Artist Statement

I’m Tina the solo owner, creator and printer of Arquoise Press. Arquoise is a stationery studio committed to the craft of traditional hand-set letterpress printing using metal, wood type and linoleum blocks. A design aesthetic inspired by the studio’s eclectic collection of vintage ornamental metal type. I look at each metal ornament design not for their literal intent and purpose, but as forms and shapes I can recreate with. I create images using random or ambiguous visual patterns and ornaments.

Biography

Tina Arsenault is a fully bilingual Acadian Artist. She has worked with various graphic design agencies bringing her design savvy to clients across the Maritimes for over 20 years. She passionately dove into the world of 19th century letterpress printing and movable type in 2015. Her letterpress print work mainly consists of handset ornamental metal type exploration. Her design aesthetic is curiously inspired by the studio’s eclectic collection of vintage metal type. Tina’s letterpress work was recognized and published in the “For the Love of Letterpress - second edition”, a printing handbook by Cathie Ruthie Ruggie Saunder & Martha Chiplis.