VT Book Arts Guild “MailB.A.G.” June 2020
Next Meeting: Wednesday, June 10, 2020, 7:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.
The B.A.G. board has determined that at this time, we will not be having in-person meetings through the summer, at the very least. We do have online programs planned for the next three months, so be sure to check out the newsletter sidebar for the schedule.
This month’s meeting will once again be held via Zoom, an online conference program. If you’ve never attended a Zoom meeting before, check out this video – it will go over the basics of how to join a meeting.
Stay safe!
The B.A.G. Board
Program: Share What You’ve Been Working on During Quarantine
Have you been busy making cool stuff during Vermont’s stay-at-home order? Perhaps you’ve got a piece that you made for our sadly-canceled annual exhibit. We’d love to see what you’ve been up to!
During this month’s B.A.G. meeting, we’ll be shining the spotlight on our members and their fantastic creations. There are limited spots available, so please let Elissa know if you’d like to be a presenter.
No worries if you haven’t made anything, we’d stlll love to have you join us for a hang. Either way, if you plan to attend the meeting, please contact Elissa so she can send you the Zoom meeting details.
We hope to see you online and look forward to seeing whatever you have to share with us!
May Meeting Reflections
At our May meeting, Elissa Campbell taught Peter and Donna Thomas‘ Nested Accordion Pop-Up Fold Book. This structure can be found in Peter and Donna’s book More Making Books by Hand: Exploring Miniature Books, Alternative Structures, and Found Objects (ISBN: 978-1592530748).
As it was our first Zoom meeting, we learned a lot from the experience. Over two dozen people attended!
We hope that future meetings go more smoothly and for that reason, the B.A.G. board is currently developing guidelines for our online programs. More information is coming in next week’s meeting reminder.
Stay-at-Home Fun
*** Shawn Sheehy is offering the online workshop The Roll-Up/Pop-Up Book on July 17th – 19th. Shawn is a very skilled paper engineer and this workshop is a great opportunity to learn from him in the comfort of your own home.
You have explored the pop-up how-to books. You’re ready to make your own pop-up project. You are stymied by the question: “How do I adapt these classic, foundational structures to make MY OWN structures?” This workshop will help you think through that problem by exploring five different structures at three levels: foundational, transitional, and transformed.
And if that weren’t enough, you will explore an innovative roll-up binding approach (think scroll rather than codex) for the fifteen pop-up folios. In the end, you will have a compact, bound collection of study models that will propel you to the next step of pop-up invention. Beginners are welcome!
For more information, visit Shawn’s website.
*** The Minnesota Center for Book Arts is offering a free weekly fold-along every Friday at 12:00 p.m. EDT on Facebook Live.
Each week, MCBA Lead Teaching Artist Madeline Garcia will teach you a unique book structure using simple household materials. Past structures have included the flag book, tunnel book, and the petal fold book.
For more information and to access the project archives, visit the MCBA website.
*** Sadly this year’s Paper and Book Intensive (PBI) was canceled due to COVID-19. The organizers of the event have kindly offered access to past workshop handouts in hopes of easing the loss. Links to these documents can be found on the PBI Facebook page.
*** On July 22nd, the Special Collections department at the J.Willard Marriott Library at the University of Utah is presenting a Long-Stitch Binding workshop with Emily Tipps. Instruction will be given via Zoom.
The elegant long-stitch has been used for inventive artists’ books and beautiful journals, but don’t be fooled by the apparent complexity of this exposed-sewing binding. Participants receive one set of materials (included in the $45.00 fee), and the instructor shares examples with an assortment of thread, buttons, covers, and closures to ensure that the long-stitch never gets old.
For more information or to register, visit the Book Arts Program website.
*** Love letterpress? Grab your popcorn and settle in for an evening of Proceed and Be Bold!, a documentary about the life and work of letterpress printer Amos Paul Kennedy, Jr.
Kennedy is known for his bold use of typography and untraditional approach to letterpress. He focuses his work on exploring themes of race, politics, and art and offers his work to the public at affordable prices to make it more accessible.
In light of current events, his work is especially relevant. You can view the documentary on YouTube.
*** Want more letterpress? The Hamilton Wood Type & Printing Museum is hosting the Hamilton Hang on Zoom on a weekly basis.
“We miss you on a normal basis, but with all this social distancing we really want to see your smiling faces. So, please plan to join us for a Zoom call (or two or three) so we can chat for a bit. We are asking some of our friends from the print, design, and type worlds to be our guest and co-host for each zoom call. So we can see what they are up to and find out how you’re doing.”
For more information, including the list of currently scheduled speakers, please visit the Hamilton Museum’s website.
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