The Society of Printers' 2023 Annual Dwiggins Lecture — John Kristensen: What Letterpress Printing Has Taught Me About Life

The Society of Printers in partnership with the Boston Public Library is pleased to present John Kristensen as the 2023 Dwiggins lecturer. As the long-time proprietor of Firefly Press in Boston, John is one of the most distinguished heirs of the long, classical tradition of fine typography and design in New England. For over thirty years, the goal of Firefly Press has been to apply the craft of true letterpress printing and the virtues of traditional typography to the needs and circumstances of the present day. John’s subtlety and mastery of the craft of printing are evident in everything from exceptional book design to the “celebratory printing” that has been the hallmark of his work. His distinctive and elegant designs have graced publications of colleges, universities, libraries, and foundations from across the US, as well as artists and noted bibliophiles.

Though trained as an architectural historian at Cornell and Oxford, John Kristensen found his calling in printing and has for over forty years been the proprietor of Firefly Press in Boston. He is a frequent lecturer and instructor of printing history and technique and was the American Printing History Association's 2009 Lieberman Scholar. Kristensen is the Cruft Reader at the Boston Athenaeum and on the faculty of Rare Book School in Charlottesville, Virginia.

About the BPL's COVID-19 health and safety protocols:

• Program attendees are recommended to wear masks covering their noses and mouths.
• Read the BPL's latest COVID-19 guidelines for visiting the library.
• Program performers will not wear a mask during the program.

Cover image photo credit: Jarrod McCabe.

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