Mimeograph / Ditto Machine (1920s–1980s)
The ditto machine used a solvent to transfer waxy ink, producing copies in a characteristic smudged purple-blue with slight ghosting and soft edges. The mimeograph stencil allowed typed text and crude drawings on the same sheet. Community newsletters, church bulletins, school handouts — the aesthetic of limited resources, genuine local necessity, and democratic self-publishing before desktop printing existed.
Fête poster
Gig poster
