Artist’s Statement / Make Ready (Suite 2)

During my years as designer I frequented a commercial offset printer in my spare time. As designer I was already familiar with “make-readies”—the term given the test paper sheets which pressmen would refer to in order to establish “level's” of the 4 colors used in offset printing also known as offset lithography. Once the levels met quality standards, and a client approval, the job on the press would be ready for its entire print run—which in many cases were thousands to tens of thousands of finished printed sheets.

The make ready sheets would be saved, lying in stacks among the presses. The process then repeated on the next project and so on. The resulting unintentional/accidental images, printed one atop of another, smothered with layers of ink from unrelated jobs—resulted in typography and images commingling in unexpected, and in many cases traditionally inharmonious ways. What I saw captivated me and became the inspiration and foundation for my visual exploration and creative pursuit beyond my day work.

I was fascinated with how layered lines of type became fragments, interacting with mostly unrecognizable images of ads, book plates, and other subjects. Unwittingly, this emerged as my visual language. After seeing a make ready fragment with words “Well-involved Vacant Structures” , a term relating to houses engulfed by fire, I instantly knew this would become the umbrella title of my work. It was perfect. “Well-Involved related to the multi layered elements in each work, and “Vacant Structures” implied the abstract nature of mostly indecipherable messaging ephemera. The final name of the work became MAKE READY,Well-Involved Vacant Structures. The reference to Marcel Duchamp’s “Ready Mades” is an added bonus.

–Benj Čziller, Ojai CA

100% Human-Made:
No AI has been used in the
creation of my art.

Each work is original in its creation
and does not deviate from this.