Last year, at the Fall Bloomington Handmade Market, we juried in this interesting fella with these interesting prints, pillas, and tees. And I adored them! I always feel a little bit weird approaching our makers from the Market to sell in the shoppe, but hey – what are they gonna do, say no? Sure, and then I move on. But, thankfully, Derrick from DRock Press did not say no, and we’ve been carrying his line of crazy mixed up monster pillas, prints and tees ever since. Let’s learn a little but about him, shall we?
- Tell us a little bit about yourself . . .
Derrick Riley is owner, and master printer at dRock Press in Lexington, Kentucky. Riley holds an MFA with an emphasis in Printmaking. He also represents the Kentucky Division of the Outlaw Printmakers. dRock Press is a small shop equipped with the capabilities to publish a wide variety of techniques including letterpress, linoleum and woodcut printing, and silkscreened t-shirts and posters. Riley tends to work in a highly detailed graphic style, drawing on heavy influences from his printmaking idols: Durer, Hogarth, Dore, Posada, and Zirkle. The inspiration of Riley’s work often comes from true stories, urban legends, and folklore usually centered around his adopted home state of Kentucky. His work has been called, “a humorous take on the bizarre.” - Where do you draw your artistic inspiration from?
dRock Press prides itself in being accessible to the masses. A combination of a nose to the grindstone work ethic, large editions, never ending sources of inspiration, and a belief that if you love the work you should have the opportunity to take it home with you; has helped keep dRock Press alive since 2005 
What is YOUR most favorite handmade item that you own?
My favorite hand made item is a stone lithograph by Oldrich Kulhanek. Kulhanek was a czech printmaker and created designs for the current czech bank notes and postage stamps. His work is absolutely amazing and I find myself staring at it almost daily.- What is your ‘pie in the sky’ dream with your business/art?
dRock Press has grown enormously over the years. Our hope is for dRock Press to grow to the point that we would have no choice but to focus solely on our production. We would love to have the opportunity to open a retail space where we can offer workshops and classes. - Share 3-5 links that everyone who Loves handmade should know about.
http://www.seanstarwars.com/
http://evilprints.com/site/
http://www.carloshernandezprints.com/
http://wolfbat.com/ - Share something fun, exciting, new or different about yourself.
dRock Press has been able to work with their very first printern this year! She has been a great addition to the dRock Press team.
And now you know!!!
Let’s leave with one of Derrick’s favorite quote!
“Sticking feathers up your butt does not make you a chicken.” Chuck Palahniuk
Spending more time conceptualizing about art rather than producing it is one of the more depressing trends in art academia today. You have to be the chicken not the feathers.
Here’s to being the chicken, Derrick!
Gather 