Digging beneath the surface: a call for a generous criticality

Invited presentation given at the symposium ‘Letterpress as research method’ held at Oslo National Academy of the Arts 18–19 March 2026. Speakers were also invited to participate in collaborative workshops. Slides included are from mapping a modernist poem run by Ane Thon Knutsen.

Contribution to knowledge
• To participate in an experimental collaborative workshop run by Ane Thon Knutsen as part of her own research and an ongoing collective mapping of a modernist poem.
• In response to aim 1 of the conference: To position letterpress as a medium within artistic research and post-digital experimentation which fosters dialogue and insight into academic research in literature, book history and feminist studies.
• In response to aim 2 of the conference: To explore letterpress as a tool for critical thinking, freedom of expression and democracy.
• In response to aim 3 of the conference: To reflect on letterpress as a method for learning a critical approach to history through integrated form and content.

Impact
• This presentation argued a case for an approach to letterpress practice as a form of enquiry within the context of a symposium which gathered a group of international voices similarly concerned with the potential of letterpress as a research method. Focus was key to a sense of affirmation and direction for participants and the consolidation of a network of participants to take this issue forward through follow-on events and publications.
• International recognition of the ongoing relevance of letterpress as a core workshop across all levels of study within the discipline of graphic/visual communication design.