My Biggest Big Bro. (Sixto Baby Sixto)

Day 8 Monday February 4 PM

We landed in Bahia Blanca at about 6PM, it was a tiny airport and when we walked out into the lobby there stood Walter with Marina, a lovely friend of his that often translates for him. Big, giant hugs were shared as we walked out to the parking lot singing and laughing, Walter was so excited to see his old friend Amos and his new little sis - ME!

We all piled into the van and made our way to Walter’s mothers home where we would be staying. They told us of a German fellow, a printer, who had come to town to see Watler’s place all the way from Germany! We dropped off our stuff and headed to the Sixto Laspiur Futbol Clubhouse that Walter Io Uranga runs as well as resides with hid lovely wife Sylvanna and daughter Juliette (Hoo-Li), and surprisingly it is aldo where his printshop is located. There is so much happening in this space. Did I mention he has 13 dogs, and loves cervaza? Have I died and gone to heaven? Perhaps.

We looked at presses, oogled at his type collection, and watched as he pridefully pulled out poster after poster of every kind that he had done. Walter has been in the printing industry for most of his life and is damn good at what he does. At a moments notice we were notified that a TV crew was coming to interview the whole gang! We stood there as they set up, we were pretty much completely in the dark about what was happening most of the time, but just went with it. In the meantime, we met Willi The German, he was an interesting guy and had already become a part of “The Sixtos”. We all stood in front of the camera and answered a few questions as they translated. This was all over as quickly as it started. The whole time, more and more people were showing up at the shop. This place was more of Grand Central Station than even my shop can be. Kim and I were getting used to the greeting of the south which is to “air kiss” on the cheek every single person that comes into your presence. At first it was weird, for both of us, Kim would do this “head cupping” thing that I thought was hysterical and I was overshooting and kissing people in the ear. We eventually got it worked out and decided that it was the most beautiful way to start an interaction with a stranger. Seems that people from the States, myself included, have a fairly big space bubble and I get that, but sharing a mini intimate moment with every person you encounter is just so very simpatico. 

The grill master, Adrian, was working the giant wood fired grill (which everyone here in Argentina and Uruguay has and uses daily) and there was so much freakin meat. There was a ton of beautiful fish to eat for those few vegetarians among us. Out on the futbol (soccer) field was a huge table with 30 place settings. It was a feast served family style and we were the guests of honor. Everyone was a character, there was Marcelo - apparently the greatest drummer ever in these parts, that may be true but what I liked about him right off the bat was his hat. It read: “My mom says I’m special so, fuck you!”. Then there was Alejandro, a blues singer and all around blues savant, his brain was a library of all facts, names, dates, and songs having anything to do with the Blues. I like him because he would start singing a song as he walked towards me, I would join in and then we would have the whole gang singing! There was Gustavo, who at dinner, right after Walter gave this long sappy toast about how happy he was to be surrounded by his friends, raised a toast and said: “chinga tu madre!” (Google it) now that is some funny shit. Then there was Silvio Sinatra, a smooth and sweet fellow that just took care of everyone, he brought many bottles of vino, beautiful empanadas, all the while making sure everyone had full glasses and smiles on their faces.

There was so much beer and conversation with and without translators, and as it turns out, you can mostly get to to root of what people are trying to say with a smidge of patience a lot of gesturing (and google translate). It was a helluva party, there was singing, chanting, hugging, laughing, sharing and drinking. I truly felt that these were the warmest, most kind people I have ever spent time with, they were instant family. 

Day 9 Tuesday February 5

We slept well at the small house that Walter grew up in, it seemed that we had finally acclimated to the heat. I have also become hugely accustomed to the Mate but I miss my coffee con leche, and I was jones’n hard. We walked over to The Sixto (about a 8 block walk) and were immediately greeted with besos (kisses) and hugs. Sylvanna asked if we wanted coffee and I wanted to weep, yes mi amiga, yes indeed. 

We hashed out a plan that we were going to print posters for a friend of Walters that we had met the night before at the party. This friend was a young man named Lisandro, who was a circus kind of guy that was trying to promote an upcoming show. Perfecto. Amos and Walter worked on the top half of the poster while Kim and I again, teamed up to take the bottom portion. All we had was a small piece of paper with the text and the rest was easy peasy-lemon squeezy. Once ready, Walter ran the press as Kim and I put the posters in the drying racks, the posters were good… like really good. 

It was so cool to work along side Walter, that big lug, he laughs, jokes, and sings non stop. He made up songs about Willi The German, a song called Mary Bruno, and got Kim and I hooked on “Sixto Baby Sixto”. It never got old. We talked about all 80s rock, he is a maniac for all things metal and was proud of the shows they used to host at the clubhouse before it got taken over by more and more presses. I knew about 99% of every band he referenced thanks to an 80s upbringing with a metal head older brother. We would start singing Quiet Riot, then Ozzy, jump to Iron Maiden and I hardly ever stopped laughing even for a minute. 

The Ninos came around late afternoon to have practice at the club and we got to meet them and chat a bit, so freakin cute, every one of them. It is cool how Walter is so proud of the Sixto Club and invests so much time and love into these kids. That night was a sweet lil concert outside with Alejandro, Juan, and Marcelo, it was magical- the whole time Lisandro was being puppet master for the cutest little dancing skeleton followed by glowing juggling. Way to much beer but just the right amount of everything else.
Got up Wednesday- headed to the Sixto, got there to find to our sweet Sylvanna had prepared her magical cafe con leche and some pastries. Walter needed to walk to the paper store so we all decided to walk along with. We leave the Sixto and a pack of the puppalitos (my made up word that is starting to stick!) came with, my favorite, Cherry, the injured one that was really shy and the big twins. It was interesting how the dogs just did their own thing, off leash and independent, it made me nervous as they would cross the road but Walter didn’t worry so why should I? Watching Walter walk down the street of the city was like me walking through town in St. Joe. He knew everyone, and he stopped to introduce us to all of his friends, some people I don’t think he even knew but still he would introduce to us. The best was when we stopped to BS with these 3 dudes and the one I was chatting with told me to take his scooter for a rip! It was hilarious and awesome. We stopped into a little grocer and talked to that guy too, even posed for a pic with us, everyone was so damn sweet.
The whole walk Walter was telling us stories and the history of Sixto Laspier, he is very proud. When we got back the sweet Sylvanna had prepared a giant feast of fish and salad, and more cervesa. 

Our friend Marina met us later that afternoon for a quick trip to walk around the city! We went to a bar for a cappuccino and walked around in and out of shops to find a few gifts to bring home. After a perfectly lovely afternoon in the city we decided we needed to get back and pack so that we could have a good last night partying with Walter and company. Ernesto, the lone dog that lives at the house was our trusty companion as we unpacked and then packed again, we have acquired SO MUCH STUFF. More posters then I have wall space for but I need to keep, everyone, every step of the way is so generous with their work. Walter gave me a kickass little lead bender, it is heavy as a mofo but I will get it in my carry on as god as my witness. Got everything set and walked back to the Sixto for the last time. All the boys were there to play more music, Silvio and his son were there with a massive amount of empanadas that were to die for and there was beer and wine everywhere! We gathered outside and listened to them play and sing for hours. It had cooled down finally and the breeze was the perfect addition to the night.

We spent the last hours together taking videos, selfies, petting all the dogs and laughing at all the stories people took turns telling. Marina decided to be the person to start the goodbyes so we planned out our ride to the airport for the morning then caught a ride back to the house. We got up and got ready and Walter showed up with Mate and pastries, it was starting to sink in that we were leaving my biggest big brother. Kim took a pic of me and Ernesto, a video of me, Walter and Silvio singing “Willi The German” and we made our way to the car. 

With all of these friendships, exchanges, conversations, shared meals, shared joints, shared beers, and shared hugs, I keep coming back to the feeling that the world is both huge and expansive while also being so small and connected. I spent 10+ days in 2 countries where I do not speak the language and I had the time of my life. I feel some things have shifted in my perspectives. I am a processor so articulating that may take some time. I pushed myself to talk to people I did not know or could not easily understand, I opened my heart to become family with people I had never met but could not imagine my life without. Every single person on this trip has profoundly effected the course of my life and that brings me such an immense sense of happiness. I sometimes get sad when I do epic printing things that I wish my father could have experienced, but then I think that he did all the things he did so that I can do all the things I jump at the chance to do. He lived a big life so that my life could be even bigger. Thank you dad for all you implanted in me and for the drive I have to continue to chase big adventures all over the world. It feels good. 

I am stateside now, back in Minnesota, I have already shoveled snow. Can life get any better? I am stoked to be home, get back into the printshop and get back to work. Thank you to everyone, especially Amos, for this magical opportunity.

Mate. Mate. Mate.

Day 6 Saturday February 2

We woke up Saturday and took another long walk on the beach. I just love being in that intense sun, especially knowing that it will be months before I feel that heat on my skin again. Gabriel did his best with Google Translate and we did well talking and walking, all the while passing and sharing the Mate. At one point we all 4 just sat down for a long while, it was windy but that sand was soft and warm.

Made our way back to the house and got to meet Gabriel’s son Ernesto and his wife Dana and daughter Helena. Ernesto speaks perfect English so it was nice to have a translator again. Gabriel set out to make his wife Sylvia’s grandmothers pizza recipe, which as a mostly Italian, my mouth was watering from the overwhelming smell of garlic. Ernesto was cool as hell. Before getting married and having the cutest kid ever he was in a rock band called “The Blueberries.” He told us lots of stories about touring around Uruguay and Argentina and all of us continued to share and get to know each other a bit. 

As five o’clock rolled closer we got our printing workshop together for the 10 or so people that were coming. Amos had printed some lovely backgrounds with the text “2019- We came to print and share Mate,” I had spent the previous day carving some nice Mate plants, and Kim had carved a cool logo looking cut so that we could each have a “station” for each person to hand ink and print on their poster. The last station was back inside the shop to print the black text with Amos that said “El Mate es un amigo,” followed by printing Caja Baja’s logo on the bottom of the poster with a C& P Press. Most of the students spoke English and we had so much to talk about it was easy, we enjoyed each other’s work and there was so much admiration for one another. You could tell that all the students revered Gabriel and were mesmerized by Amos. We got a nice group photo, drank more cervesa and again, I was spent.

Day 7 Sunday February 3

Gabriel came to pick us up about 9:30 am to head to the capital city of Montevideo. Once there we met up with Jose, a young designer and a previous student of Gabriel’s, to walk around the big open market. Jose is cool: easy to talk to and very bright, like Ernesto, it was so nice to have a translator at our side. Gabriel and Jose helped Kim and I pick out our Mate cup and bombilla (straw) and we were STOKED. It was great people watching for sure and there were many old treasures to behold like at typical flea markets, rotary phones, old VHS tapes, tons of dog stuff and so many puppalitos (my made up word for dog). It was funny too because all of the music we encountered was all of our favorite tunes from the 80s like ZZ Top, CCR, Twisted Sister, Eddie Money, it was awesome. 

We then had a cool opportunity to meet up with a friend of a friend for lunch at a vegetarian Chinese restaurant. My pal Gota from Sweden sent a message that her friend was living in Montevideo so we got in touch and made it happen. If there is one thing that these Uruguayans love is MEAT. Cool for me not so cool for my 2 vegetarian travel companions. Did I mention that I tried blood sausage? First of all, I thought it was just bloody meat. When I said to Ernesto that I thought the consistency was similar to a brownie and he laughed, I was sadly informed that blood sausage is simply that, blood, pork blood to be exact. Huh. It did taste good so there’s that. Everyone was so gracious to provide an “alternative” but it was a nice change, again, for us, I do not think that Gabriel or Jose were too impressed :) Anyways, Ana Valdes is a fiction writer who grew up in Uruguay then fled to Sweden where she spent most of her adult life. Turns out she was pals with Noam Chomsky and has led an incredibly fascinating life. We got to chat with her for a while and were off again, this time to check out the “old City” of Montevideo. 

After a lot of walking and checking out the sea, a carnival museum, and having some epic gelato, we made our way to Cafe Dore, where Gabriel had organized a panel talk featuring Amos and his 2 trusty printer companions. There were about 20 or so people of all ages anxiously awaiting the start! It was quite informal but the three of us sat up front of the coffee shop as Jose translated (hopefully what we said :0 we may never know). We talked about how we came to be printers, why we travelled here to print, and what our process is. It is not only an honor to be best pals with a guy like Amos, it is also inspiring to listen to him talk about his gift of connecting people and spreading joy. The audience fell in love with him (as most people do) as he lamented about how he wants to make the world a better place by being a generous teacher and printer. I think everyone agreed he is doing just that. 

I got to share my work as well and talk about the reduction prints as well as make some sweet trades with other printers that had been following my work on the Instagram, what a thrill! The crowd was warm and kind, so eager to talk to each of us and ask about when we will return. Our Airbnb hosts Bernt & Negrita came to see the talk! They were the sweetest couple ever and invited us back anytime!!! I followed a handful of people, traded prints, joined some Facebook groups and gave many besos (kisses). There I was again, totally exhausted. We finally made out way back to the cars- said our goodbyes to Jose, such an integral part of our INCREDIBLE day. We headed back to Gabriel’s place and as if he had not done enough for us, we stopped to get some MATE so that we could be all ready to go on our own when we left. I am so happy to have made these connections, this man reminds me so much of my own father: a creative giant, a community leader, and a gentle soul with a big heart. Gracias mi Amigo.

Day 8 Monday February 4 TRAVEL DAY

5am wake up  •  6am Drive to Bus Station  •  7am Bus ride to Colonia

9-11 Ferry back to Argentina. •. Taxi to AEP Airport. • 5pm Flight to Bahia Blanco

HEY WALTER IO! HERE WE COME!

MuchO Bueno URUGUAY!

Day 3 Wednesday January 30

Today we were picked up bright and early by Ro Barragan, I only knew her and her work a bit from instagram but I recognized her. It is so weird when you feel like you sorta know someone from social media and then you meet them in person, they are so much better in the flesh. We drove through Buenos Aires to another super-fly old school printshop called Imprenta Pampa run by Juan Carlos and his team. There was MORE WOODTYPE there then I had ever seen. At first it felt a little intimidating in the mere presence of these giant presses, then as I was watched Juan Carlos and Mario set the elegant poster type one right after another, then transfer the designs to the press bed, I knew they were just masters of their craft. We got to set up our own poster and Kim and I teamed up to make something cool. In this setting there is no time to agonize over what typeface to choose, what size, but only to grab it, lay it down and fill in the space.  The two of us were almost totally in sync, as everything fit just right and each part added to the one before until we were done, hardly taking us 30 minutes. Then we handed it off to Juan Carlos to get it locked up right. Even though we did not speak each other’s language it did not matter, I knew he needed a certain size furniture and I would grab the reglets and be ready for him. Seriously, it was like a lead nurse in surgery with the best surgeon in the world, thrilling. I could hear all the old guys calling me “Blondie” —it was awesome. We then got to choose our paper, which was 26”X44” and was like candy with its perfect multi-color gradients created by Mario, the maser of offset! Getting to see the monster press kick out our posters on the massive sheets was breath taking.  We hung out for a bit after we put everything away, took a bunch of pictures then paid them for their time and left. We were off to La Plata again and I needed coffee. 

Back in La Plata was Ro’s studio, it was small but again, totally efficient with a wonderful collection of wood type. We all showed our work then exchanged our favorites all the while in total awe of each other. 

We printed, (of course) talked and took photos, we shared our process and were totally inspired by each other. We made our way back to Ro’s apartment, she offered us beer and prepared a lovely meal on the patio of her 7 story apartment that over looked the entire city. We looked at books, talked, ate and bonded. I definitely found me a new best friend. 

Day 4 Thursday January 31

We packed up our bags and tried to manage our already ridiculous plethora posters and prints from the printers we have already visited. We left the Airbnb to get to Uruguay which required a ferry then a bus and another stamp in my passport. Got to the station and were picked up by Gabriel Pasarisa of Caja Baja, a design professor and the guy that taught many of the Argentinian printers that we went to visit. We drove to our Airbnb and dropped off our stuff then headed over to his printshop. It was gorgeous and had everything we needed. We began to plan the days ahead which includes a workshop here on Saturday with 15 people attending. We decided to get poster ideas going so that it could be all figured out by the time they show up! 

I said I would carve something and since I have become obsessed with Mate (MAHT-TAY) I found an image of the plant online, Kim decided to carve a cool saying-like logo, and Amos set out to do what Amos does, put wood type in a press and print it. We worked until about 9:30pm, I don’t think we stopped to eat, but we did drink some craft beer that our Airbnb host made, it was muy bueno!

Day 5 Friday February 1

I don’t know what day of the week it is, nor what time, and I’ve decided I’m okay with it. Today we woke up early and Gabriel picked us up at the Airbnb (which is adorable, Kim and I are in bunk beds!) at 8 am and we set off for a big walk along the beach. We walked in the pristine sand for miles, it was beautiful, we saw where the two rivers met up to the sea and all the cool fishing boats. We went back to the print shop and took out the trusty yellow suitcase and showed off all of our work to each other, which is all so different but we can all appreciate and love the similarities as well as the differences. Gabriel’s calendar was perfection and he really enjoyed mine, he kept asking: “all Lino?” To which I reply “Si, all Lino.” That is the ultimate compliment to me because people are just in disbelief of that shit and it makes me happy. 

Now Kim and I are drinking water, because we are in a constant state of sweating, and are gunna head back down to the beach, cause us Midwesterners, we gotta take it all in before we head back. 

AH! Aregentina!

DAY 1 Monday January 28

After about 18 hours of travel time, a nice to shower and a 4 hour nap Amos and I were ready to start the day. It was about 10am and we hopped in a cab and were off to meet Pablo and Vicky Sigwald (big time international paper makers). Their space was the most beautiful shop/living combo I had ever encountered. It used to be horse stables and they turned it into this magical little oasis of beauty. We talked and learned all about their paper world then they made us a tasty lunch as we chatted more. We then were off to visit Rodrigo (Talleres de Artes Graficas) and his fiancé Valeria at their tiny immaculate printshop. Rodrigo was quite but kind, with a constant smile on his face. He did not speak much English but it was clear that he was a passionate designer and had a great love for letterpress. The work this guy produced was quite innovative but so very beautiful. We drank loads of espresso and Amos and I set type and made prints. The six of us talked about politics, political correctness and all of the rap that come with it and I felt like I had known these people all my life. 

After all of that we met up with our pal Kim Ransdell made our way over to Prensa la Libertad and met our friend Federico, geez, this young guy has such a passion for changing the world. Being in his space and seeing his work and the way that he gets his work out to the people was very humbling. He is going to make a big difference in his community, I can see it already.

DAY 2 Tuesday, January 29th AM

started early again and we got picked up by our friend Javier Alba who was going to bring us over to  Afiches Boqueron, a production printship on the other side of town. The drive seemed to go on forever then suddenly we were at a door, walked down a long narrow walkway and then into a dirty ol space that was incredible! The presses in this shop were the biggest I have ever seen in my life! The guy running them, Cristian, was a third generation printer with an incredible talent for making perfect rainbow rolls on giant parent sheets of paper then taking nothing but type, friggin huge type, and making gorgeous posters to be plastered up around the city!

Day 2 PM

Javier took us to La Plata where we went to visit his woodtype filled printshop called Magia Negra. We spent all afternoon talking and laughing and trying to understand each other. Of course we had to print there as well, so we set “Ah Clara” which was something that these folks are constantly saying. I am bringing it home by the by. We shared and traded prints and were deeply inspired by each other not to mention that we connected the way that printers often do. I have been working to figure out why this sort of thing fills my soul and I’ll be god damned if it is not this whole connecting, intentionally with people that love life and letterpress, good coffee, some Maté, good music, dogs, beer, and being a good human.