Platetone Printmaking, Paper and Book Arts

Platetone is a non-profit community studio in East Nashville, TN. Our mission is to inspire and promote printmaking and all paper and book arts!

Print

We do screen prints, block prints, intaglio, letterpress, litho. Platetone is committed to working with non-toxic methods so we do all these things without acids and other harmful chemicals.

"It came from the Bayou" by Julia Curran

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Book arts

The bindery at Platetone supports all types of adhesive and non-adhesive book structures. We provide a large, clean work surface to accommodate editioned books along with board shears, paper trimmer, paper drill press, sewing frames, cradles, bookbinding supplies including threads, adhesive, binding tools, knives, etc. We also offer workshops in both origami and adhesive structures along with special tutorials from trained members on historical binding, sewn structures, and sculptural books, boxes, and enclosures.

Paper Arts

Paper making is an ancient practice, starting in Japan and working its way west. Having a paper mill available within a printshop is not only crucial but sustainable. Paper is sculpture, it is an object that can be held and because of that, it transcends 2D. Printmakers spend hours of their time fine tuning their image, but to just go out and buy paper from a chain store discredits the final form of the print. Our mission at the Platetone Paper Mill is to create a dialogue between the image and the properties inherent in the paper. All fibers vary in their look, strength and process, all of which can further drench a printed/drawn piece in conceptual metaphor. We make paper from cotton, mulberry, kozo, hemp, abaca, recycled materials, and found plants. We imbed paper, make large scale sculpture, pulp paint, and of course classic sheet forming.