Un refugio para los pájaros
A haven for birds
A visit with Juan Pascoe,
handpress printer and proprietor
of the Taller Martín Pescador
In the summer of 2023, Yael Weiss, a writer from Mexico City, and Pedro Strukelj, an artist from Barcelona, spent a week at the Taller Martín Pescador, in Tacámbaro, Michoacán, Mexico, to interview Juan Pascoe, the master printer who, in 2025 celebrates fifty years of devotion to the printing of literature on the cast iron handpress.
This 160 page, 8 x 11 inch, softcover book, featuring 80 pages of drawings interspersed with Spanish and English text, offers a compelling portrait of Pascoe, his colleagues, their work and environs, and his lifelong dedication to the hand printed book. Weiss’s text, divided into six parts, explores topics ranging from the early history of the press to Pascoe’s interest in early Mexican printing history and Son Jarocho music. It also reflects on the challenges of coping with the changes in modern Mexico and his musings on his Mexican identity, among many other themes. Strukelj’s line drawings capture scenes from the daily life of the press as well as the nearby town of Tacámbaro, with snippets of overheard conversation dotting the margins. Word and image come together to create a complex and layered portrait of Pascoe’s world, where tradition and art merge to make books.
The name of the press comes from the Spanish for kingfisher, martín pescador. The countryside surrounding the 18th-century adobe sugar mill where the press operates is vibrant with bird life, though increasingly threatened by the encroachment of modern agribusiness in avocados and berries. Like the birds, the Taller Martín Pescador finds ways to coexist with the forces of modernity, singing its song for those who choose to listen.
$37.50 usd plus shipping as required
Inquiries to bradley@letterpress.com