This four-color six-sheet billboard is a dynamic design of two horses and their jockeys competing in a trotter race. Coming in at a finished size of 80x78" (over 6 feet in each direction!), the edition of 8 final prints took 50 hours over a 7-week period for printing to be completed.
This is the largest multi-color piece printed at Hamilton!
Hamilton Master Printer Jim Moran and Assistant Printer H.R. Buechler admirably handed the experience of printing such a complex design with historic, warped blocks. The notes found written on the blocks by Enquirer printers were invaluable for determining process, color, and sequencing in the restrike printing of this design.
In preparation for printing, all blocks were rubbed with mineral oil, front and back. As we often encounter with blocks from our Enquirer Collection, multiple blocks within the series were found to have a dramatic warp. Remediating the warp required a serial multistep process of wetting the now oiled blocks with towels, and clamping and re-clamping blocks flat to a table where they were left to settle for a period ranging from 1-2 weeks depending on ambient environmental conditions.
This warp remediation system, developed by H.R. Buechler, worked to perfection. The blocks endured the print run beautifully, and have remained flat since their last condition check at 1 month post-remediation.
Printed on 28” x 40” sheets of Neenah 100# Classic Crest stock using a 40.5” x 60” show-card style sign press, this billboard is comprised of 2 one-sheet (26” x 40”) top pieces and 2 two-sheet (40” x 52”) bottom pieces. In order of printing, the four colors used were yellow, tan, brown, and black.
A high-gloss varnish was added to the black for additional contrast with the brown, creating a rich depth of color that mirrors the shimmering deep mahogany coat of a prize-winning thoroughbred.
Our edition run was 10 billboard prints, with 8 of them considered to be acceptable. One will be framed for the Museum wall, 3 will go to archives ,and the remainder will be offered for sale.
