The Print Room is a community resource housing a Dark Room, Letterpress, Silkscreen Studio and Large Format/Digital print facilities. Based in Colchester’s Waiting Room, it is run by volunteers committed to building a versatile and thriving print studio for beginners, enthusiasts and experts to use.
We host regular events and talks to inspire, inform and celebrate print-based disciplines, as well as developing links with the local printing community, from professional studios to keen hobbyists.
You can find out what we’ve been up to on our blog, read about our facilities, come along to an event, or get in touch with one of the team to find out more.
Paul is the Letterpress project lead. A designer who specialises in print, he takes a lot of pride in making things look neat and tidy. (Un)luckily for him, he was one of the first to volunteer his services in restoring the neglected printing press and metal type that was donated to The Waiting Room, and he hasn’t stopped cleaning since.
Mike has unwittingly entered into a constant and never-ending struggle with the Print Room’s large format and digital equipment. Mike spends a lot of time worrying about the print heads expiring, coming up with cost-effective ink and paper suppliers and trying to get printer drivers to do what they’re told. To help deal with this stress he likes to dress up in skin tight clothing and punish himself on gruelling bike rides.
Jack runs the Coffee Darkroom, and is constantly coming up with new schemes to create non-chemical alternatives to the photographic techniques he learnt at university. When he isn’t trying to get the darkroom sink plumbed in, you can usually find him enjoying a gaming session in the Waiting Room bar. Assuming he isn’t sat at home watching repeats of Dr Who of course.
Tom is the Print Room’s silkscreen maestro, a whirling dervish of ink, pressure washers, melted lightbulb fittings and sheets of acrylic – no problem is too tricky for Tom to overcome. He can often be found in gig venues across the country as one of the bass players in Manningtree noise-mongers Dingus Khan. This probably explains why he never cleans up after himself.
We’re looking for…
A vinyl cutter, a heat press, a 3D Printer, a laser cutter and anything else we can get our hands on!