Grafisch Atelier Hilversum
Hilversum,Netherlands
The Moon, the Press, and
a Pre-Colonial Script in the
Land of the Windmills
Giving Baybayin the tradition it never had: printed by hand on a classic letterpress machine.
Baybayin is a pre-colonial Philippine syllabary used widely before the Spanish rule, later sidelined by Latin script. But now experiencing its revival. Printing it via letterpress in the Netherlands brings this pre-colonial script into a European craft tradition, creating a tangible bridge between cultures and asserting space for a Filipino language and memory in global print history.
It was June 2024, I arrived in Hilversum with ink on my mind and a question in my heart: what happens when an ancient script meets a centuries-old craft in a new city? The Grafisch Atelier Hilversum felt instantly familiar—Thomas Gravemaker waving from the window, the scent of paper and oil, drawers of type clinking gently like a quiet welcome. The idea that took hold was both simple and audacious: a leporello that traced the phases of the moon—Maan, Moon, Mond—paired with Filipino riddles and printed with Baybayin, the pre-colonial script of the Philippines. It would be a first for letterpress in the Netherlands.
The four weeks flies so fast…
Orientation and spark: Under Thomas’s mentorship, I recalibrated my hands to the patience of movable type. A “Print and Play” workshop with Roy Scholten and Martijn van der Blom reminded me that innovation and tradition can share the same inking roller.
Building the lunar rhythm: I sketched, set, and layered ornaments inspired by Frans de Jong’s (a Dutch artist-printer and typesetter associated with letterpress, concrete/visual poetry, and fine press work in the Netherlands) work, watching the moon’s phases appear using metal type ornaments. Three days of typesetting taught me that precision is an attitude as much as a skill.
Bringing Baybayin to the press: With no metal type available, I had polymer clichés made. Thomas helped me set Tagalog riddles in movable type, then mounted Baybayin characters on a metal plate. Seeing the first impression lift from the press felt like witnessing a bridge between cultures form in real time.
Finishing with care: I folded, cleaned, and checked each piece until the edition of 30 leporellos held steady in my hands—evidence of a journey made visible.
Yes it is more than a project, this Walz-project became a conversation: between mentors and a student, between Europe and the Philippines, between the moon’s quiet cycles and the clatter of type. The first Baybayin leporello printed in the Netherlands is not just an object—it’s a promise to keep the Black Art alive, one impression at a time.
This was further affirmed when the piece was selected as a finalist in the international design competition “TALENTE, Meister der Zukunft 2025”. A special show of “Internationalen Handwerksmesse München”. This is the first time an entry from the Philippines has been included and named as a finalist in the competition’s history.
photo courtesy of: Nanda Behari
“Maan, Moon, Mond (Buwan)” was selected as a finalist at “TALENTE—Meister der Zukunft 2025” (Internationalen Handwerksmesse München),
marking the first-ever Philippine entry to reach the competition’s finals.
The “Maan, Moon, Mond” Leporello displayed in the IHK 2025
as a finalist in the TALENTE München.
A celebration of Filipino cultural heritage that brings together technology, tradition and craftsmanship.
