INSTITUTION USING SLÁMA PRESS
ART COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES IN THE CZECH REPUBLIC
Academy of Arts, Architecture and Design in Prague
Academy of Fine Arts in Prague
Universitas Carolina, Prague
University of Ostrava
University of West Bohemia in Pilsen
Masaryk University in Brno
Jan Evangelista Purkyně University in Ústí nad Labem
Tomáš Baťa University in Zlín
Art Design Institute in Prague
ART COLLEGES ABROAD
Art Academy in Banská Bystrica, Slovakia
Matej Bela University in Banská Bystrica, Slovakia
Akademie der bildenden Kunste Wien, Austria
Universitat fur angewandte Kunst Wien, Austria
Hochschule fur bildende Kunste Hamburg, Germany
Westhoekaacademie, Koksijde, Belgium
Academi Beeldende Kunst, Belgium
Scholengroep Brusel, Belgium
Bridgewater State University, USA
Ecole Superieure d´art Nord Pas de Calais, France
Academie Mechelen, Belgium
GALLERY, ORGANIZATION, INSTITUTION AND WORKSHOPS
National Museum, Prague
National Gallery, Prague
Postal Museum, Prague
Gellery Hollar, Prague
Centre d´art contemporain, Amilly, France
Regional Gallery of Vysočina in Jihlava
Retirement Home in Mšeno
Brno City Museum
Trnka Bookbindery in Pilsen
and many others
Our most numerous customers are secondary and elementary art schools, elementary and nursery schools with extended teaching of arts. It is individual graphic artists, however, that are among our most numerous customers, both beginners as well as those with rich artistic experience.
The Slama Hand Printing Press used to create a record-breaking print
The Slama Hand Press has been used by teachers and students of Art School Mšeno (Czech Republic) to create a record-breaking 116 square-metre print. Printed on canvas using laminated boards a total of 560 matrices were used. “The hand press faced the challenge with great success while withstanding enormous pressure in the process”, said Head of the Art School Čeněk Hlavatý praising the hand press.
The print was included in the Czech Book of Records in June 2018.
FROM THE MEDIA
Český rozhlas Dvojka, září 2022, radiodokument Zlaté české ručičky video
Radio Prague Internacional, 2021
Manifestampe / FR, 2020 / more: here
The reportage about Miloš Sláma´s artwork in Pressing Matters/ April, 2020, issue 11 / more: here
Review of SLÁMA PRESS in Pressing Matters / January, 2020, issue 10 / more: here
TV Vysočina, the reportage from the exhibition and workshop, 2017, more: here
Interview with the author of SLÁMA PRESS, Czech Radio, 16. 2. 2017
WROTE ABOUT US
When the tool developed by Miloš Sláma appeared on the market with printing tools I did not hesitate too long before purchasing it. My printing technique is relief printing. I print my linocuts solely by hand from a single matrix which is gradually cut. Up to now I have used classic bookbinding bone folders or my own stainless steel folder. Some time ago I bought a Japanese baren for printing wood engravings. The principle of its modern-day design variant lies in creating pressure through hundreds of tiny balls in a flat disc. In principle, the tool works perfectly, however, as I soon found out it is best for printing on paper of smaller grammage. When I use the usual 250g paper sheets for linocuts, the balls are just too tiny to press sufficiently through the paper of higher grammage. It was necessary to use an additional bookbinding folder in order to achieve a perfect impression, especially with large areas.
I was therefore pleased to welcome the new opportunity for work with linocut offered by the “printing press” designed by Miloš Sláma. The principle of transferring the pressure through rolling steel balls is similar, but here the entire disc rotates too in which the balls are placed. When moving the tool on paper the trajectories of ball pressure spontaneously move and thicken until a perfectly continuous imprinted surface is created. The balls used are big enough to press “through” paper of higher grammage. I have used both variants on offer. The smaller disc has a pear-shaped grip which rests easily against the palm of hand. The hand can thus exercise pressure perpendicular to the surface of the press.
The variant with the disc of larger diameter and larger balls has a longer vertical handle to grip. The handle makes it possible to deploy additional metal discs whose weight itself should exert the required printing pressure. I believe this variant is fully suitable for example for young pupils in elementary art school, who are introduced to printing techniques. With this variant I would myself also prefer to have the version of the pear-shaped grip that can fit into one’s hand. With the side grip the hand is in a horizontal position and it is significantly more difficult to exercise great pressure, which is especially necessary when printing large colour surfaces. However, I believe it won’t be a problem to expand the range on offer with a variant of this shape.
To sum up: I hold a tool in my hands that entirely meets any functional requirements. When it comes to its design, too, it suggests this is a trustworthy professional tool and not a makeshift “widget”. The tool designed by Miloš Sláma is a great help for your printing and offers big relief for your hand, which can get extremely strained by continuous work. However, I don't want to dismiss totally the old good way of working on linocuts with a bookbinding folder. Especially in the more advanced stages of the cutting of the matrix in register, when often imprinting only isolated small islets whose size is smaller than the size of the press with the balls. That’s why the combination of both methods of work seems optimal. In this sense, I can highly recommend the new tools to my colleagues.
Mgr. Ivo Křen, Graphic Artist
I first met the graphic artist Miloš Sláma at Klenová in 2011 where we were taking part in the 10th year of the symposium on linocut held by the Klatovy/Klenová Gallery. When printing graphics there, we took turns at a large press and when it was busy I used a bookbinding folder to imprint a rather large graphic. When Miloš saw me struggling with it he felt sorry for me and lent me the first prototype of his hand press. I was surprised at the great efficiency of this tool while exercising far less effort compared to work using a bookbinding folder. I thought then that Miloš would be satisfied with this original press made for his own use. However, I didn’t know how hard working and purposeful Miloš is.
And so later, when I held in my hands the precisely designed Hand Press Sláma I was again fascinated to see how easy and efficient it was to work with. Considering its purpose it is also naturally a beautiful item, which I got used to very quickly. I use it to print multicoloured linocuts and I haven’t found a single problem with it at all. With regard to the amount of paint I roll on the matrix I can always comfortably influence the richness of the imprint by the level of pressure I apply while being in full control of its even distribution. I can highly recommend the SLÁMA PRESS both to beginners as well as to advanced printers.