Printmaking, an art historically used to mass-produce designs (called “prints”) on posters or clothing often for the purpose of spreading awareness about current events, displaying an artist’s portfolio or even as a form of propaganda, is typically created in studios specializing in this near-scientific art form. Printmaking requires different types of solvents, dyes, chemicals and more, not to mention the industrial-looking machines that produce these prints. Thankfully for Kingston residents, they now have a premier print studio in the Rondout district, which goes by the enigmatic name of The Department of Things.

“Things” are what owners Kristin and John Nason are all about — more specifically, all things that have to do with the type of printmaking known as screenprinting. The process of making the prints is more technical than it is challenging. Essentially the printer takes an ink or dye and presses it onto the material being used to display the final design. The design is printed by way of a stencil which, once the ink is layered over it and pressed through the cut-out portion of a stencil by a wide blade, prints the image onto the material.

The couple moved to the area three and a half years ago from San Diego, where they started the first rendition of the print shop after accumulating all of the necessary machines and equipment to make it possible. Coining themselves as an “accidental print shop owner,” the Nasons were called to start the shop on the West Coast when they didn’t have any luck finding a local print shop to join.

Receiving her graduate degree for photography and sculpture at the School of the Art Institute in Chicago, Kristin discovered screenprinting later on. She saw it as “a sculptural way of image making” — merging her two studies into one practice. Now, she’s been a practicing printmaker for 30 years, and with her husband of 10 years, an art history buff who currently works at Vassar College, Kristin jokes that they work so well as a duo because they are “theory and practice” in action. (Though Kristin insists that John is an artist of his own right as well).

With this experience under their belts, they decided to open up The Department of Things when they noticed a phone number on the window of an antique store on 115 Abeel St., just a few blocks from where they live together. This, along with a striking view of the Wurts Street Bridge from their large front-facing windows and the large, open interior of the space, made the location ideal for what the Nasons had in mind.

As a sensory-sensitive person, Kristin made sure that the studio wasn’t set up like a “white cube with bright lights, everything very clean and sleek,” as typical print studios are known to be. Instead, she said she wanted the space to feel like a “living room” with a mix of “production, efficiency, and very DIY and clunky.”

The studio opened in May of 2024. Since then, the Nasons have been working towards creating a “community shop” for local artists to use their space. They offer different classes and workshops, and even have a small retail section when you first walk through the front doors.

Right now, they have “Learn to Screenprint” workshops, both one-on-one and for you and a friend, a “Kids Print!” drop-in session, a “Learn to Silkscreen” group class, a “The Works!” screenprinting intensive course, an “Experienced Printer Orientation,” a “Family Print!” custom session, a book printing class and a consultation. The classes range from $40 to $275.

On top of the classes, TDoT offers memberships for those interested in regularly working in the studio and have a few different options for their membership program, and an artist-in-residence program. Check out their website for more details.

TDoT also rents out its studio space for private events such as birthday parties and wedding showers and has a mobile pop-up print shop which travels to off-site events. In whatever other time she has available, Kristin works on silkscreen commissions of posters, T-shirts, totes and wedding invitations, to name a few.

“I love working with artists who are new to screenprinting and have an idea for something they'd like to explore in print,” Kristin said. As the sole teacher of all the screen printing classes, along with some help from local teaching artists for other specific classes, Kristin, with the support of John, has taken on a lot but is hopeful and eagerly awaits (as do we) what the future will hold for TDoT.

The past year for the couple has made them feel like they “are ostriches with our head in the sand,” as they get everything up and running, but they hope by the end of January their website will be completed with all their services, memberships, workshops and more available to view.

In the meantime, any interested parties can reach out to them directly at thedepartmentofthings@gmail.com, check out their website at https://www.thedepartmentofthings.com/ or visit them during their open hours, which are Saturday and Sunday, noon-5 p.m. at 115 Abeel St.