Finlay Press

Finlay Press is the name of an independent private press founded by Ingeborg Hansen and Phil Day (artist). It began production in Goulburn, NSW, Australia in 1997. In 2001 the press moved to Braidwood, New South Wales, Australia, where it printed its final publication in 2009.

Hansen and Day were graduates of the Graphic Investigation Workshop, Australian National University, where they studied under Petr Herel and Peter Finlay. Herel, an advocate of the artist's book, Head lecturer of the Graphic Investigation Workshop, and founder of the Artist Book Studio, and Finlay, a compositor and printer by trade, both inspired Hansen and Day to continue making books after their graduation.

Peter Finlay’s name was chosen for their press name largely because of his lifelong involvement in letterpress printing, starting as an apprentice compositor, then working professionally as a printer, as a teacher of all aspects of book production in numerous technical colleges, and assisting other private press printers including Alec Bolton in the early days of Brindabella Press – a role in private press productions that Hansen and Day thought would otherwise be overlooked.

Hansen and Day’s first collaborative book was Imaginary Thoughts and Their Beings (1995), printed in the Graphic Investigation Workshop’s Artists Book Studio (ABS) established by Herel (1994). Hansen supplied a prose poem while Day supplied eight etchings. Earlier books by Hansen were often experimental, unique copies using her own writing, some including textiles for pages, and mostly letterpress printed onto cheap coloured papers. Day’s earlier books were more typical fine book productions utilizing tradition printmaking and letterpress techniques printed onto art papers. In 1996 Hansen and Day collaborated on a zine titled PAB (taking its name from the initials of the French poet Pierre Albert-Birot), and invited others to contribute to each issue. There were 3 issues in an edition of 100 each. In 1996 the Artists Book Studio was separated from the Graphic Investigation Workshop to make an independent studio space. Herel chose to stay with the Graphic Investigation Workshop. The ABS was renamed the Edition and Artist Book Studio (E+ABS) and was headed by Dianne Fogwell. The E+ABS employed Day as its first printer and binder. Hansen was also employed as a printer for some titles. By late 1996 Hansen and Day had started gathering equipment to found a press. By 1997 they had printed their first title Burly Gryphon, dedicated to ‘Peter and Petr’ (Finlay and Herel) under the press name Finlay Press.

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