch or brunch at some of the Mission’s best food places (Bar Tartine, Ti Couz, Delfina, etc.)
Here are some of my favorite parts of Levi’s Workshop:
I loved seeing the old Vandercook printing press that’s run by a hand-crank. To see these historic machines still working was worth the trip to visit the gallery. They were printing out a nice poster-sized Levi’s Workshop calendar of events.
It was so inspiring to see all these ‘zines on display. It’s an artform I hope continues on in our digital age.
More photos after the jump!
The ‘zine display
The rubber stamping area
Rock Paper Show art on display
You can see the rest of the photos from my visit in the slideshow above or take a visit to my Flickr photo set.
Check out the calendar for upcoming special events and workshops.
Levi’s Workshop
580 Valencia St @ 17th St
San Francisco, CA
(415) 522-0877
http://workshops.levi.com/
Hours:
Monday: closed
Tuesday: 12pm-5pm
Wednesday-Friday: 12pm-7pm
Saturday-Sunday: 11am – 8pm
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