Show M m® witilh a tmh of Ilf® Peering into the mouth of an enlarger Thais prepares for the exposure that will give the film its latent secret Later chemicals will be used to reveal the film image by Ron Hendricks 4tr‘3 V K Cr - rn' V i v w V ? £ ’’ x? A y yp i''v i p t I ' :' lwt will be used to make r u fv 4 V ? k £ 4 tf the screen The screen is then used to Behind a locked door the orange glow of a harvest moon penetrates the darkness a strange fume battles with your eye's defenses The tools are laid out and the final stages of the operation begins T shirts that once entered the shop with the personality of a white paper towel leave in a state of total transformation Sometimes they attack segments of society and sometimes they relay thoughts of love They may even simply come out with a visual appeal that's sole purpose is to please another person The Utah State University Sign Shop has the ability to give these personalities but the shop has a personality of its own The shop puts you in the mind of a make shift printing shop that operates with the of generations past but the efficiency level would amaze the owner of the most facility Masking tape holds the walls of the cloth darkroom so that light from the outside doesn't steal the latent secret from the light-sensitiv- e material The only sign of modern equipment is chained like a prize dog and only its master has the key The 4x5 camera is used as the first step to transfer the art from its form to the Chemicals supplied by the “Great Yellow Father" (Kodak) are used to torture the material until it surrenders the image the high contrast film holds A fan disturbs personality With a stroke across the screen the ink is forced onto the shirt in a way that gives them the personality they have long waited for Who is this mysterious female w ho works in the upper levels of the Student Center creating creatures out of these mere Is it possible that USU has its own version of Frankenstein Well not exactly it's just Thais Graham doing what she didn't know how to do when she started a little over a year ago Thais a graduate of USU and works full time at the Sign Shop “I am always behind There is a need the air currents of the room allowing the film to dry Once dry the film is held by a huge enlarger something out of the early part of the last decade and the image is projected to the size needed on a large sheet of film Again this film is coerced to reveal its secret and then dried The McCalls pattern book provides the extra height to the chair that enables the for this” says Thais "Our master to peer at the final sheet of business is brought in by word of exposed film Brush in hand she mouth” touches up the film with the speed Some people come to the Sign of one of those portrait painters with just an idea and the shop Shop local find can at shopping your you does everything from the art to the mall “I have to A light sensitive screen is then finished sign or brains so I know just their pick a from masking pulled what they want” Thais explains cupboard to be given the image but they that is to be reproduced on the "People havehowtheto ideasthem down put The large film bearing the don't know on paper" a screen on the is placed image The Sign Shop is set up to serve light then penetrates the the students clubs and other the areas leaving transparent covered areas of screen unexposed organzations at USU The prices Now that screen possesses the that the shop charges are comimage the master of the shop is petitive with Salt Lake City shops their according to Thais ready to give those tape-seale- d photos by Ron Hendricks |