Archive for the ‘school for formal bookbinding’ Category

looking backward

Monday, January 3rd, 2011

2010 was a pretty busy and eventful year, especially the last few months. After we lost Max we decided to wait until spring to look for another Shiba. That resolution lasted a couple of days. Thanks to the Mid Atlantic Shiba Rescue organization we found Cassie, a seven year old female, at the Harrisburg Humane Society. She came home with us on Dec. 18 on the return leg of a delivery trip to Pittsburg. We took the Great Circle route…

Cassie’s a lot like Max in looks, not so much in disposition. Where Max was quiet, Cassie produces an astonishing number of sounds: barks, yodels, squeaks, chirps. Cassie has a lot of energy and certainly doesn’t act like a middle aged dog. We’re going to get a lot of exercise in the future. And it’s going to take quite a while before Cassie and the house cats come to a point of peaceful coexistence. But we’re glad to have her here. I’ll post photos at some point in the near future.

The School was a pretty happening place in 2010, thanks to the great people that came. Regina attended the first Foundations and Case Binding classes in April and May. Nancy was here for the Edge Gilding class in May. Marie came for June’s Full Leather class. July was busy, with Stephanie coming back to the School for the Intro to Titling and Tooling, then a packed Foundations class: Chrys, Karen, Judy, Jennie and Alison. Judy and Karen stayed for the following week’s Case Binding class. In August Lesha came back for a week-long private leather conservation intensive, then stayed for the weekend’s Intro to Inlay and Onlay class, which was also attended by Liz and Luis. On Saturday after class they coopted our grill  and made a wonderful supper featuring grilled pork chops and Luis’ superb gazpacho, lots of wine and good conversation.  The following week Peter and Donna Thomas were here printing and teaching; see the previous post for that story.For October’s cloth and leather conservation classes, Jenny, who’s since returned to England, drove in from Minneapolis and Asmah flew in from Singapore, doubling the size of the School’s international contingent (Luis from Spain, via Washington DC; and Linda from Canada). And learning a lot, too. I want to thank everyone for making this year such a productive and enjoyable one for the School, and I hope you all can come back sometime.

And I even made time to get a design binding done: Hydriotaphia, or Urne-Buriall by Sir Thomas Browne, designed by Bruce Rogers for the Riverside Press. It’s now residing with Joshua Heller, who’s looking for a good home for it. (Hint, hint.)

Best wishes for the New Year to all our friends.

plenty too much busy month…

Thursday, August 19th, 2010

The shop is relatively quiet, in contrast to the activity of the past four weeks. This had been the busiest period scheduled for the school this year, with three weeklong classes and one weekend. The Foundations class was filled the week of July 19th, with Karen, Judy, Allison, Chrys and Jennie working their fingers to the bone and learning basic techniques and structures.

Judy and Karen returned the next week for the Case Binding class and again turned out really good work.

Then the first week of August Lesha was here for a private week of leather conservation, during which she was able to treat half a dozen volumes with as many different problems. That Friday Luis and Liz arrived, and all three proceeded to turn out moquettes with impressive inlays and inlays,

as well as hosting an excellent supper on Saturday night. On the following Tuesday afternoon Peter and Donna Thomas arrived in their gypsy wagon bookmobile for a working visit en route from Cleveland to Treadwell New York.

On Wednesday we printed a four color poster on the handpress. It was a long, hot day, but the final result was worth it.

I learned a lot about lockup and inking, and enjoyed collaborating with two such amazing artists.

On Thursday Peter taught his alternative structures class to students Stephanie, Lisa, Theresa and Peter,  with me hanging over shoulders and, again, learning new stuff. On Friday, after breakfast with the University of Scranton Special Collections librarian and his wife, Peter and Donna got on the road for upper New York State. And on Saturday Elaine and I painted faces at the crafts fair in Eagles Mere PA…

I’m getting tired just writing all this down, but it was a very rewarding month for me, and, I hope, for the folks that were here.