by Elissa | Jan 7, 2024 | B.A.G. Meetings, bookbinding, Call to artists, Exhibitions, MailB.A.G., Member News, Vermont, Workshops
Next Meeting: Wednesday, January 10, 2024, 7:00 p.m. – 8:30 p.m.
This month’s meeting will be held IN PERSON!
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.
We are offering a Zoom option for those unable to attend in person. If you’d like to attend the meeting over Zoom, please contact Elissa and she’ll send you the link.
We hope to see you there!
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 It’s a Wrap! Classic Covers, Clever Closures, and Fabulous Finishes for 2024. We’ll focus on ways for you to amp up the presentation of your work.
The presentation of your work can absolutely make a difference in how your audience perceives it. Adding careful details and thoughtful treatments requires extra effort, but can bring extra appeal and personal satisfaction.
This year, we’ll explore many ways of finishing or adding to your work with covers, containers, and other detailed elements. We will discuss methods for creating elements that work with the structure and content of your book and give it extra polish.
Get ready, because it will be an exciting year!
Program: Diagonal Pocket Folder with Penne Tompkins
To kick off our 2024 theme of It’s a Wrap, B.A.G. member Penne Tompkins will demonstrate one of her favorite things to fold – the Hedi Kyle Diagonal Pocket Fold structure. It’s a simple and elegant form that can be used as an enclosure or wrap.
This structure is so simple, one only needs a piece of paper, however as we will be adding a small folio a few other bits are needed. A bone folder can be handy, but one’s thumbnail is okay too.
Tools and materials:
- Paper: One sheet of text weight or slightly heavier paper; magazine covers work well as the glossy finish holds a nice crease (I have a collection of The New Yorker covers that I use frequently). Gift wrapping paper is another good recycle option. In the finished product, only one side is visible so a decorative sheet with one plain side makes a lovely finished piece.
- Size: the ideal ratio for this shape is 3:4 although other ratios will work so long as the width to height ratio is close to 3:4.
- Using a letter size sheet of copy paper, you would trim it to be 8.25″ x 11″
- For a larger overall size, 9″ x 12″ or 12″ x 16″ will work
- For the folio insert:
- 3 sheets of text weight paper measuring 3.5″ h x 5″ w
- Punching tool (awl)
- Needle
- Thread
We are offering a Zoom option for those unable to attend in person. If you’d like to attend the meeting over Zoom, please contact Elissa and she’ll send you the link.
December Meeting Reflections
Our December B.A.G. meeting was full of card tricks and camaraderie. It was our second hybrid meeting and we continue to learn how to make this work for everyone. Some who met in person marveled at how long it had been and how great it was to be together again in real life.
Several members shared clever movable/pop-up card ideas. More of us are learning how to present through Zoom. For those who don’t know, the people meeting live at the church view the demonstrations on a screen so they are seeing the same thing that everyone at home sees on their computer or other device.
Still to learn is how to improve audio communication between the live meeting and the virtual meeting. As time goes on we will determine what seems best for Book Arts Guild of Vermont.
In the meantime we look forward to It’s a Wrap!, the first meeting for this year’s theme of containers, enclosures, and finishing touches. We look forward to seeing you then! And Happy New Year!
B.A.G. Library Corner
A new year is like a blank page to make your own, and in her book The Decorated Page, Gwen Diehn shows us how to customize a blank book for whatever ideas we have in mind. Try removing, adding, or dividing pages; changing the spine; or lamination. What other ideas do you have for your blank page?
You can check out and download the selection here.
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
*** 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 fifteen 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, future 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:
- Zoom subscription: $159.90 per year
- Vimeo subscription: $84.00 per year
- Rent: $50.00 per month when we can return to in-person attendance
- Presenter honorarium: $35.00 per meeting
- Website and email newsletter: $100.00 per year
- Presenter reimbursement for supplies: Varies
We hope that you will renew your membership to help us with our annual expenses. You can download our membership form and send it in with your payment by check of $35.00 made out to the Book Arts Guild of Vermont:
Book Arts Guild of Vermont
c/o Ann Joppe-Mercure
10 Brookwood Dr
South Burlington, VT 05403
You can also pay your dues using Venmo – our account is BAGofVT, listed under businesses.
Thank you so much for your continued support of the guild. We wouldn’t be here without you.
*** Elissa Campbell will be teaching the Peek-a-Book Journal at CraftStudies in White River Junction on Sunday, January 21.
Create a journal with a double-needle Coptic binding, an intricate stitch that is visible on the spine of the book. Not only is the Coptic binding beautiful, but it also allows books to remain flat when opened. The book covers will include a cut-out window, which offers many opportunities for personalization – photos, pressed flowers, theater tickets, you name it!
All materials and tools will be provided.
For more information or to register, please visit the CraftStudies website.
Book Arts News
*** Helen Hiebert‘s membership program, The Paper Year, is open for enrollment now through January 9. Not only will you get to work on a new paper project each month, but you’ll also get access to all past projects from previous years (going back to 2021!). If you’re interested in learning more, visit Helen’s website.
Helen is also holding her annual Weaving Through Winter during the month for February. From February 1 – 28, you’ll be creating a weaving each day as you explore a variety of papers and weaving techniques. Helen describes the experience as a Daily Practice/Challenge/Adventure/Meditation.
For more information or to register, please visit Helen’s website.
*** Registration is open now through April 15 for the Paper and Book Intensive, an annual working sabbatical in the book arts, papermaking, and conservation for seasoned practitioners and motivated beginners.
For more than thirty years, participants have gathered together from around the world for two weeks of daily workshops to promote unusual levels of exchange, knowledge and inspiration. This year’s instructors include Ben Blount, Jeff Peachey, Mary Sullivan, and Erin Sweeney.
For more information or to apply, please visit the PBI website.
*** Save the date! The Focus on Book Arts conference is taking place June 26 – 30, 2024 at Western Oregon University in Monmouth, OR. Registration will open in March.
Offering a diverse and exciting series of hands-on workshops – along with a Trade Show, Artists’ Fair, Keynote Speaker, Faculty-Staff Exhibit, and several evening receptions – the FOBA conference will offer a variety of enjoyable, interactive, in-person opportunities for networking and learning new skills in book arts.
For more information about this year’s workshops, check out the FOBA website.
*** Abecedarian Gallery is accepting submissions for Printed Page IV, an exhibition to be held at Spark Gallery in Denver’s Art District from March 28 – April 21, 2024.
This is a national juried exhibition, open to artists at least 18 years of age. Eligible are any hand-crafted book-works (editioned or unique) that utilize a form of traditional hand printed media as primary element. The deadline for submissions is February 12, 2024.
For more information, please visit the Abecedarian Gallery’s website.
*** Artists using books as a medium are invited to enter Books Undone 2: The Art of Altered Books. They anticipate a diverse exhibition of book forms that stretch the idea of the altered book. With books as a medium, artists may deconstruct, paint, stitch, photograph, bend, roll, collage, knit, digitally rework, gouge, or use other methods to create their works.
The exhibition will take place at the Gallery at the Pennsylvania College of Technology in Williamsport, PA and the juror is Scott McCarney.
Entries will be accepted from February 1 – 29, 2024. The exhibition dates are May 30 – July 21, 2024, with a public reception on June 2.
For more information, please visit the Gallery at Penn College website.
Stay-at-Home Fun
*** The Center for Book Arts is offering the Drum Leaf Binding and its Precedents with Scott McCarney on 3 Tuesdays, January 23, 30, and February 6.
Drum leaf binding and its various precedents all create a lay-flat structure ideal for displaying photographs and prints. This workshop will explore three techniques – a Japanese Album, a Japanese Butterfly book, and a Drum-Leaf binding – which all have similarly easy and ingenious modes of assembly.
After learning these structures, participants will then 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. No previous bookbinding experience required!
Fun Fact: Drum leaf binding is a structure developed by artist and bookbinder Timothy Ely. He was inspired by his studio of vellum binding in England, where he observed how vellum was drummed to boards to minimize pulling.
For more information or to register, please visit the CBA website.
*** The Minnesota Center for Book Arts is offering the Illuminated Tunnel Book with Elaine Chu on January 31.
The tunnel book is a paper book structure based on an accordion fold. A set of paper panels – which can be decorated in infinite ways including collage, cut paper, found images, rubber stamps, and drawings – are layered to create a sense of depth, drama, and perspective.
LED lights may be added to increase the sense of depth and drama. Instruction for this virtual workshop will include examples and step-by-step instructions for creating the tunnel book structure.
For more information or to register, please visit the MCBA website.
by Elissa | May 5, 2023 | B.A.G. Meetings, bookbinding, Call to artists, Exhibitions, MailB.A.G., Member News, Vermont, Workshops
Next Meeting: Wednesday, May 10, 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!
Program: Pop-ups Shadowbox Book with Kit Davey
We are excited to have Kit Davey as our guest presenter this month. Kit is an Instagram phenomena, posting exciting book work almost every day! Her work is playful, humorous, and she is gracious enough to share her time with us.
Learn how to make this fun five-page pop-up book. When you turn the pages of the book a “box” forms to create a 3-dimensional effect. You can install images to the front or underneath each frame. Once you learn the basic mechanism you can add pages or scale the book up or down.
Tools needed:
- Scissors
- Ruler
- Pencil and eraser
- X-Acto knife and cutting mat
- Bone folder
- Glue, brushes, rag, water container
- Scoring board, if you have one
Ingredients to make the book:
Note: You must cut out the ingredients in advance of the class! There will not be time to cut things out during class.
For the pages:
- 10 pieces single- or double-sided card stock: 2.5” by 6”
- 5 images that can fit inside a 1.5” by 1.5” opening.
- For the covers: 2 pieces of mat board: 2.5” by 3”
- Paper to cover the covers: 2 pieces paper 3.75” by 4.5”
- For the spine: 1 pc. card stock 2.5” by 2.5”
To learn more about Kit’s work, check out her Instagram.
If you’d like to attend the meeting over Zoom, please contact Elissa so she can send you the details.
April Meeting Reflections
They may say that April showers bring May flowers, but our April meeting brought those flowers early!
We were lucky to have skilled presenter Linda Whelihan to guide us as we created three different types of flower pop-up cards. She presented each pop-up in such a way that seemingly complicated arrangements became easy to construct.
I’m not sure which card is my favorite, but I do know that when my daughter asked if she could have them, I quickly hid them away in my studio – sorry Anna, those are mine! Perhaps I’ll surprise her with one on her birthday…
Many thanks to Linda for sharing her talent and creativity with us.
B.A.G. Library Corner
Book artist Carol Barton says “There’s magic in a book that pops up!” She describes how she engineers the magic in her chapter of The Penland Book of Handmade Books. Discussing her inspiration, her methods, and how she got into pop-ups, Barton tells a compelling story that can help inspire our own paper engineering creations.
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 chapter here.
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 3 entries, although not all may be accepted. New this year, entries will be made online, and artists will be notified of acceptance on or before July 26. B.A.G. will cover the entry fee for members.
Here are some important dates:
- Deadline for online submissions: June 18, 2023. No entries will be accepted after this date.
- Exhibit dates: July 7 – August 4, 2023
- Opening reception: First Friday Art Walk, July 7, 5:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m.
- Artists’ Talk: July 12, 6:30 p.m. – 8:00 p.m. This will take the place of our regular monthly meeting.
- Closing reception: First Friday Art Walk, August 4, 5:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m.
Click here to access the exhibit entry form.
*** Congratulations to Marcia Vogler for being accepted into the juried exhibition, Paper Made, which will be featured in the summer issue of Fiber Art Now magazine. Selections from the exhibit will be on display at the Brattleboro Museum & Art Center, Brattleboro, VT from October 14, 2023 – February 11, 2024.
*** Elissa Campbell will be teaching The Lidded Pencil Box at CraftStudies on May 21.
If you’ve ever wanted to learn how to make your own decorative boxes, then this class is a great place to start! This decorative lidded box is the perfect size to hold your pens and pencils – or perhaps future boxmaking tools?
During this workshop, you’ll make a box that measures 8” (l) x 3” (w) x 2.25” (h). You’ll learn basic boxmaking techniques, including how to measure and cut materials, wrapping a box with paper, and the best way to apply adhesives. We’ll also talk about how to scale the size of the box to fit differently-sized items.
Not only will this class offer you the foundation and confidence needed to continue making boxes, but it will also provide you with a variety of bookbinding skills. You will receive a detailed handout and resource list for all materials we use.
For more information or to register, please visit the CraftStudies website.
*** Susan Smereka will be teaching the Upcycled Journal on May 23 & 30 at her studio in Burlington, VT. Whether you are new to bookbinding or not, this workshop is appropriate for all skill levels and interests.
You will rebuild an old book and give it new life as a unique journal to inspire you to write and capture your precious ideas, collages and drawings. And they make great gifts too!
You will take apart an old book, and rebind it with blank pages interleaved with text from the original. Build your knowledge and skills around bookbinding as you learn the parts of a book and how to do a long stitch binding with waxed linen thread.
For more information or to register, click here.
*** On May 27 & 28 (Memorial Day Weekend), the statewide Open Studio Weekend is offering a wonderful selection of book and paper arts studios for you to visit.
If you’re up for a tour, you can find members of your tribe in the following locations:
Elissa created a Google Map with all of the locations to help you with your tour.
Maps and directions to studios are available on the VT Crafts Council website.
Book Arts News
*** ArtisTree Gallery is currently accepting submissions for their 11th annual book arts exhibit, UNBOUND Vol. XI. Works will be on display from June 22 – July 15, 2023 at the gallery in South Pomfret, Vermont.
The theme of the show is simple – art using books as a material or a format. Visitors will have an opportunity to examine curious folios, recent grimoires, tomes turned to sculpture and some works having a relation to “books” in concept only.
This exhibition is for artists working in all traditional and non-traditional 2D (wall mounted) and 3D media. All artwork must be original in concept, design and execution, and must strictly adhere to the theme of the show. Note: reproductions can be used in mixed media work. Submissions are open to Vermont and New Hampshire residents who are 18 years of age or older.
The deadline for submission is June 7, 2023. All submissions must be made through their online entry form.
For more information, please read the online exhibit prospectus. You can also contact the gallery at exhibits@artistreevt.org.
*** 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.
*** Registration for Wells College Book Arts Center‘s Book Arts Summer Institute is now open. The week-long intensive courses include letterpress printing, bookbinding, calligraphy, typecasting, and font design. Week 1 runs from July 9 – 15 and Week 2 runs from July 16 – 22.
This year’s instructors include Tom Balbo, Scott McCarney, Leah Mackin, and Sonja Rossow. Wells College is located in Aurora, NY.
For more information, please visit the Wells College website.
Stay-at-Home Fun
*** The Minnesota Center for Book Arts is offering Zines: Exploring Narrative through Lists! with Hope Amico on May 10, 17, & 24.
Using a list to frame a personal narrative is a playful and accessible writing format. Handwritten and illustrated 8-page zines are a fun and approachable book format. In this virtual workshop, get introduced to these two art forms and begin by brainstorming story ideas – with pen and paper – using prompts as inspiration. Then, draft your story – with pen and paper or on an electronic device. Return the following week to share your work and engage in friendly group feedback.
In the last session, learn the process of laying out your story as a 4.25 x 5.5 inch zine (quarter-size, meaning a quarter of a piece of copy paper) and tips for analog layout, with opportunities to add visual elements.
For more information or to register, please visit the MCBA website.
*** The Center for Book Arts is offering Travel Journals with Susan Joy Share on May 17 & 24.
Create a series of soft-cover travel journals with paper covers for writing, drawing, collage, etc., and several compartments for tucking away collected items. You’ll learn basic folding and sewing techniques as you make pocket-sized books, perfect for walks or hikes, and a larger one for when you are settled in with time to reflect.
Students will learn several variations on pamphlet binding and 3 or 4 ways to score and fold soft-cover books. These journals travel especially well as they are light weight and easy to pack. You’ll have fun making pockets, folders and a collapsible origami box. Paper selections, closures, and decorative cover elements give students an opportunity add their personal touch. Making a travel journal is a great way to prepare for and get excited about a trip.
For more information or to register, please visit the CBA website.
*** The Jaffe Center for Book Arts is offering Microfiction Mini Books with Stephanie Wolff on May 24.
A very short story will be the content of a mini artists’ book. Participants will write a story in six words and create illustrations. Then bind it into a very simple but versatile book structure. The writing is meant to be a fun exercise, but participants are welcome to use existing stories should they choose.
This structure could be used for any kind of content: text or image or both, and can be scaled up in size. To learn more about this writing form, search the internet for “six-word stories” or “six-word memoirs”. A famous example, allegedly by Ernest Hemingway: “For sale: baby shoes. Never worn.”
For more information or to register, please visit the JCBA website.
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 | 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.
