Circus posters. Huis van Alijn

January 23, 2016

This tiny museum located just one street away from my house is a perfect place of tranquility in the historical center of Ghent. The Huis van Alijn tells a timeless story about the culture of
everyday life through ordinary objects and curiosities spread over 3 buildings which have been dated back to the 14th century. After being a hospital, shelter, chapel, and a carpenter shop the building started to decay and in 1941 it has been acquired by the city of Ghent and after restoration opened its doors as the Museum of Folklore/Huis Van Alijn in 1962.

Christmas Cards Exchange 2015

December 27, 2015

Don't you just love the smell of freshly printed ink in the morning? I certainly do!

For the second year in a row, I'm participating in the Christmas Cards Exchange project organized by the group of enthusiastic letterpress printers from the UK. The group of participants is growing every year (we were with more than 60 this year) and it is an absolute joy to receive the Christmas cards from Iceland, US, Denmark, Italy, The Netherlands, Argentina and so on. It is so inspiring. Thank you & Merry Christmas to you all! It was the best Christmas ever! Check out all cards here.

Gedrukt voor de stad, Hans Moolenbel, Uitgeverij Bas Lubberhuizen, 2014 — *Gedrukt voor de stad, Hans Moolenbel,* Uitgeverij Bas Lubberhuizen, 2014

Visiting Sander Pinkse Boekproductie

December 2, 2015

Our next stop in Amsterdam is Sander Pinkse Boekproductie studio, located just a few minutes away from Letterpress Amsterdam. Sander Pinkse designs and produces books, of all shapes and sizes. He has been working as a book designer for more than twenty years. Sander's studio also houses a letterpress print shop.

Letterpress Amsterdam

December 1, 2015

It's been a while that I was thinking about spending a weekend in Amsterdam. And yes, finally, we jumped into our car and drove from Gent to Amsterdam. After checking in Airbnb apartment in the Jordaan district, we headed to visit Thomas Gravemaker from Letterpress Amsterdam.

Project with L’Atelier à l’Envers

November 23, 2015

A couple of months ago Guillaume Bétemps from L’Atelier à l’Envers (FR) was on a short holiday in Belgium and we decided to meet at the MIAT museum in Gent to have a chat.

This was DRUKOPSTRAAT 4. MIAT, Gent

September 23, 2015

For a fourth year on a row Topo Copy teamed up with Helix and Het Miat (Museum of Industrial Archaeology and Textiles Ghent) to make giant prints, not on a press but on concrete with a steamroller, a type of heavy construction machinery used for flattening/compacting surfaces, such as roads or airfields. During a two-day-event the artists carved lino's and printed them on ‘flags’, paper and even clothing.

Stumptown Printers (USA) visiting MIAT

September 16, 2015

Yesterday I've met wonderful people - Brian Bagdonas & Rebecca Gilbert from Stumptown Printers (Portland, OR). After taking part in St Brides Wayzgoose they came to Belgium for a few days so we headed to MIAT this afternoon.

October 31, 2026

Time for a Birthday Calendar

This year, the Industriemuseum celebrated its 50th anniversary. With the museum shop recently redesigned, it felt like the perfect moment to create something special: a birthday calendar, typeset entirely by hand using wood type and ornaments from the museum’s rich collection, and printed on a Heidelberg KSBA cylinder press.

October 2, 2026

Type walk in Ghent. Before & after. Oudburg.

When walking through Oudburg in Ghent, which I do quite often, I have noticed a number of small changes over the years. Signs disappear. Façades are repainted. Businesses move on. New lettering takes their place.

None of these changes is particularly dramatic. But together they tell us something about how the visual identity of a street evolves.

July 5, 2026

Type Walk in Ghent. Before & After. Looking up: the fading letters of Cockney's Distillery.

A couple of weeks ago, during the annual flea market on Lange Violettestraat, I found myself doing what I probably do too often: looking up.

While most people were browsing records, ceramics and old books, my attention drifted towards the façades. That's when I noticed it. Barely visible beneath layers of age and weather, a painted sign slowly emerged from the brickwork.

May 24, 2026

Type walk in Ghent. Before & after. 90 years of Dossche Sport.

Dossche Sport is one of the symbols of Ghent’s rich cycling heritage — a business rooted in professional racing history, family tradition, and nearly a century of dedication to the bicycle culture of the city.

March 28, 2026

Type walk in Ghent. Before & after. Marchandises & stories.

Tucked away near Sint-Jacobsplein in Ghent once stood a place that many locals still remember with a certain nostalgia: Marchand’10. The name Marchand’10 (Marchandise) — French for “merchant” — suited the place perfectly. This was never just a shop, but a world of its own. It felt more like wandering into a densely packed cabinet of curiosities.

January 18, 2026

Type walk in Ghent. Before & after. Only “Beerhouse” remains.

Het Waterhuis aan de Bierkant is one of Ghent’s most recognizable cafés. With its large beer selection and sunny terrace along the water, it attracts locals and visitors from all over the world. But this is more than just a place to have a drink—it’s a building with a long and surprising history.

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