by Elissa | Apr 9, 2023 | B.A.G. Meetings, bookbinding, Call to artists, Exhibitions, MailB.A.G., Member News, Vermont, Workshops
Next Meeting: Wednesday, April 12, 2023, 7:00 p.m. – 8:30 p.m.
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
In continuing with our tradition of choosing a theme for our meetings every year, the B.A.G. Board has selected the theme of Movable Books for 2023.
Movable books are structures with 3-dimensional pages that make a book or card come alive in your hands. These include pop-ups, volvelles, tunnel books, pull-outs, crankies, and animated structures.
Put on your hard hat, because we are going to become Paper Engineers!
We will have a series of guest presenters to familiarize you with the varied structures, and to guide you through techniques that will turn your flat two-dimensional work into exciting pop-up fun!
In the movable book world, there is of course the Movable Book Society, which promotes all things movable. A look at their website and references should be all it takes to get you warmed up for the new year. Here are some other resources to get your brain churning:
Websites to drool over:
Books to pore over:
If that’s not enough for you, just google ‘tunnel books’ or ‘pop up books’, and prepare to spend some time in the rabbit hole. Take a look – the possibilities are kind of endless!
Program: Flower Power Pop-ups! with Linda Whelihan
We’ll be celebrating spring during our April meeting! B.A.G. member Linda Whelihan will be teaching you three fun, floral pop-up forms.
Here’s what you’ll need to participate in the project:
- White and colored cardstock (cut in half: 5.5” x 8.5”)
- Scissors
- X-acto knife
- Cutting mat
- PVA or glue stick
- Decorative papers, flower catalogues for inspiration, etc.
You’ll also need to print out this template (it’s a pdf file).
If you’d like to attend the meeting over Zoom, please contact Elissa so she can send you the details.
March Meeting Reflections
It’s always a pleasure when Dorsey Hogg presents to the group. I love how calmly and easily she works. While some of us have made tunnel books, there is always something new to learn, and a trick to pick up. My takeaways from the meeting? It does not have to be complicated, you can just trim a bit where you need to.
Dorsey showed us some of her own work using altered books and book pages to create layered tunnel structures that bring the scenes to life. It has inspired me to think in a new way about ‘layers’ and how to create movement through the perspective that the tunnel provides.
Thanks, Dorsey! You’re the best!
Thanks to everyone who showed up and participated along with us. I’m just loving this year’s theme, aren’t you?
B.A.G. Library Corner
Hi everyone, Elissa here. Sally’s taking a well-deserved month off. But don’t worry, I’ve got your monthly book fix!
I thought that you might be interested in expanding your library to include more reference books on movables. Here are a few cool books that I own, but haven’t been mentioned before:
If you have ideas for books to feature or if you have a B.A.G. library book in your possession from which you’d like to share something, email Sally at salblanch@gmail.com.
B.A.G. News
*** The Book Arts Guild of Vermont is pleased to announce our annual exhibition, Bookworks: the Art of the Book! The show this year will be held at the S.P.A.C.E. Gallery on Pine Street in Burlington. Members and friends are encouraged to submit up to 2 entries. B.A.G. will cover the entry fee for members.
Here are some important dates:
- Deadline for submissions: June 26, 2023. No entries will be accepted after this date.
- Exhibit dates: July 1 – 30, 2023
- Opening reception: First Friday Art Walk, July 7, 5:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m.
- Artists’ Talk: TBD. This will take the place of our regular monthly meeting.
More details to come. A link to the entry form will be included in next month’s newsletter.
*** Susan Smereka will be teaching Creative Bookmaking with Jane Ploughman on 5 Wednesdays, April 19 – May 17, 2023.
This workshop is ideal for the newbie and for those with some experience. Learn the process of paste paper, Gelli plate printing, and Japanese marbling; Suminagashi. These decorative papers will be incorporated into book structures such as single sheet, a single flag, and an accordion with a hardcover. In your final book projects, you will also work on the content (words, drawings, collages, etc).
Jane Ploughman is a bookmaker and printmaker from New Haven, Vermont with 20 years of experience. Susan Smereka is a printmaker and visual artist with 13 years of experience with bookmaking. With two instructors you are guaranteed plenty of one-on-one instruction.
For more information or to register, click here.
*** Elissa Campbell will be teaching Pop-Up Basics at CraftStudies on April 16.
If you want to add more magic to your cards and artist books, then give pop-ups a try! Also known as paper engineering, pop-ups use cuts and folds to create motion and energy in paper structures.
Through the creation of a series of pop-up cards, students will learn the basics of three-dimensional construction, including box supports, props, and straddles, then bind these cards into a book, which will become a handy reference for future work. In addition, students will receive a detailed handout and resource list for all materials we use. No previous experience is required.
For more information or to register, please visit the CraftStudies website.
Book Arts News
*** 23 Sandy Gallery is currently accepting submissions for its upcoming exhibition, Dreams. This exhibition is open to handmade book and paper arts and related works created as either an edition or one-of-a-kind. Artist books, sculptural books, book objects, altered books, zines, and broadsides are all encouraged.
Dreams allow us to experience worlds beyond borders, barriers, and binaries. They are narratives that grow out of our waking experiences into the fantastical, unexpected, and strange. Sometimes vivid, other times elusive, dreams can immerse us in hope and beauty. Their meaning and mechanics are a mystery. In dreams, we can encounter the impossible. This call for entries invites artists to submit book and paper art about the cognitive, sensory, and emotional nature of dreams, your personal dreams, or dreams you hold for others.
The deadline for entries is June 9, 2023. For more information or to view the prospectus, please visit the 23 Sandy Gallery website.
*** Abecedarian Gallery is currently accepting submissions for its upcoming exhibition, Westward Bound II. Eligible are artists’ book works either created by artists living/working in The American West or artists’ book works with content relevant to The American West.
Virtually every part of the United States except the Eastern Seaboard has been “the West” at some point in American history, linked in popular imagination with the last frontier of American settlement. For purposes of this exhibition, The American West refers to that vast stretch of plains, mountains, and deserts west of the Mississippi and so includes states now considered the mid-west (such as the Dakotas, Kansas, Nebraska, and so forth).
The deadline for entries is June 18, 2023. For more information, please visit the Abecedarian Gallery website.
*** Now through April 21, the North Bennet Street School is hosting Beyond Bookbinding, an exhibition including the work of students, alumni, current and former faculty, and program advisors.
The work answers a question they often get, “What do you do after you study bookbinding?” That answer includes the classic Fine Bindings often seen in bookbinding exhibitions (these works, sometimes known as “Design Bindings” or “Artistic Bindings” are exhibition oriented staples). But Beyond Bookbinding also includes book repair and conservation, historical binding structure models, period-style re-bindings, artists’ books, decorated paper, letterpress printing… and even some stone carved lettering.
The North Bennet Street School is located in Boston, MA. The exhibit is being held in the Windgate Gallery.
*** Now through April 29, the Kate Cheney Chappell 83 Center for Book Arts is hosting Building Books: New England Book Artists Members Exhibition. The exhibition is located in the Great Reading Room, 7th floor, Glickman Family Library at the University of Southern Maine in Portland.
NEBA is a professional organization of book artists and bibliophiles. It celebrates, promotes, and supports the book arts and its makers, fosters public education, and nurtures an understanding and enjoyment of the discipline through exhibitions, workshops, lectures, and related activities.
For more information, please visit the KCCCBA website.
*** The Rochester Public Library is currently accepting submissions for its 12th juried international exhibit, Art of the Book: Artist Books, Altered Books, & Paper Sculpture. The deadline for entries is May 15.
In 2011, the first Art of the Book exhibit was held in honor of the 100th anniversary of the Rochester Public Library. At the time, they wanted to celebrate what has been at the core of libraries for centuries – the book. They marveled over the intricate interpretations of this humble format and were thrilled with the response to the exhibit from the community.
In subsequent years, the exhibit has grown to include entries from all over the world, featuring well-known artists for their exquisite work. Books continue to ensnare the imagination, both for their form and content. Artists manipulate those two components to create breathtaking, mind-bending works of art that tease and cajole people to consider the intricacies of paper, ink, words, and meaning.
For more information or to view the prospectus, please visit the Rochester Public Library’s website.
Stay-at-Home Fun
*** The Center for Book Arts is offering Drum Leaf Binding and its Precedents with Scott McCarney on Thursdays, April 27 – May 11.
In this workshop, participants will learn to make three types of lay-flat books ideal for displaying photographs and prints. The three techniques – a Japanese Album, a Japanese Butterfly book, and a Drum-Leaf binding – have similarly easy and ingenious modes of assembly. All three books join single folded folios in distinct ways using a minimum of glue, limiting the amount of moisture to speed the binding process considerably.
Participants will case their Drum-Leaf books into easily assembled quarter-cloth covers with throw-back spines. Since each page spread is a single folded folio, participants can print their images across the gutter with no interruption, making these techniques very popular with printmakers and photographers. Once completed, these books lie flat when opened, making them easy and comfortable to view.
For more information or to register, please visit the CBA website.
*** The Minnesota Center for Book Arts is offering the Dos-à-Dos Binding with Rosae Reeder on April 29.
In this workshop, you’ll learn how to create books that are bound together – sharing a back cover – and open in opposite directions. First, create a simple single-page dos-à-dos to get familiar with the concept of the structure. Next, make a softcover book with two sections sewn in. Finally, create a hardcover dos-à-dos structure with a sewn open spine.
The stories or imagery in these versatile books can be viewed as one continuous story, or as two parallel stories. Basic binding skills are helpful, but not required.
For more information or to register, please visit the MCBA website.
*** Erin Fletcher of Herringbone Bindery is offering the Tue-Mouche binding on May 23 & 25.
Translated to “flypaper”, the Tue-Mouche was developed by Ben Elbel as a variation to the Dos Rapporté structure (another one of his innovations). The Tue-Mouche is an easy and economical form of bookbinding. The covers are constructed entirely from heavyweight paper, layered to create rigidity and strength, while the flexible spine allows the binding to open without constraints. In this workshop students will learn how to create the Tue-Mouche structure from start to finish.
For more information or to register, please visit Erin’s website.
by Elissa | Mar 3, 2023 | B.A.G. Book Swap, B.A.G. Meetings, bookbinding, Exhibitions, Lecture, MailB.A.G., Member News, Vermont, Workshops
Next Meeting: Wednesday, March 8, 2023, 7:00 p.m. – 8:30 p.m.
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
In continuing with our tradition of choosing a theme for our meetings every year, the B.A.G. Board has selected the theme of Movable Books for 2023.
Movable books are structures with 3-dimensional pages that make a book or card come alive in your hands. These include pop-ups, volvelles, tunnel books, pull-outs, crankies, and animated structures.
Put on your hard hat, because we are going to become Paper Engineers!
We will have a series of guest presenters to familiarize you with the varied structures, and to guide you through techniques that will turn your flat two-dimensional work into exciting pop-up fun!
In the movable book world, there is of course the Movable Book Society, which promotes all things movable. A look at their website and references should be all it takes to get you warmed up for the new year. Here are some other resources to get your brain churning:
Websites to drool over:
Books to pore over:
If that’s not enough for you, just google ‘tunnel books’ or ‘pop up books’, and prepare to spend some time in the rabbit hole. Take a look – the possibilities are kind of endless!
Program: Tunnel Books with Dorsey Hogg
Among the movables we’re exploring this year are tunnel books, which are made from a set of panels attached to an accordion on each side and viewed through a hole in the front. This type of book dates from the mid-18th century and was inspired by theatrical stage sets.
According to Wikipedia, “the term ‘tunnel book’ derives from the fact that many of these books were made to commemorate the building of the tunnel under the Thames River in London in the mid-19th century.” (Who knew?)
In our March meeting, you’ll learn the basics of creating a tunnel book with our own Dorsey Hogg.
Here’s what you’ll need to participate in the project:
- 5: 4″ x 6″ pieces of cardstock or similar weight paper for the pages
- 2: 4′ x 8″ strips of paper, I used 80lb drawing paper for the side bindings
- 1: 4.25″ x 18.25″ strip of paper, I used the same 80lb drawing paper for the wrap around cover.
- Glue stick
- Measuring tool
- X-Acto knife
- Bone folder
If you’d like to attend the meeting over Zoom, please contact Elissa so she can send you the details.
February Meeting Reflections
Some people just bring joy to everything they touch, and Ed Hutchins is one such person. What started as a show and tell, with charming videos of Ed leading us through some highlights of his artist book collection, ended with a hands-on reflection on Valentine pop-ups just in time for Valentine’s Day. Ed makes pop-ups look easy and accessible to everyone!
His presentation was a whirlwind introduction to the world of movable books, ranging from different cultures such as the Zhen Xian Bao, or Chinese thread box, to different structures such as tunnel books and flexagons. One of my personal favorites was the work of Paul Johnson, an English book artist who uses slotted structures without glue, and incorporates foldouts and pop-ups with sweet, brightly colored illustrations.
Oh, and then there were hearts, many hearts. There were accordion hearts, wiggle hearts, spiral hearts, interlocking hearts, and floating hearts. The eight different valentines Ed showed us in roughly 8 minutes was pure magic. I hope everyone took advantage of his challenge to send him a valentine and get one from him in return. There’s such joy in receiving an envelope covered with cute stickers from our friend.
Thanks so much, Ed! And thanks also to everyone who showed up and participated in this magical evening.
B.A.G. Library Corner
As we continue this year’s exploration of movable books and interactive structures, I began to think about what if a book was something else entirely – like a doll?
Mimi Kirchner’s plush doll sketchbook, featured in Jeannine Stein’s Adventures in Bookbinding: Handcrafting Mixed-Media Books, is a whimsical slipcover for a handmade sketchbook. But what if the pages were actually sewn into the slipcover? Could you turn a doll, or another unexpected object, into a book?
If you have ideas for books to feature or if you have a B.A.G. library book in your possession from which you’d like to share something, email Sally at salblanch@gmail.com.
You can check out and download the selection here.
B.A.G. News
*** Due to the success of our last Zine Swap, B.A.G. is hosting another one!
What’s a zine? A zine (short for fanzine or magazine) is a self-published booklet, usually made on paper and reproduced with a photocopier or printer. Our previous Zine Swap was fun and participants enjoyed receiving 10 zines from fellow members. Sally Knight and Marilyn Gillis have agreed to organize the swap.
Here are the steps for participating in this next Zine Swap:
- Join the swap by emailing Marilyn Gillis at marilyngillis@gmail.com by March 31, 2023 to state your desire to participate.
- Create an 8-page folded zine. This is a structure using one 8.5″ x 11″ sheet of paper which is folded and cut to create a 4.25″ x 2.75″ booklet. Copy paper is fine for making a zine. The structure is simple, fast and easy to make. There are many YouTube instructional videos, just search for how to make a one-page zine. If you need help you can email Marilyn.
- Create your zine content. Make a master copy.
- Copy your zine 11 times. One copy is for you to keep.
- Fold each of your copies.
- Send 10 copies to Marilyn Gillis, 9 Arthur Court, Burlington, VT 05401 by May 31.
- Receive a packet of 10 participant zines in June!
*** Susan Smereka will be teaching Generative Book with Jane Ploughman on March 22 & 29, and April 5, 2023.
Create a unique artist’s book while learning new bookmaking and printmaking techniques. This workshop will guide you through a three part creative process to generate text and images using Gelli plate printmaking and collage.
Your completed project will combine your edited and refined creations in a hardcover book (approximately 3.5″ x 5”) with 8 spreads (30 sides) handbound with a long stitch variation.
The workshop will take place at Susan Smereka’s studio space in Burlington, VT (Howard Street off of Pine).
For more information, please contact Susan at susansmereka@gmail.com.
*** Elissa Campbell will be teaching Blizzard of Blizzards at Studio Place Arts on March 11.
If this winter is giving you the blues, here’s a reason to like it a bit more – book artist Hedi Kyle‘s famous Blizzard Book was invented during a snowstorm! This gem of a book has a spine made of folded pockets that lock pages into place without using adhesive. The folded components can be modified to create other structures that Hedi affectionately refers to as the Blizzard Clan.
In this workshop, you’ll start by making the book that started it all, the Blizzard Book. As time allows, you’ll complete up to five variations including the Blizzard Box, the Blizzard Pocket, and the amazing Wheel of Fortune. All of these structures are intended to house your choice of content – for example, business cards, ticket stubs, or fortune cookie fortunes.
For more information or to register, please visit the SPA website.
Book Arts News
*** Chandler Center for the Arts in Randolph, Vermont is hosting Femmezine, now through March 4. Zine makers from all over (with a focus on local artists) will have their work and message on display and available for reading.
The show celebrates the Femme (An identity or presentation that leans towards femininity) DIY spirit as well as the necessity to shout out the message of “We are here, we exist, acknowledge us!”
The Do It Yourself (DIY) movement started with music, but would branch out into the rest of the arts. Fanzines (fan•zeenz) were a way for kids to distribute their message to others, helping to grow the culture, the community, and their chosen family.
For more information, please visit the Chandler website.
*** On March 24, The Grolier Club is hosting an online, full-day symposium in celebration of the Pattern and Flow, A Golden Age of American Decorated Paper, 1960s to 2000s exhibition, sponsored by the Thomas J. Watson Library, The Metropolitan Museum of Art.
The free event will start with introductions and the keynote address, then offer panel presentations on 1. Techniques and materials in decorated paper; 2 the expansion of decorated paper in the U.S. (programs, outreach, education, publications); 3. earning a living in decorated paper (building a business, products); and 4. distributing and collecting decorated paper (trends and sales).
For more information or to register, please visit the event website.
*** Now through April 29, the Kate Cheney Chappell 83 Center for Book Arts is hosting Building Books: New England Book Artists Members Exhibition. The exhibition is located in the Great Reading Room, 7th floor, Glickman Family Library at the University of Southern Maine in Portland.
NEBA is a professional organization of book artists and bibliophiles. It celebrates, promotes, and supports the book arts and its makers, fosters public education, and nurtures an understanding and enjoyment of the discipline through exhibitions, workshops, lectures, and related activities.
For more information, please visit the KCCCBA website.
*** The Rochester Public Library is currently accepting submissions for its 12th juried international exhibit, Art of the Book: Artist Books, Altered Books, & Paper Sculpture. The deadline for entries is May 15.
In 2011, the first Art of the Book exhibit was held in honor of the 100th anniversary of the Rochester Public Library. At the time, they wanted to celebrate what has been at the core of libraries for centuries – the book. They marveled over the intricate interpretations of this humble format and were thrilled with the response to the exhibit from the community.
In subsequent years, the exhibit has grown to include entries from all over the world, featuring well-known artists for their exquisite work. Books continue to ensnare the imagination, both for their form and content. Artists manipulate those two components to create breathtaking, mind-bending works of art that tease and cajole people to consider the intricacies of paper, ink, words, and meaning.
For more information or to view the prospectus, please visit the Rochester Public Library’s website.
Stay-at-Home Fun
*** The Jaffe Center for Book Arts is offering One Sheet Books with Stephanie Wolff on March 9.
A few folds, a cut or two and presto, a book! Participants will create a selection of simple folded “books” made from one piece of paper in this workshop. They are great for zines, comics, cards, and other self-publishing ventures, as well as artists’ books.
Paper choices, layout, and duplication methods will all be covered. Simple, inexpensive means of duplication or more complex artmaking methods can be combined with these forms. Our focus will be on making a set of models as reference for future work after the workshop.
For more information or to register, please email John Cutrone at jcutrone@fau.edu.
*** The Minnesota Center for Book Arts is offering Mini Modeled Books with Amanda D’Amico on March 14 & 28.
What happens when you combine historical Coptic bindings with contemporary craft materials? You get small, playful book objects! For the bookbinder who loves sculpture, this virtual workshop will cover how to make a three-dimensional book cover using Crayola Model Magic, a non-toxic, lightweight modeling material.
Part one of the workshop will cover tips and tricks for working with the modeling material, as well as how to design your book object for success. Part two of the workshop will cover instruction on the two-needle Coptic stitch binding, a traditional and wonderfully adaptable sewing technique that can be used for many sculptural structures.
Note that this workshop has two weeks between the two sessions to allow the Crayola Model Magic to fully dry and shrink to its permanent size.
For more information or to register, please visit the MCBA website.
*** Maine Media Workshops + College is offering Japanese Boro Stitch for Bookbinding with Marsha Shaw on April 1 & 8.
In this workshop, students will learn to make an accordion book that uses a Japanese Boro mending stitch. What is so exciting about this structure is that you can work on the pages separately and then bind them together to make a book of any length. For example, a continuing photographic series can be added over time.
Students will learn the skills necessary to keep making these books and written instructions will be provided (The instructions are for a 3.5″ x 2.5″ playing card but the instructor will show you how to adjust the holes to your size pages). Students will be provided a small kit with two master sheets of collage paper to play with, or you can use your own papers or photographs.
For more information or to register, please visit the Maine Media website.
by Elissa | Sep 12, 2022 | B.A.G. Meetings, bookbinding, Exhibitions, Lecture, MailB.A.G., Member News, Vermont, Workshops
Next Meeting: Wednesday, September 14, 2022, 7:00 p.m. – 8:30 p.m.
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
In continuing with our tradition of choosing a theme for our meetings every year, the B.A.G. Board has selected the theme of Woven for 2022.
Weaving is one of the oldest surviving crafts in history, and is an integral part of all of our lives. We wear woven clothing, we sit on woven seats, we use and admire woven baskets.
In the paper and book world, there are many examples of paper weaving, woven book covers, and woven structures. Here are a few resources to get your brain churning:
The possibilities are kind of endless!
During the meetings this year, guest presenters will guide you through techniques to get you started on your woven explorations. The simplest methods can produce exciting results and we can’t wait to see what you come up with!
Program: The Woven Codex with Dorsey Hogg
In September’s meeting, Dorsey Hogg will be teaching us how to make the Woven Codex from Alisa Golden‘s Making Handmade Books: 100+ Bindings, Structures & Forms.
You’ll be weaving together 4 signatures using 2 long strips of material that will bind the pages together without adhesive or sewing. The covers can be made from any heavyweight paper you have around, for example an old watercolor painting.
Supplies:
- 1 12″ x 7″ piece of heavy paper for the cover
- 8 8″ x 4″ pieces of medium weight paper
- 4 4″ x 4″ pieces of medium to heavy weight paper
- 2 10″ x 0.75″ strips of tyvek (I used a USPS priority mailer, you need a material that can fold, is thin, but strong enough to hold the book together.
- Glue (only a little is needed)
Tools:
- Measuring tool
- X-Acto knife
- Cutting mat
If you plan to attend the meeting, please contact Elissa so she can send you the Zoom meeting details.
August Meeting Reflections
For our August meeting Elissa Campbell presented the second half of the Crossed Structure Binding Linked lesson. This structure is very doable and at the same time is so impressive when completed. I never tried it before Elissa demonstrated because it seemed intimidating but it really isn’t difficult!
Elissa’s instructions were very clear and at the end of the meeting participants showed variations that they created using some different materials and stitching designs. The structure lends itself to designing different weaving patterns and stitch patterns. Cover materials that were successfully used were leather, Tyvek, and stiff paper. I would also recommend Kraft-Tex paper. It is a material that can be made to look like and feel like leather and can be painted/dyed or printed on.
I hope participants will share what they do with this wonderful structure in subsequent meetings! Thanks, Elissa.
B.A.G. Library Corner
It’s back to school time, so let’s get back to basics! Keith Smith’s primer on book covers in Non-Adhesive Binding, Vol. 1 gives us tips on papers and measuring techniques to use, as well as describing methods for creating more complex covers with slots, layers, overhangs, and reinforced spines. Let these basic tools of the trade inspire your next book’s cover!
If you have ideas for books to feature or if you have a B.A.G. library book in your possession from which you’d like to share something, email Sally at salblanch@gmail.com.
You can check out and download the selection here.
B.A.G. News
*** Susan Smereka and Jane Ploughman are co-teaching two classes at Susan’s Burlington studio in September:
- Creative Bookmaking will take place on Tuesdays, September 20 – October 18. Learn the process of paste paper, Gelli plate printing, and Japanese marbling; Suminagashi. These decorative papers will be incorporated into book structures such as single sheet, a single flag, and an accordion with a hardcover. In your final book project, you will also work on the content (words, drawings, collage, etc) for your book.
- The Generative Book will take place on Thursdays, September 22 – October 6. Create a unique artist book while learning new bookmaking and printmaking techniques. This workshop will guide you through a three-part creative process to generate text and images using Gelli plate printmaking and collage. Your completed project will combine your edited and refined creations in a hardcover book with 8 spreads bound with a long stitch variation.
For more information or to register, please visit Susan’s website.
*** B.A.G. member Laura Lacroix is looking for recommendations for a printing service local to East Charleston, Vermont. If you have any ideas, please contact Laura at lacroix.laura@yahoo.com.
*** Vermont Fall Open Studio Weekend is coming up on October 1 & 2 and it’s a great way to combine fall foliage viewing and harvest activities with visits to artists across Vermont.
There are a few opportunities for you to visit B.A.G. member studios:
You can download a pdf of the complete Fall Event & Resource Guide from the Vermont Crafts Council website (this is a really big file). Studios have been organized into loops to help you plan your travels and you can see them here.
Book Arts News
*** The traveling exhibition Pulped Under Pressure will be hosted by the University of Southern Maine from September 7 – December 22, 2022. With traditional hand papermaking at its core, the exhibition underscores important contemporary issues steeped in history and craft. Enticed through touch, these works encourage a contemplative slowing down even as they urge acknowledgment of some of the most pressing issues (environmental crisis to global marginalization) facing civilization today.
The artists’ multifaceted works incorporate a rich range of printmaking, letterpress, papercutting, and installation with a diversity of recycled disposable materials (junk mail, egg cartons, old cotton t-shirts, ripped denim jeans) as well as old bedsheets, beetroot, heirloom plants, and illuminated el wires. In very unique ways, these artists consider paper beyond its most common function as a passive surface of record or craft. Instead, the material is transformed and embedded with content that turns communication into a public practice.
For more information, please visit the USM website.
*** On September 29, the University of Southern Maine’s Special Collections and the Kate Cheney Chappell 83 Center for Book Arts are co-sponsoring What is Book Arts: A Panel Discussion. The discussion will be moderated by Susie R. Bock, Coordinator of Special Collections and Director of the Jean Byers Sampson Center for Diversity in Maine. The event is free and open to the public.
Panelists include Liz Brown, Rachel Church, Anna Low, and Angel Simoneau. The event will be held on the 7th floor in the University Events Room at the Glickman Family Library, USM Portland Campus.
For more information, please visit the KCCCBA website.
*** Thanks to Helen Hiebert‘s amazing newsletter, I discovered the work of artist Jonpaul Smith. He creates complex paper weavings using (in his words) “discarded consumer packaging, original traditional and non-traditional prints, gouache paintings, smoke transfers and other paper ephemera.” Check him out!
Stay-at-Home Fun
*** The Minnesota Center for Book Arts is offering Alternative Printmaking at Home with Rosae Reeder on Wednesdays, September 14 – 28.
This virtual printmaking workshop focuses on using accessible materials to make prints and embellish existing art projects. Explore several techniques including packing tape transfer, Matte Medium transfer, watercolor monoprint, and Gelli plate printing. All of these processes can be done safely at home without caustic materials, chemicals, or printing presses.
After learning printing techniques, participants will construct a single-page book structure to experiment with creating simple artist’s books from prints. No prior bookbinding or printmaking experience is needed.
For more information or to register, please visit the MCBA website.
*** The Center for Book Arts is offering Long Stitch Binding At Home with Scott McCarney on Thursdays, September 22 – 29. In this workshop, participants will learn how to create a book using the long stitch binding technique two different ways. This binding technique is versatile and can be applied to multiple materials, making it an excellent option for any book project.
Long stitch bindings are non-adhesive and require no paste or glue. They are relatively easy and quick to sew, adaptable to small edition binding. The finished books can lay flat, making them suitable for sketchbooks and journals. The sewing technique is centuries-old, originating in medieval Germany, and historically can be found on limp parchment bindings (though we will be sewing sections onto reinforced paper covers).
On the first session, you will learn how to tailor a reinforced paper cover to a stack of folded sections, prepare sewing stations in the cover and sections, and sew a basic long stitch that creates an alternating pattern of thread along the spine. In the second session, you will learn a variation on the basic long stitch where the threads are parallel across the spine. Some exterior sewn thread reinforcements will be introduced that reinforce the spine and can be quite decorative.
For more information or to register please visit the CBA website.
*** Maine Media Workshops + College is offering the Sewn Board Binding with Suzanne Glémot on September 24 & 25, 2022.
The sewn board binding is a light and versatile book structure that opens flat – an appealing structure for artists working in a variety of 2-D media, including drawing, painting, printmaking, digital printing, and collage (it also makes for a great journal). Its materials are quite adaptable, too, making it a great binding to explore at home or with a small studio set-up.
Workshop participants will complete this structure, from text block preparation to covering the layered boards with decorative papers, over the course of two sessions. Working with an instructor-provided book kit, students will sew the covers into the text block using a French link stitch; learn how to line a spine; and build a fitted, cloth-covered spine piece.
For more information or to register, please visit the Maine Media website.
*** The Jaffe Center for Book Arts is offering The Road Book with Stephanie Wolff on October 1. Participants should have solid basic bookbinding skills to get the most out of the workshop.
This workshop covers an historical book structure useful for maps, prints, or other material, inspired by an example the instructor observed while working as a book conservator. The Road Book (the title of this 1904 New England road atlas) is a pamphlet bound single-signature structure, but the configuration and attachment of the pages allows for clear double-page spreads.
A simple (and perhaps obvious) idea once learned, it’s a useful structure. We will talk about a few adaptations, materials, and share our ideas for its use. Our model will be softcover, but easily adapted to a hardcover version.
For more information or to register, please email John Cutrone at jcutrone@fau.edu.
by Elissa | Sep 3, 2021 | B.A.G. Meetings, bookbinding, Exhibitions, Lecture, MailB.A.G., Member News, Vermont, Workshops
Next Meeting: Wednesday, September 8, 2021, 7:00 p.m. – 8:30 p.m.
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: Make a Zine and Prepare to Swap!
September brings a different kind of energy to life, doesn’t it? Let’s get together and make a zine!
In our June meeting, Emma Percy introduced us to zine culture and showed us examples from their collection. Now is our chance to practice the craft.
Our own Amy Burns will share some of her own comic zines and ideas on how to create your own. We will then make a one page fold book together, that can be printed on any home printer, and share a variety of versions to stimulate your creativity.
Ann Joppe-Mercure will introduce a new mail art challenge with a Zine Swap, that will enable us to see each other’s work in real life.
Here’s what you will need:
- A print out of this template at actual size
- 2 – 4 sheets of plain 8.5″ X 11″ paper
- Drawing/writing tools – your favorite pen is good, markers, etc.
- Subject matter – optional, but if you want to start some content, it’s nice to have a subject
B.A.G. Library Corner
Summer is ending, the holidays will be here before we know it, and with another mail art challenge on the horizon it’s a good time to review our envelope making skills. In her book Ultimate Cardmaking, Sarah Beaman shows us three different ways of crafting handmade envelopes.
The tutorials show how to use a template, trace an existing envelope, or create a pillow envelope to house three-dimensional contents. These easy to follow instructions will be sure to inspire the perfect enclosure for any mail art creations.
If you have ideas for books to feature or if you have a library book in your possession you’d like to share something from, email Sally at salblanch@gmail.com.
You can check out and download the selection here.
B.A.G. News
*** Now through September 25th, the Book Arts Guild of Vermont’s group show, THE ART OF THE BOOK: IS IT A BOOK? will be on view at the Northeast Kingdom Artisans Guild in St. Johnsbury, Vermont.
NEKAG is open Tuesday through Saturday from 10:30 a.m. – 5:30 p.m. and is located at 430 Railroad Street.
Our reception is being rescheduled, at which time we hope that participating artists will be able to speak about their work. Stay tuned for more information.
*** Speaking of our exhibit, be sure to check out page 50 in this week’s issue of Seven Days. We received a great review:
A current show at the Northeast Kingdom Artisans Guild in St. Johnsbury, were it an actual book, would have to be called a page-turner. Unputdownable. A best seller.
Our own Ann Joppe-Mercure also got a special mention for her work Written in Stone.
Can’t get your hands on a copy of the paper? Never fear – you can read the issue online.
*** The Rochester Public Library‘s 10th anniversary international exhibit, Art of the Book & Paper, is open now through November 1. The opening reception will be held on September 29 from 5:30 p.m. – 7:00 p.m.
B.A.G. members Carolyn Shattuck, Debra Kraemer, and Dorsey Hogg have work that was juried into the exhibit. Dorsey’s pieces Bound to History won 2nd place and Delicious won Honorable Mention, both in the Altered Books category.
All of the work can be viewed in the online exhibit program.
Book Arts News
*** The Vermont Folklife Center is currently accepting applications for its Vermont Traditional Arts Apprenticeship Program. The program works to sustain and pass down traditional art forms (bookbinding included!) in the state of Vermont .
The purpose of the program is to provide funding to help compensate the master artist for their time and to cover the cost of travel and of materials used during the apprenticeship. Accepted master artist/apprentice pairs are supported with up to $2,000.00 of funding.
Applications for the 2021-2022 cycle are due by September 17, 2021. For more information and to access the application, please visit the VFC website.
*** The Museum of Printing in Haverill, MA is offering free admission on September 18 as part of Smithsonian Magazine’s 17th annual Museum Day.
The museum is dedicated to preserving the rich history of the graphic arts, printing and typesetting technology, and printing craftsmanship. In addition to many special collections and small exhibits, the museum contains hundreds of antique printing, typesetting, and bindery machines, as well as a library of books and printing-related documents.
The on Museum Day, the museum will be hosting the Alphabet Factory, an interactive printing experience for all ages. While admission is free, you will need a Museum Day ticket for admission. Each ticket is valid for two visitors. You can download a ticket here.
September 18th is also the day of the museum’s Garage Sale. There will be lots of letterpress items for sale – printing presses, printing equipment, metal cuts, halftones, books, and other goodies.
*** The third annual Peace Paper Project street intervention will take place at City Hall Park in Burlington on Saturday, September 25 from 2:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m.
Johnny LaFalce and Drew Matott with their bicycle powered paper pulp beater team up with A Revolutionary Press to pedal-pulp contemporary issues into messages of empowerment, peace, and love.
The public is invited to hand pull a sheet of paper made from a unique blend of pulped material and fibers. The identity of the mystery fiber source in the pulp vat will be revealed that day. A Revolutionary Press will set up its mobile letterpress print station for those wanting a free print on this paper. The selected quote will relate to the mysterious material incorporated in the pulp mixture.
*** The American Precision Museum in Windsor is hosting a temporary exhibit from now until September 13. Letters and Stitches features rarely seen typewriters and sewing machines from the museum collection.
Stay-at-Home Fun
*** The Jaffe Center for Book Arts is offering Moving Circles: Volvelles with Stephanie Wolff on September 18.
Volvelles, sometimes known as wheel charts, have a centuries-long history. They have been used in historic books, in promotional materials, and in devices to aid computation. Two or more circles turn to show information through cut out windows. This workshop covers a basic version of a volvelle and discussion of variations and ideas about incorporating content.
Our focus in this workshop will be on making models and learning how these function in order to create more complex and finished versions after the workshop. Volvelles are fun to make as cards, personalized gifts or to include in artists’ books.
For more information or to register, please email John Cutrone at jcutrone@fau.edu.
*** The Center for Book Arts is offering Suminagashi Marbling with Sheryl Oppenheim on September 21.
Suminagashi is the oldest form of marbling, dating back to at least the 12th century. It is totally distinct, both in material and methods, from the size-based marbling practiced in Turkey, Iran, and Europe.
In this class you will learn about the history of Suminagashi, materials, and techniques, and you will each work at home to make your own Suminagashi marbled paper.
For more information or to register, please visit the CBA website.
*** The Minnesota Center for Book Arts is offering the Slotted Tape Binding with Rachel Schend on September 28.
In this virtual workshop, learn how to construct a Slotted Tape Binding, a multiple-section binding sewn on tapes (thin strips paper) that features a decorative paper cover. Learn how to sew book pages onto paper tapes using a French web-sewing technique. Then, make a paper cover while considering a number of unique design possibilities.
Each technical step in the process will be demonstrated and participants will come away with a completed book. Some historical background and design alternatives will also be presented.
For more information or to register, please visit the MCBA website.
by Elissa | Feb 7, 2020 | B.A.G. Meetings, bookbinding, Exhibitions, Lecture, MailB.A.G., Member News, Vermont, Workshops
Next Meeting: Wednesday, February 12, 2020, 6:30 p.m. – 8:30 p.m.
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.
Welcome to According to Accordions!
Often underestimated, the accordion book has more to it than meets the eye. This structure provides endless possibilities for construction, and multiple options for display and presentation. In our February meeting, we will continue with our multi-meeting exploration of the accordion book structure.
Prepare to be inspired by the versatility and potential of accordions!
Program: According to Accordions, Part 2 – Star Books with Becky Boardman
At the next B.A.G. meeting, Becky Boardman will be teaching us how to make Star/Carousel books. This structure uses accordion folds that are “nested”, making it a kind of tunnel book.
Please bring more samples of accordion books to share! If you have played with the woven accordion structure Dorsey taught us please show us what you did! The more books we look at the greater our repertoire becomes.
All materials will be provided but if you are able, please bring the following:
- Cutting mat
- X-Acto knife or the like
- Bone folder
- PVA, Fast Tack or other white glue and/or a glue stick
- Scissors
- Scraps of colored or decorative paper, can be as small as 3” x 3” or less
- Double-sided tape
If you don’t have any of these things, don’t worry extras will be available.
January Meeting Reflections
We were lucky enough to have the Queen of Complex Accordions kick off our special multi-meeting series. Dorsey Hogg gave us the basics and then introduced us to a twist, using interlocking layers to form multiple accordions into one structure. She wowed us with examples of her intricate altered book structures, and shared some insight into her start as a book artist.
Many other participants shared accordion books they had made as well, making it a lively and fun evening. For me, there is maybe nothing so satisfying as a nicely folded accordion made with smooth, crisp paper, so I am looking forward to the next meetings so we may all fold together again.
Thanks, Dorsey, and thanks to everyone who showed up and folded stuff.
You can view images from the meeting on the B.A.G. blog.
B.A.G. News
*** Support the Book Arts Guild of Vermont by becoming a member!
The Book Arts Guild of Vermont is supported by its members and you have kept us going for more than ten years. Our organization is solely run by volunteers and we do what we do because we love the book arts and we love B.A.G.. We continue to be inspired by our community, and the enthusiasm and talents that you bring to our meetings.
Membership dues are our main source of income and we hope that you will show that you value what we have to offer – quality programming, field trips, exhibits, and more – by becoming a member. You get so much value out of your $35.00 and attending just one meeting can give you your full money’s worth.
Just to give you an idea of where membership dues go, here’s a breakdown of B.A.G.’s annual expenses:
- Rent: $50.00 per month
- Presenter honorarium: $35.00 per meeting
- Website and email newsletter: $100.00 per year
- Presenter reimbursement for supplies: Varies
If you’ve done the math, you’ll see that we need a minimum of $910.00 (not including supply reimbursement) to cover our annual expenses.
We hope that you will renew your membership or join us as a new member at the December meeting. If you will not be at the meeting, you can download our membership form and send it in with your payment.
Thank you so much for your continued support of the guild. We wouldn’t be here without you.
*** Announcement: Spring/Summer member exhibit, Page Turners: Artist’s Books by the Book Arts Guild of Vermont
Our spring/summer exhibit will take place later this year and all members are invited and encouraged to contribute new or old work. The theme, Page Turners, is open-ended, allowing for unlimited interpretation.
Our exhibit location has yet to be determined, so stay tuned for more details.
*** Elissa Campbell is teaching the Secret Belgian Binding at Studio Place Arts in Barre, VT on February 10 & 11.
The not-so-mysterious Secret Belgian binding was developed to have the appearance of a Japanese stab binding, but also to have the ability of opening flat. The structure was invented by Anne Goy in the mid-1980’s and was relatively unknown until Hedi Kyle introduced it to the United States.
The text block is sewn is first, before attaching the covers with an intriguing woven sewing pattern – no glue is needed! This hard cover binding is perfect for use as a journal or sketchbook.
You will receive a detailed handout and resource list for all materials we use. Some previous experience with bookbinding is helpful, but not required.
Register online or contact Studio Place Arts at (802) 479-7069.
Book Arts News
*** On Wednesday February 12th from 5:00 p.m. – 6:15 p.m., join the Dartmouth Library Book Arts Workshop in the East Reading Room in Baker Library for What Is Small Press and Where Is it Going? A Talk with Matvei Yankelevich of Ugly Duckling Presse.
Ugly Duckling Presse began its life as a xeroxed zine and slowly transformed into a Brooklyn-based nonprofit small press led by a volunteer collective that has brought out more than 250 titles to date. Throughout its history, UDP has favored emerging, international, and “forgotten” writers, and its books, chapbooks, artist’s books, broadsides, and periodicals often contain handmade and letterpress elements, calling attention to the labor and history of bookmaking.
Matvei Yankelevich is one of the founding members of the Ugly Duckling Presse editorial collective. At UDP, he curates the Eastern European Poets Series since 2002, and has co-edited 36 issues of the poetry magazine 6×6 and 40 issues of the Emergency Gazette, and has edited and designed countless books, chapbooks, and poetry broadsides. He teaches translation and book-making workshops, as well as literary seminars at Columbia University’s School of the Arts, among other institutions, and is a member of the Writing faculty of the Milton Avery Graduate School of the Arts at Bard College.
No registration is necessary for the event.
*** Now through March 20th, the Baker-Berry Library at Dartmouth College is hosting Specimens: Artists Books and their Kin from the Dartmouth Collection. The exhibit was curated by Sarah Smith, Book Arts Workshop Program Manager.
Over the years, artists, designers and craftsmen working in the realm of “book arts” have influenced each other in many ways – sometimes without knowing. The works in this exhibit, whether called artist books, fine press books, zines, or examples of design bindings, involve an artistic approach to the book as a form and method of conveying beautiful design and/or provocative content and in so doing reveal the book as an art form itself.
These books can be found in Rauner Special Collections, Sherman Art Library‘s Special Collections as well as in the open stacks. They’ve included the call numbers and other information to help you find these books and others like them. Hopefully, you too will be inspired by these books to learn more and maybe even make one!
*** The New England Chapter of the Guild of Book Workers is looking for volunteers to teach simple bookbinding techniques and creative content at two upcoming Girl Scout events. Through these events, NEGBW volunteers will be helping Cadettes earn their Book Artist badge and potentially inspiring future bookbinders.
The event will be held on Saturday, March 7th at Camp Cedar Hill in Waltham, MA. There will be 2 sessions: 9:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. and 1:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m. Carpooling can be arranged.
If you are interested in volunteering or have any questions, please contact Lauren Telepak at negbwprograms@gmail.com.
Book Arts Classes
*** On Sunday, February 9, 2020, The Eliot School of Fine and Applied Arts in Jamaica Plain, MA is offering Star Books with Cristina Hajosy.
A handmade star book can be presented as an artist’s book or as a hanging ornament. Excite viewers with the visual movement and performative qualities of this unusual book structure. Learn basic bookmaking techniques and experiment with hand-marbled papers, mixed media and collage scraps to customize your books.
For more information about the class, please visit the Eliot School’s website.
*** The North Bennet Street School in Boston is offering Sewn Board & Drumleaf Binding with Amy Lapidow on Sunday, March 22nd.
The sewn board binding, is a great structure that uses minimal tools and is infinitely adaptable. Dress it up or down, and it opens flat! Its sibling, the drum leaf binding is akin to a board book and is perfect for images. You will make both in this course.
For more information, please visit the NBSS website.
