Mohawk Blog

Make With Mohawk Print Set 01: Riso + Superfine — The Ultimate Hi-Lo

Words

Casey Fisk

Photography

Mohawk

April 04, 2019

At a glance, Risograph and Superfine may seem like quite the odd couple.

Originally invented to make use of low-cost inks, Risograph printing comes with inherent quirks: off-registration, limited colors, uneven ink performance—in short: an inaccurate and inconsistent process. But it's also... absolutely delightful. Much like the Holga camera with its brilliant simplicity, lack of precision and light leaks, Risograph's bugs are its defining features. In a world of technical perfection, it's a process rich in happy accidents.

Superfine, on the other hand, is all about precision: Beautifully formed, always consistent and subtly tactile—it's the paper that's predictably perfect. Arguably the best canvas to print just-about-anything, there's no question what will happen when you print on Superfine—it's going to be beautiful.

Gif of the risographic print set on Superfine

Print Set 01: Mohawk Superfine + Risograph

Printed on three shades of Mohawk Superfine, this impeccably perfect paper complements the delightful imperfections of Risograph, with its slight misregistration, limited ink colors and irregular ink coverage.

So, what business does Superfine have hanging around with Risograph? Superfine shines when showcasing design intent, whatever that intent may be. Superfine is like a crisp, neutral gallery wall: It shows respect to the work, by amplifying intention and making absolutely clear that what you see is a statement, not an accident. Imperfection printed on the most perfect paper makes those happy accidents not so accidental. In this way, Risograph's quirks are celebrated, not as limitations, but as design elements; an extension of the will of the designer.

What's exciting is that these unique qualities make process part of design. That's why we tasked some of our favorite artists with using this very specific combination of material and process.

Riso on Superfine on a pink gridded backdrop

Featured Artists

Lab Partners, WE ARE BÜRO BÜRO and Hybrid Design

Make with Mohawk Print Set 01 features the work of Lab Partners, WE ARE BÜRO BÜRO and Hybrid Design and is a powerful demonstration of materials and method serving design intent.

Mohawk Superfine Eggshell Softwhite 80 Cover (Beautiful Collection) + Lab Partners — Risograph's strong textural quality adds a delightfully human element to geometric designs.
Mohawk Superfine Eggshell White 80 Cover (Beautiful Collection) + We Are Büro Büro — Büro Büro's modern surrealist work is a perfect match for Risograph, pairing well with strong clashing colors.
Mohawk Superfine Eggshell Ultrawhite 80 Cover (Beautiful Collection) + Hybrid Design — We tasked Hybrid Design to bring out the joy in overprinting with Risograph inks, which have varying degrees of transparency and yield fun, unexpected and beautiful results.

It is clear from these artists' work that they were ready to take advantage of the delightful quirks Risograph has to offer. And with Superfine as a canvas, they could elevate process from a tool to a statement.

Risograph prints digitally generated illustration

Superfine + Riso prints and cards are available for a limited time through the Make with Mohawk pop-up Printshop: an online resource that challenges designers to create their own work using the same papers + processes shown in the Make with Mohawk Print Sets.

Make with Mohawk Print Set

Need a bit of inspiration to help you get started? Snag a copy of this print set made with Mohawk Superfine +Riso to see the possibilities.

Printed Samples

Mohawk Superfine + Riso Print Set

Get a copy

Complete the Set

Thumbnail product sample of the riso prints in their paper envelope

PRINTED SAMPLES

Print Set 02: Via + Digital

Product thumbnail of the letterpress print set

PRINTED SAMPLES

Print Set 03: Crane's Lettra + Letterpress

Production Notes

Print Process

Risograph (RISO)

Originally invented to make use of low cost inks, Risograph is an intermediate between digital printing and screen printing that comes with inherent quirks: off-registration, limited colors, uneven ink performance — in short: an inaccurate and inconsistent process. Much like the Holga camera with its brilliant simplicity, lack of precision and light leaks, Risograph’s bugs are its features. Risograph’s results are reminiscent of handmade screen-prints, coveted for their effective adoption of very bold, bright and vibrant colors.

Printer

Fey Printing

Designer

Hybrid Design

Materials Used

Paper