Join MAXT for 16 weeks of printmaking innovation in Young Creatives: The Alternative Press

Peterborough's own Mariposa Museum has been chosen to host Smithsonian Spark! in January 2027 and invited our Young Creatives program to be part of the celbration. Spark! Celebrates innovation in rural communities, emphaisizing their leading role in technological and social change.

Since its invention in the 1440s the printing press has been a driving force for innovation, both technological and social. Small presses have been a major instrument for social and cultural change throughout the USA’s 250 years of existence. From pamphlets during the revolutionary period through the civil rights movement to modern zines disseminating the work of small artists and the voices of marginalized groups. 

This program will explore how the press has shaped the Monadnock region and continues to be a vehicle for modern voices through zines.

We want you to express yourself in your very own zine. Tell us about your life in the Monadnock region, showcase your art and writing, write something you care about.

First... we need to build a press! We'll be working together to design and build a press based on Gutenberg's original moveable type press, using modern materials and machinery available at MAXT.

Then you'll be free to explore creating you zine, using all the equipment at our disposal, will you laser cut, 3D print, use traditional type, carve lino blocks or something totally new?

We'll end with a final evening of demoing the press live with Mariposa and handing out the first edition of our zines to the public.

Program Dates: 9/11, 9/18. 9/25, 10/2, 10/9, 10/16, 10/23, 10/30, 11/6, 11/13, 11/20, 12/4, 12/11, 12/18, 1/8, 1/15