A Visit to Shapco Printing

"Every project has a story. Not one job is the same, there is a different pre-press challenge each time."

Debi Bergerson, project manager for Shapco Printing, insists she is not creative. She is a problem solver. However, as she tells us the stories of her favorite projects she has worked on, it becomes clear that her influence shaped many of the extraordinary books in the Shapco collection. Housed above the farmers market in the warehouse district of the Northloop in Minneapolis, Shapco has created a library of their favorite projects to spark inspiration in their clients. Paper Darts is a huge fan of Shapco, as they printed our first edition of Get In If You Want To Live, and we were certainly inspired as we groped our way through the spines of Shapco's best work. Imagine the possibilities for our little literary magazine…if only we had the money.

And it takes money, honey…to create works like this: 

And this: 

And this:

It takes money. And it takes an idea. Artists and designers come to Shapco with an idea and people like Debi make it happen. For the project below, the designers created a mini flipbook of the photographs within the main book. The flipbook sits in a snug little pocket among the pages and is stapled with a thick strip of metal for a gorgeous, handmade effect. 

Aaron Curry's installation MMNKTLPLKT was billed as "an environment of total optical immersion and confusion." The book was lovingly constructed to reflect this chaos.  

Look how perfectly the book matches the feel of the exhibit:

We were blown away by this project from Dan Nadel of Picture Box. This oversized book made of thin, see-through vellum paper is filled with black and white skull prints from the comic artist Mat Brinkman. We would have stuffed five of these under our dresses and run, but we just couldn't do that to Debi. She is too nice.

Shapco helped to replecate a facsimile edition of a spiralbound notebook filled with choreographic notation by the famed choreographer and dancer Merce Cunningham. Titled A Pictures Book for John Cage Xmas 1984, the book was originally presented as a gift from Cunningham to his partner, John Cage. 

Look at all the colors! Look at the gorgeous materials! Look at them.

Heaven.

Pure. Heaven.