VT Book Arts Guild “MailB.A.G.” January 2013

Next Meeting: Wednesday, January 9, 2013, 6:30 p.m. – 8:30 p.m.

DATE CHANGE: PLEASE NOTE THAT WE NOW MEET ON THE SECOND WEDNESDAY OF THE MONTH.

There will be no change in location – we meet at the Unitarian Universalist Society Church located at 152 Pearl Street in Burlington, VT. We will be in the Sophia Fahs Community Room, a large room located in the basement.

Click here for more information on directions/parking.

Program: Sharing and Support

Welcome to our annual meeting of minds! Perhaps you have an idea you’re not sure how to execute, or a project that has presented unexpected difficulties. Bring your questions or challenges and take advantage of the cumulative skills and wisdom of fellow B.A.G. members.

Bring book arts projects, either in process or completed, resources (books, magazines, web sites, blogs), favorite tools, sources of innovation, or anything else that inspires or connects you to the book arts. Perhaps you have a project begun at a meeting or in a class or workshop that you could share.

You are also invited to come with proposals for programs: speakers, projects, field trips etc. that you would like to see happen or that you would like to do yourself! This popular annual program will help us celebrate our eighth anniversary (!), so come, share and be ready to leave with a wealth of new creative energy.

Reflections on December’s Meeting

Our annual Pot Luck with Swap and Shop proved to be a delicious evening in many ways, with lots of exciting food to share, friends to meet, and book arts items to swap and purchase.

We were inspired by each others’ creativity in the culinary arts as well as paper arts, and enjoyed swapping recipes and news before shopping and trading for materials and gifts.

Thanks to all who attended for an enjoyable, relaxed evening during the holiday crunch.

You can view images from the meeting on the B.A.G. blog.

B.A.G. News

*** Please note that in 2013, our meeting date has permanently changed to the second Wednesday of the month. The change was made to resolve meeting/holiday conflicts.

Mark your calendars! Our 2013 meeting dates are:

*** B.A.G. is happy to announce that our 2013 spring exhibit, There’s No Place Like Home, will be hosted by Studio Place Arts in Barre, VT. The show will take place at the same time as an exhibit on children’s literature in the Main Floor Gallery.

The exhibit will be in SPA’s Third Floor Gallery from June 4 – July 6, 2013. The deadline for submissions is April 10, 2013. The official call for artists will go out soon, along with more details on the exhibit.

*** B.A.G. member Marcia Vogler asked us to share this with you:

Here is a book art project I found totally inspiring, and though you might as well.

The Icebook by Davy and Kristin McGuire is a miniature theatre show made of paper and light. An exquisite experience of fragile paper cutouts and video projections that sweep you right into the heart of a fantasy world. It is an intimate and immersive experience of animation, book art and performance.

*** B.A.G. member Elissa Campbell is teaching a brand-new class, Leather Pocket Journals, at Studio Place Arts in Barre, VT on 2 Tuesdays in February 12 & 19, 2013 from 4:30 p.m. – 7:30 p.m.

In this workshop, you’ll learn 6 bindings that use only leather, paper, and thread – no glue needed! For each binding, you’ll sew 3 sections of folded pages into covers cut from one piece of leather. These bindings are very flexible and allow the books to open completely flat, making them perfect for use as sketchbooks or journals.

Each sewing technique creates a different decorative sewing pattern on the spine and we’ll try out different closure methods. No previous experience required – this is a great class for a beginner. You can even bring in your own leather to customize your book.

To register, contact SPA via phone (802) 479-7069 or Email.

Book Arts News

*** Now through January 19th, Burlington City Art‘s exhibit Constructed Conceptual brings together four different bodies of work in which paper and graphite drawings are uniquely cut, torn, rolled, twisted, folded, and painted to create dynamic sculptural objects, and alphabets of line and color.

Vermont-based artist and architect John Anderson challenges conventional definitions of drawing and sculpture by blurring the boundaries between two-dimensional drawing and three-dimensional space.

Burlington City Arts is located at 135 Church Street in Burlington, VT.

*** On March 5, 2007, a car bomb exploded on al-Mutanabbi Street, the ancient street of booksellers, poets and writers, located at the literary and cultural heart of Baghdad, Iraq. The attack killed 30 people and injured scores more.

As part of an international response to this event, the Cambridge Arts Council presents Al-Mutanabbi Street Starts Here, a three-part exhibition of 261 artist books made by 260 international artists from 24 countries.This exhibition events aims to bear witness to the events on Al-Mutanabbi Street, and to collectively affirm that the right to a free exchange of ideas and culture in public space is never to be taken for granted.

An opening reception will be held on January 14th at 6:00 p.m. at the CAC Gallery at the Cambridge Arts Council, City Hall Annex, 344 Broadway, 2nd floor, Cambridge, MA.

For more information about exhibit, event listings, images and video, please visit the project website.

*** The North Bennet Street School will present the lecture, Reflections of a Bookbinding Career with Sam Ellenport, on February 7th from 6:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.

Sam is a highly skilled bookbinder, collector, lecturer and writes about the history of bookbinding. His influence on the bookbinding field in New England cannot be overstated. He was instrumental in establishing the bookbinding program at North Bennet Street School in Boston, was the first Chair of the New England Chapter of the Guild of Book Workers and is past President of Harcourt Bindery.

The event is free and registration is available online.

Book Arts Classes

*** The New England Chapter of the Guild of Book Workers is hosting a Tyvek Toning Workshop with Dana Kull at the Northeast Document Conservation Center. The workshop will take place on Saturday, January 19th, from 10:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.

You’ll learn what Tyvek is and the different varieties that are available. Students will learn how Tyvek takes color and experiment with different effects. Most important of all, Dana will discuss how you can use toned Tyvek in your own bookbinding projects. Each participant will leave the workshop with a number of colored pieces of Tyvek.

To register for the workshop, please send an Email to bookandtile@att.net – space is limited so please register early. The Northeast Document Conservation Center is located at 100 Brickstone Square in Andover, MA.

***  Haystack Mountain School of Crafts has announced their 2013 summer workshop lineup:

• 7/28 – 8/9: It’s All in the Game: The Playful Artist’s Book with Julie Chen
• 8/11 – 8/23: Writing for the Artist’s Book with Beck Whitehead & Audrey Niffenegger

If you would like to receive a course catalog or be added to their Email list, please contact them at haystack@haystack-mtn.org or (207) 348-2306. Haystack is in Deer Isle, ME.

*** The Penland School of Crafts has announced their 2013 spring and summer workshop lineup:

• 4/7 – 4/13: Calligraphy & Decorated Letters with Maryanne Grebenstein
• 5/26 – 6/7: Sewing Books: Threads that Bind with Douglas Pierre Baulos
• 6/9 – 6/21: Books with Substance with Eileen Wallace
• 6/9 – 6/21: The Photographic Book Experience with John Mann
• 6/23 – 7/5: East Meets West Papermaking with Peter Sowiski
• 7/7 – 7/19: Toolmaking for Book Artists with Shanna Leino
• 7/21 – 8/6: Unusual 3D Paper Techniques with Melissa Jay Craig
• 8/11 – 8/23: Simple Books, Endless Possibilities with Lisa Blackburn
• 8/25 – 8/31: Boxmaking with Jana Pullman

Registration is available online. For more information, please visit Penland’s website.

*** Now celebrating its 30th year, the Paper & Book Intensive is a working sabbatical for practitioners and motivated beginners in the book arts, papermaking, and conservation. PBI will be held at Ox-Bow in Saugatuck, MI from May 12 – 23. Available classes include:

• Finesse the Sheet: Papermaking with Bernie Vinzani
• Pressure Printing: A Painterly Approach to the Press with Sarah Bryant
• The Three Ls: Limp – Link – Long; or Exploring Techniques Hidden In Libraries Across Europe with Adam Larsson
• Turning The Corner – And other useful leather covering techniques with Jeff Altpeter
• Page Design – It’s an Open Book with Paula Jull
• A Look at the World of Islamic Bookbinding with Yasmeen Khan
• Writing Tablets, Personal Almanacs and Calendar Books with Pam Spitzmueller
• BigAss Papermaking with Julie McLaughlin
• Daredevil Letterpress with Jessica Spring
• Ideas and Actions in Context and Construction with Tim Ely

Applications are being accepted online until April 15th, but acceptance letters are sent out in mid-February, so timely application is encouraged. For more information, please visit PBI’s website.

• Book Arts Guild of VT website: http://www.bookartsguildvt.com/

• Book Arts Guild of VT Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/bookartsguildvt