Sarah Kemle
Designer in Skilled Crafts, Letterpress Artist & Cultural Storyteller
I am Sarah Linis Kemle, a designer and printmaker based in Munich, born and raised in the Philippines. After many years in the IT sector, I began training in the creative crafts alongside my job—a shift that led me to printmaking, calligraphy, and letterpress, and gradually transformed my technical background into a creative practice.
In 2023, I completed my part-time craft design training at the Academy for Creation and Design of the Chamber of Crafts for Munich and Upper Bavaria. During this programme, I was awarded the Meisterpreis, a Bavarian State distinction given to top graduates in recognition of outstanding achievement in craft and design.
In 2024–25, I joined an Erasmus+ programme and undertook an apprenticeship journey with the Verein für die Schwarze Kunst e.V., learning traditional European printmaking techniques in print museums and ateliers.
I currently work on small letterpress series and experimental prints that combine traditional techniques with digital processes. New proofs, studies, and small editions are continually produced in my studio. My work moves between digital structure and hand-printed expression—small editions, artist’s proofs, and experimental prints that reflect an ongoing evolving process.
How it all began:
Awards & Recognition
“Meisterpreis” Award
Bavarian State Government · 2023
One of Bavaria’s highest honours in the skilled trades, awarded by the State Ministry of Economic Affairs to outstanding capstone projects. Kemle received the prize for Baybayin Renaissance, her typeface design reviving a pre-colonial Filipino script.
GRANSHAN Special Recognition Award
Non-Latin Type Design · 2024
GRANSHAN is the leading international competition dedicated exclusively to non-Latin typeface design. The Special Recognition was awarded for Baybayin Flow, honouring its technical precision and contribution to the digital preservation of an endangered script.
Consumer Favorite Award
Universal Design Institute · 2024
Awarded at the Universal Design Exhibition during Munich Creative Business Week for Scalable-in-the-Box, a modular design system built around accessibility principles. The Consumer Favorite is determined by public vote, reflecting broad audience resonance alongside the jury’s recognition.
TALENTE München Finalist
Masters of the Future · 2025
An internationally recognised competition organised by the Handwerkskammer für München und Oberbayern, selecting the most exceptional master-level craftwork from across Europe. Maan, Mond, Moon—a letterpress project created under the mentorship of the dutch Master Typographer and Printer Thomas Gravemaker—was selected as a finalist.
Cultural Impact Recognition Award
London Filipino Center . 2026
This award honors individuals whose leadership, partnership, and service have significantly contributed to advancing the Centre’s mission and preserving and promoting Filipino language and cultural heritage within our ndiaspora community.
Permanet Collections & Exhibitions
2026 Womens Worth, the Heike Berl Collection
Babae: Ina (Baybayin letterpress), Dresden Germany
2026 EXEMPLA, IHM München
Maan, Mond, Moon (Erasmus+ work)
2025 Awagami International, Japan
Pangungulila (Giclée on Washi)
2025 Universal Design Exh., MCBW Munich
Scalable-in-the-Box
2024 Grafische Sammlung, Dresden
Pangungulila — permanent acquisition.
“Thinking with the Hands.”
My work is guided by the philosophy of “Thinking with the Hands.” I believe that the hand is not just a tool for execution, but an organ of perception and thought.
By merging technical logic with tactile craft, I focus on making technology feel more human and tradition feel more functional—whether I am revitalizing ancient scripts or training as a journeyman in letterpress.