Description:

The spring-back binding is a structure originally patented in Britain in 1799 and used widely in trade binderies of the 19^th century.  Utilizing a molded, rigid spine and a cloth “lever,” the spring-back book, when opened, throws the spine up and causes the text block to lie flat.   This structure is very suitable for ledger, account and record books because it’s possible to write all the way into the gutter of the book.  It is also an extremely robust and durable structure and very much a “trade” technique.

In this three-day workshop, participants will be able to make a small spring-back binding from start to finish.  We will be following the German style of construction of the structure. Special attention will be paid to proper endsheet construction, robust forwarding, spring-back shaping and molding and covering with traditional, starch-filled cloth.  Time permitting, we will also explore alternate cover constructions that allow for a more contemporary finish.

Anyone with basic bookbinding bench skills should be able to complete this structure successfully, but it’s not a workshop for beginning binders.

Workshop Fee: $325 (GBW members)/$375 (non-members)

Materials Fee: $30

Speaker/Instructor Bio:

John DeMerritt owns a bookbinding studio in Emeryville, CA that focuses on edition binding and boxmaking for fine press printers and publishers, galleries and artists.  He began his bookbinding career in 1986, working for Klaus Roetzscher in San Francisco and later worked at Taurus Bookbindery in Berkeley.  He formed his own bookbindery in 1995.

He is the past President of the Hand Bookbinders of California and board member of the Pacific Center for the Book Arts.

John has taught many workshops over the years for the SF Center for the Book, The Kala Institute, The Guild of Book Workers and Mills College.

For the last eleven years, he has taught in the Photography Department of the San Francisco Art Institute, combining the use of digital imaging and book structure with his co-teacher, Michael Creedon.

John and his wife, Nora Pauwels, were Artists in Residence at the SF Center for the Book in 2006.

Description:

One of the most compelling and engaging components of edition binding is the “ensemble” aspect of its practice.  The edition binder collaborates out of necessity; combining technical, aesthetic and practical skills and considerations to conceive a piece that is larger than the sum of its parts.

This talk will focus on John’s “hybrid” approach to edition binding.  This approach to work is one that utilizes many outside services and vendors.  Silk screen printers, engravers, letterpress printers, cabinetmakers, machinists and designers are regularly engaged to help with his projects.  This allows John’s studio to be very simple, efficient and completely set up for hand work.  John will also discuss his recent forays into the use of laser cutters, digital mat cutting and digital printing on fabric and leather.  The gene of the discussion is the idea of developing a craft that focuses on hand work but does not shun new tools and technology.

Lecture Fee: $5 (GBW members)/$10 (non-members)

Description: Come one, come all!  Bring your wares to sell or barter . . . or simply spend the afternoon perusing a cornucopia of book-related loot.  Holiday treats and beverages will be served.

When: Saturday, November 19^th, 2011, noon – 5PM

Where: The Gladys Brooks Book & Paper Conservation Lab

at The New York Academy of Medicine

http://www.nyam.org/about-us/directions.html

How to become a vendor:

GBW and BCNYC members interested in selling or bartering goods should contact newyork@guildofbookworkers.org by November 11^th to reserve a vending space.  Things to bring:  Bookbinding materials (leather, paper, cloth, etc.), book-related tools and books on books.  Things not to bring:  Hand-bound books, arts/crafts, sweaters, old typewriters . . . (sadly, we just don’t have the space.  Save those things for a different flea!).  In exchange for the venue, vendors are asked to contribute a tasty treat or drink.

For more information or to register, please email newyork@guildofbookworkers.org

Workshop: September 22-24, 2011, 9:30-5:30 pm
The Gladys Brooks Book & Paper Conservation Lab

Please find directions to The New York Academy of Medicine here: http://www.nyam.org/about-us/directions.html

Description:
The Glazier Codex (named for the donor, William S. Glazier) contains a parchment manuscript of the first half of the Acts of the Apostles, written in Coptic and illuminated.  The manuscript and its binding are thought to date from the 5^th century.  The place of discovery has not been revealed if known; the manuscript appeared in the antiquarian market in 1961.

The workshop goal is to make a full size model of the original binding.  The original text consists of 15 gatherings of vellum sheets, 4 sheets (a quaternion) of vellum per gathering; we will be substituting paper.  The sewing is a link style variation, and we will be adding simple link style endbands.  The original boards are thought to be acacia and measure 4 ¾ H x 4 W x 5/16 TH; we will be substituting cedar wood.  The Glazier Codex has a decorated leather spine piece that extends beyond the head edge of the spine, nearly covering (and thus protecting) the head edge of the text block.  One theory is that the tail edge of the spine piece extended in a similar fashion to protect the tail edge of the text block.  The Codex has two wrapping bands, one extending from the top edge of the upper cover, and one from the fore edge of the upper cover.  Each wrapping band is finished with a decorated bone slip used to anchor the wrapped bands.  There is evidence that the codex had a bookmark attached to the outer corner of the lower board.

Workshop lecture and discussion will compare early codex book formats found in Egypt using images and models of early structures to illustrate physical changes in the codex.  The workshop organizers are planning a visit the Morgan Library and Museum on one of the workshop days to see the original Glazier Codex.

Basic bookbinding skills are required; we will not be paring the leather we use for the binding but we will be sanding wood and bone so please bring a face mask if you would like protection from fine particles.  All materials will be provided by the instructor.  Bring paper or vellum from your own collection to add into your text block if you wish.

Workshop Fee: $300 (GBW members)/$350 (non-members)
Materials Fee: $35

Instructor Bio:
Julia Miller is a bench-trained book conservator and was a senior conservator in the University of Michigan Conservation and Book Repair lab for many years.  She has been in private practice since 1994 and for the last decade has concentrated on the study of historical bindings, building a private research and teaching collection to further that interest.  In 2008, she received a Samuel H. Kress conservation publication fellowship administered by FAIC that enabled her to write a book on historical bindings:  Books Will Speak Plain:  A handbook for identifying and describing historical bindings, which was published by The Legacy Press in December  2010.   During the fall of 2010 she received a Mellon Fellowship at The Library Company in Philadelphia to study American scaleboard bindings and is preparing an article on that topic.  She is currently editing a collection of essays by different scholars on various aspects of the history of bookbinding that will be published in 2012.  She has been guest curator for three exhibits on the history of the codex:  Suave Mechanicals:  Early to Modern Binding Styles in 2003; Elegant to Eccentric:  Bindings from the Main Room of the William L. Clements Library in 2007; and Historical Bookbindings: A Thousand Years of Structure and Style in 2011.

EXPLORING ALBUM STRUCTURES & HOW THEY WORK

A Lecture with Olivia Primanis

At The New York Academy of Medicine

To register please email newyork@guildofbookworkers.org

Lecture: Wednesday, July 20, 2011, 3:30-5:30 pm (with reception to follow); NYAM Room 21

Description: Binding structures used for photo albums display ingenious and numerous ways that bookbinders have modified traditional book structures to accommodate the addition of photographs. This lecture will illustrate how the format of the photograph influenced album structures.  The audience will have an opportunity to study the qualities of various album styles by examining historical examples.  Olivia will also discuss typical kinds of deterioration found in album structures and some repair techniques practiced at the Harry Ransom Humanities Research Center, The University of Texas at Austin.  Attendees are invited to bring problem albums to discuss with Olivia after the talk.

Lecture Fee: $10 (GBW members)/$15 (non-members).

AND

Models of Historical and Conservation Albums

A Workshop with Olivia Primanis

At The New York Academy of Medicine, Gladys Brooks Book & Paper Conservation Lab

To register please email newyork@guildofbookworkers.org

Workshop: Thursday, July 21, 2011, 9:30-5:30 pm

Description: Participants will make mini-models/maquettes of two or three album structures, some historical (Carte-de-visite) and some conservation-inspired.  Historical models will be on view, and participants will also be invited to bring albums and share their experiments and issues with album structures as time permits.

Workshop Fee: $125 (GBW members)/ $150 (non-members)

Materials Fee: $30

Instructor Bio: Olivia Primanis is the Senior Book Conservator at the Harry Ransom Humanities Research Center, Austin, TX.  She began her training in hand bookbinding and book conservation with Jean Gunner in Pittsburgh, PA and founded “The Bookbinder” (1976-1984), which offered artists’ supplies and bookbinding services.  In 1984 she moved to Los Angeles, CA and continued teaching and conservation bookbinding in a private practice.  At the Ransom Center since 1990, she performs conservation treatments, teaches and studies medieval manuscripts and 19th century photo albums.

Please find directions to The New York Academy of Medicine here:http://www.nyam.org/about-us/directions.html

At the Gladys Brooks Book and Paper Conservation Laboratory, The New York Academy of Medicine

For more information or to register, please contact Erin Albritton at ealbritton@nyam.org or call 212-822-7364

Workshop Fee:  $200 (GBW members)/ $250 (non-members)

Class Description:

There are many reasons why conservators wash paper:  to remove dirt and adhesives, relax and flatten, reduce stains, and wash away acids and other degradation products.  This two day, hands-on workshop will emphasize the practical aspects of washing and drying both single sheets and bound textblocks.  A variety of washing techniques will be covered, including blotter, float, slant-board, and full immersion of single sheets and bound items.  We will explore which techniques are best suited to accomplishing various treatment goals, discuss the pros and cons of different washing solutions and examine a number of drying methods.  Although sample objects will be provided, participants are encouraged to bring (expendable) items of their own for treatment as well as photographs of problem cases to discuss.

Instructor Bio:

Renate Mesmer is the Assistant Head Conservator at the Folger Shakespeare Library in Washington, D.C., and the former Head of the Book and Paper Program at Centro del bel Libro in Ascona, Switzerland.  She has a Masters degree in bookbinding from the Chamber of Crafts of Palatinate and gained experience in conservation during ten years of work as head of the conservation department at the Speyer State Archives in Germany

For directions to The New York Academy please go to: http://www.nyam.org/about/directions.shtml

Hello Everyone,

This is the first installment of the business section of the website. It is fashioned after the “Chair’s Note” which was a regular feature of the newsletter, but more focused on reporting on communications between the Executive board of the Guild and the regional Chapter(s). Our hopes for the website are that it will make communications more up to date than in the newsletter because we will be able to get information to you as it comes, so let’s get started!

There has been a lot of focus on what the Guild can do to attract more members. One important thing the Guild can do is make it as easy as possible for students to get involved in Guild activities, starting with membership. So, the Executive board voted in August to lower the student rate for membership to $25 per year. The rate is available for 3 consecutive years to full-time students with ID.

During Standards this year a few things were brought up during the Executive committee meeting and the annual meeting that members might want to weigh in on. On the attracting more members front, it was suggested that the GBW might consider developing sections that correspond to different membership constituents (i.e., bookbinders, book artists, conservators, calligraphers, etc.) the idea being that if people can identify and connect with like-minded folks they will be more inclined to join and find value in their membership.

Another is to steer both the national newsletter and Journal to more academic writing (for example: having interns report on research.)

And a hot topic, understandably, at the annual meeting is a general concern about the trend in some chapters (including ours) of moving away from print newsletters. Your chapter co-chairs are always open to suggestions and input from members on this or any other matter including recommendations for workshops or other activities. Please use the “Contact Us” section of the website, or send us an email and let us know what’s on your mind. Planning is well under way for next year’s Standards that will take place in San Francisco next October. The Guild’s 2009 traveling exhibition “Marking Time” will be on view at the San Francisco Public Library during the conference.

There are a few more juried competitions coming up. The Society of Bookbinders will hold theirs to coincide with the annual meeting next summer. For more information go to the Society of Bookbinders web site.

The other is the 2009 Helen Warren DeGolyer Triennial Exhibition and Award for American Bookbinding. Funded with an endowment from the family of Helen Warren DeGolyer, the competition will coincide with a national conference on the book arts at the Bridwell Library in Austin, Texas in late spring 2009. For more information, click here.

We’ll be checking in with you again soon,

Clare Manias and Rachel Lapkin
Chapter Co-Chairs

February 3, Thursday, 2-3 p.m. Free

There are several conservation labs at the Metropolitan Museum of Art that conserve paper and book objects.  Please join us for this special tour of the Asian Art Conservation lab, where conservators will discuss what they do, and show some examples of objects on which they are working.  As time permits, we may also be able to discuss various materials, tools, and other issues particular to their studio and work.  Space is limited to 10, so please register soon if you are interested.

For more information or to register, please email Jae Carey at jae.carey@metmuseum.org

Thanks to Jennifer, Christine & Yuan-li for an interesting & informative tour!

Japanese Mounting Materials (photo courtesy of Susan Martin)

A Mounted Chinese Work of Art on Paper (photo courtesy of Susan Martin)

A Workshop with Katherine Beaty

December 3^rd – 5^th, 2010 (9:30 a.m. – 5:30 p.m.)

At the Gladys Brooks Book and Paper Conservation Laboratory, The New York Academy of Medicine

For more information or to register, please contact Erin Albritton at ealbritton@nyam.org or call 212-822-7364

Workshop Fee:  $250 (GBW members)/$300 (non-members)

Materials Fee:  $55

Class Description: During this three day workshop, we will construct an Islamic style binding.  Each student will sew their textblock utilizing an Islamic style chain stitch topped with showy chevron endbands.  Our models will be covered in full leather with the characteristic fore edge flap.  We will decorate our models with medallion and corner stamps embellished with shell gold painting.  Finally, our bindings will be attached with burnished paste papers.  Through these exercises, students should expect to gain an understanding of the mechanics of Islamic bookbinding structure, as well as potential conservation problems.  Intermediate level bookbinding experience recommended.

Instructor Bio: Katherine Beaty received a BFA in studio arts from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, and an MA in art conservation from Buffalo State College.  She began her book and conservation training at Etherington Conservation Center in Greensboro, NC.  Since graduate school, Katherine has had special interest in Islamic materials and book structures, treating a wide number of Islamic materials at the Library of Congress, as well as for the libraries at Harvard University, where she is currently employed as a book conservator for special collections.

Please find directions to The New York Academy of Medicine here: http://www.nyam.org/about/directions.shtml

September 24^th & 25^th, 2010 (9:30 a.m. – 5:30 p.m.)

At the Gladys Brooks Book and Paper Conservation Laboratory, The New York Academy of Medicine

For more information or to register, please contact Erin Albritton at ealbritton@nyam.org or call 212-822-7364

Workshop Fee: $250 (GBW members)/$300 (non-members)
Class Description

This workshop will explore two parts of traditional tooling and design.  Blind tooling indents and darkens a leather cover, giving an understated, elegant effect.  Traditional panel design can be built up from guidelines boned directly on the cover, without a paper pattern.
After examining, analyzing, and discussing examples of traditional panel design bindings in the collection of The New York Academy of Medicine, we will shift to tooling blind panel designs directly on plaquettes.  A steel or brass creaser (not a roll) will be used to line-in a double panel.  A creaser slides in the guideline like a bobsled in a run, running more by touch than by sight; this sets, darkens, and polishes the lines.  Then corner tools and ornaments are struck into the frames made with the creaser, designing directly on the leather while tooling.  Finally, smaller ornaments are added to fill the empty space and intensify the design.

Before 1800, the sequential elaboration of designs based on these techniques was used to produce anything from mass-production single panels to the most elaborate overall gold tooling.  Frequent use of simple panel designs trained finishers’ eyes to good proportion; and elaboration on a familiar simple skeleton helped to keep complicated versions in proportion.  The combination of blind tooling with layout on the book still has much to offer modern binders.

Instructor Bio

Tom Conroy is a professional book restorer, toolmaker, and binding historian.  His main benchwork training came from Anne and Theodore Kahle at Capricornus between 1981 and 1988.  He holds an MLIS from the University of California at Berkeley, and worked there toward an MS in Wood Science and Technology.  He is the author of Bookbinders’ Finishing Tool Makers 1780-1965 and many articles, and he has taught workshops all over the country.  Currently he is affiliated with the American Bookbinders’ Museum in San Francisco, where he describes himself as “one of the exhibits.”

Please find directions to The New York Academy of Medicine here:
http://www.nyam.org/about/directions.shtml