WORKING HANDS: Stephen Kenny

As a stationery brand, we are always curious how and what people use our stationery goods for. With this blog series, focusing on the hands at "work" and beyond, we ask five questions about the usage and meaning of the stationery tools to our friends in Los Angeles.

For our seventeeth post, we had a stationery visit with a special guest, Stephen Kenny of the Printer's Devil. Stephen runs a letterpress studio based in Hackney, London. He just had a pop-up exhibition at Hightide DTLA in November so we got to chat with him about his favorite stationery items. A few photos here are from his exhibition.

Man in a tan vest with a silver bracelet writing in a grid notebook with an orange fountain pen on a weathered wood table.

Q1. What do you do with the Kaweco fountain pen and penco Soft PP notebook?

I use the Kaweco fountain pen and soft pp notebook to write down and organize my thoughts while I travel.

Person wearing a tan work vest with a pen in the chest pocket, beside a workbench and hanging jackets. Hands writing in a grid notebook with a cream fountain pen on a weathered wooden table.

Q2. In our technology driven world, what does it mean to do things by hand to you?

Hand writing is personal. Everyone has unique style. The right pen or pencil in your hand can make all the difference and this pen is the perfect weight for me. Fountain pen is reusable, too. Once the ink is gone, you can replace with new ink and use the same pan for many years.

Man in a flat cap and vest sits writing in a notebook on a bench outside a glass-fronted shop. Seated person in a tan work vest holding an open Penco notebook and an orange fountain pen.

Q3. Pencils or Mechanical Pencils?

Pencils. I enjoy the thickness and feel of pencils & you can sharpen with a blade or a pencil sharpener to get different results.

Tall white panel covered in bold black typographic posters reading "WAKE UP AND DREAM" and "MAKE RAMEN NOT WAR." Two stacks of Stephen Kenny's business cards printed with a black spider and web on pale pink paper.
Stephen's business cards with a yokai, Tsuchigumo, which he made a poster out of as well.

Q4. What’s in your pen case, if you don’t use a pen case, how do you organize and store your stationeries?

My pencil case is quite minimal. I have a sharpie for writing addresses on postal tubes to send print orders, a 2B pencil for signing prints & the fountain pen to keep notes and write letters to my daughter while I travel.

Canvas pouch printed with a beach scene sits on a wooden desk beside pens, a sharpener, a Koh-I-Noor tin and a Mickey Mouse
What's in Stephen's pen case? The Micky mouse is gifted by Yuichi, Stephen's friend & the Hightide USA owner.

Stephen Kenny smiling in a knit beanie, glasses and tan vest, holding a small orange pen in a gallery space.

Q5. What is your most favorite stationery?

It’s the fountain pen. The nib and ink can both be replaced so it’s eco friendly. Plus it will age like a good pair of jeans over time and look and feel better with age.

____

Stephen Kenny runs The Printer’s Devil, a wood-block printing and letterpress studio based in London. Artist Q&A with Stephen on our JOURNAL page.

The posters from the latest exhibit at the Hightide DTLA location are also available here.

Studio wall covered in bold typographic letterpress posters, with a canvas laundry cart and wooden work table nearby.