Jo Barnfield

Jo Barnfield is an artist, printmaker, writer, and educator whose practice spans letterpress, book arts, and socially engaged print projects. Her work explores the intersections of design, activism, and community, with a focus on collaboration and outreach.

Jo is the resident letterpress printer at Rockaway Park, and her practice is rooted in both craft and activism. Influenced by radical print collectives such as Paddington Printshop and the See Red Women’s Workshop, she uses print to amplify underrepresented voices and foster socially meaningful collaborations.

Central to her practice is creating open-access spaces where print becomes a tool for dialogue, empowerment, and collective care. She has led initiatives working with refugee communities and school-aged children to produce artist books, prints, and collaborative artworks. These programs engage participants in hands-on printmaking, encouraging creative expression, storytelling, and reflection on social issues while developing practical skills.

Jo co-led FACILITY PRINT in Bristol (2020) and GROW ROOM at Glastonbury Festival (2025), temporary social action print bureaus providing open access to presses, tools, and workshops for local communities, artists, and activists.

An active member of the British letterpress community, Jo contributes to wayzgoose gatherings, symposiums, and collaborative publications. Her work has been exhibited in group shows such as A Show of Hands, The World is a Handkerchief, Bath Fringe Festival, and most recently The Right to Protest at the Museum of Unrest. Her work has appeared in Printmaking Today, Pressing Matters, and Small Printer. She is the author of Pattern Making Primer(2012) and Vintage Pattern Selector (2013) and received UWE’s Outstanding Teacher Award (2023).