March 9

We have uploaded a new calendar of events to our website. Please check it out!

Here are some details about the events:

Tour of the National Gallery of Art Exhibit

In the Library: Marks of Ownership

Presented by: Yuri Long – Exhibit Curator and Rare Books Specialist, National Gallery of Art Library

12:30 – 1:30 PM

East Building, Ground Floor, Study Area

Once the introduction of movable type allowed the printing of exact copies, book owners needed a way to identify the works in their possession. Stamps, handwritten notes, and special bindings with embossed coats of arms were all used, but it was the bookplate, introduced around the time of Gutenberg’s press, that became the most popular means of marking ownership. Early styles of bookplates, or Ex Libris (From the Library) emblems, ranged from simple initials to ornamented heraldic plates; from designs reflecting an owner’s personal interests to warnings against theft or damage; and from pastoral scenes to stacks of books. This selection from the National Gallery of Art Library’s rare book collection showcases how collectors over the centuries marked their books, with an emphasis on highly artistic examples of bookplates from the 19th and 20th centuries.

 

The exhibition is on view in the East Building, Ground Floor, Study Center, and open Monday through Friday from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

 

March 17 & 18

Drum Leaf Bindings and Edge Decoration Workshop

Presented by Karen Hanmer

9:00 AM – 5:00 PM

Pyramid Atlantic, Silver Spring, MD

 

Karen Hanmer’s work intertwines cultural and personal memory. The work is often playful in structure or content, and may include social commentary. She exhibits internationally, and her work has won numerous awards, most recently the Jury Prize for Binding at the Helen Warren DeGolyer Awards for American Bookbinding. Hanmer’s work is included in collections ranging from The Getty Museum and the Library of Congress to Yale University and Graceland. She is a leader in the book arts community, serving on the editorial board of The Bonefolder and the Guild of Book Workers Journal, and as frequent exhibition curator. She offers workshops and private instruction focusing on building a solid foundation in basic binding skills. A complete catalog of Hanmer’s work is online at www.karenhanmer.com.

 

April 13

Traveling Texts: What Bookbindings Tell Us About Early-Printed Books

Presented by: Scott Husby

5:30 PM

Folger Shakespeare Library

 

Scott Husby has been a conservation bookbinder since the 1970s, much of that time in private practice. He has worked as a book conservator on projects at the Library of Congress, the Folger Shakespeare Library, and the Freer and Sackler Galleries at the Smithsonian. From 1996 through 2007 he was the rare books conservator at Princeton University. He is now an independent scholar working on a census of bookbindings on 15th-century printed books in American libraries.

Scott will speak about the nature and scope of the incunabula bookbinding census, and share some of the historical patterns and discoveries that have come to light from the project.

 

May 19

Paper Making Workshop

Presented by Gretchen Schermerhorn

9:00 AM – 5:00 PM

Pyramid Atlantic, Silver Spring, MD

 

Gretchen Schermerhorn is the Artistic Director, Pyramid Atlantic Art Center. Her prints, books and paper works have been exhibited nationally and internationally in such places as New York, Boston, Santa Fe, and Phoenix. Her work is in public and permanent collections including the San Francisco Public Library and Amity Art Foundation. Her current body of work consists of a body of printed paper garments and deals with ideas of socialization versus biology. Other issues that her work explores include political and social themes such as human and animal rights, sexuality, and environmental abuse.  She teaches various classes including Papermaking, 2D Design, Mixed-Media, Printmaking and Drawing.  Ms. Schermerhorn received her MFA from Arizona State University in 2004, with a specialization in Printmaking and Papermaking. She has completed artist residencies at Columbia College Center for Book and Paper and California State University.

 

June 12

Tour of National Library of Medicine

Presented by: Stephen J. Greenberg

6:00 PM

National Library of Medicine, Bethesda, MD

The tour will include highlights from the Rare Book collection and an opportunity to view National Library of Medicine’s current exhibit.

Stephen J. Greenberg received his doctorate in Early Modern History from Fordham University with a dissertation on early printing and publishing. After teaching for several years, he returned to school and earned his library degree from Columbia University, specializing in Rare Books and Archival Management.  Since 1992, he has worked in the History of Medicine Division at the National Library of Medicine, where he is currently Coordinator of Public Services.  His papers and publications span a number of fields, including the history of printing and publishing, medicine and surgery in early modern Europe, and the history of medical librarianship.  Dr. Greenberg is also an adjunct professor at the College of Library and Information Studies at the University of Maryland (College Park) where he lectures on the History of the Book, and is currently the president of Archivists and Librarians in the History of the Health Sciences, the only national organization devoted solely to that field.

 

July 14 & 15

Washing & Drying Workshop

Presented by: Renate Mesmer

9 AM – 5 PM

Folger Shakespeare Library

 

Renate Mesmer is the Head of Conservation at the Folger Shakespeare Library and the former Director of the Book and Paper Conservation Program at the Centro del bel Libro in Ascona, Switzerland. She has a Masters in bookbinding from the Chamber of Crafts of Palatinate in Germany and gained experience in conservation during ten years of work as head of the conservation department at the Speyer’s State Archives in Germany.

 

August 18

Summer Party

Hostess: Linda Rollins

5:00pm – 10:00pm

Silver Spring, MD

 

Details to be announced at a later date.

 

September 19

Evening Session: Tips and Tricks

5:30 PM

Folger Shakespeare Library

 

October 12

Gold Tooling Lecture

Presented by Peter Geraty

6:00 PM

Folger Shakespeare Library

 

October 13 & 14

Gold Tooling Workshop

Presented by: Peter Geraty

9:00 AM – 5:00 PM

Folger Shakespeare Library

 

Peter Geraty began bookbinding in 1975 at Unicorn Press in Greensboro, NC where he worked as a printer, typesetter and binder for several years.  He moved to Boston, in 1977 and continued working as a binder at various places including; library binding at the New England Bookbinding Company, conservation at the Museum of Comparative Zoology at Harvard University and over four years at Harcourt Bindery ending his time there as shop manager.  In 1984 he began working as an independent binder and in 1985 moved to Easthampton, MA.  As owner of Praxis Bindery, he has focused on conservation, fine binding and binding of editions and presentation materials for publishers and artists.  Peter is intrigued by the challenge of combining design, structure, and materials to present someone’s text or art.  He continues to study, practice and learn.  The name he chose for the bindery, Praxis encompasses his ongoing desire to hone his craftsmanship and deepen his knowledge.

November 10

Miniature Books Workshop

Presented by: Christina Amato

9 AM – 5 PM

Folger Shakespeare Library

 

Christina Amato writes, illustrates, prints and binds limited editions of miniature books, often dealing with the theme of bookbinding and miniature books. She is a graduate of the bookbinding program at North Bennet Street School in Boston, Massachusetts and has worked in the field of book conservation for several years. She is currently a member-at-large of the Miniature Book Society, and serves as secretary for the Potomac Chapter board for the Guild of Bookworkers. Examples of her work can be seen at http://christina.birdseyecrafts.com

 

December 13

Annual Meeting and Holiday Party

5:30 – 8:00 PM

Location to be announced.

WORKSHOP

TIPS AND TRICK IN BOOK AND PAPER CONSERVATION WITH RENATE MESMER

WERNER GUNDERSHEIMER CONSERVATION LAB,

FOLGER SHAKESPEARE LIBRARY

201 EAST CAPITOL STREET SE

WASHINGTON DC 20003

NOVEMBER 5TH – 6TH, 2011, 9:00AM – 5:00PM

Cost: Members: $200.00 Non-members: $250.00

Material: $20.00

GATHERING

ANNUAL MEETING AND HOLIDAY PARTY

DECEMBER 15TH, 2011

LOCATION TBA

Please check the Potomac Chapter’s website http://gbwpotomacchapter.wordpress.com to learn the most up-to-date details for upcoming activities.

2011 Elections

Dear Members,

It is time again for another election. This year we are electing the chair-person, secretary, and workshop coordinator. Below are brief descriptions of the positions:

Chairman – elected every 2 years, odd years:
The Chairman shall serve as the head of the committee of officers. Responsible for smooth and effective running of the chapter, coordinates the other officers, communicates with the chapter membership, represents the chapter at the meetings of the GBW executive committee including bi-monthly conference call meetings and executive committee annual meetings at the Standards Conference, and collects permanent records or materials for chapter.

Secretary – elected every two years, odd years:
Receives and handles mail, takes minutes of meetings, writes reports of events, keeps chapter membership lists, writes/delegates newsletter responsibilities. Contributes content to the website.

Workshop/Meeting Coordinator – elected every two years, odd years:
Looks for venues with help of other committee members, coordinates location, time, place, information on logistics for dissemination amongst the chapter, organizes or assigns responsibility for refreshments.

You can nominate yourself or somebody you think would be a good candidate. Please send your nomination to the gbwpotomacchapter@gmail.com address. After receiving the nomination, we will contact the nominated members and ask them if they accept.
Please consider running for a position or nominating someone you think would be a good addition to the board. Let’s keep the Potomac Chapter as active and thriving as it has been for the last several years!

Here’s our schedule of events for 2011. More information about each event can be found in the PDF file available for download to the right of the screen. We look forward to seeing you in 2011!

FEBRUARY 4
Lecture: Satisfying an Appetite for Books: Innovation, Production, and Modernization in Later Islamic Bookbinding

 

FEBRUARY 5
Workshop: Leather-edged Islamic bookbinding

 

MARCH 16
Tour: Sheridan Libraries Department of Conservation and Preservation

 

APRIL 13
Tour: Rare Book room at the Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institute

 

MAY 14
Workshop: Blind Tooling on Leather

 

JUNE 23
Happy Hour

 

JULY 16
Studio Day at the Folger Shakespeare Library

 

AUGUST 13
The Annual Summer Party

 

September 17
Tour: New conservation lab at University of Maryland
Lecture: My Experience Working at Etherington Conservation Services: An Informal Apprenticeship in Book and Paper Conservation at a for-Profit, Regional Conservation Center

 

OCTOBER 15 & 16
The Seminar on Standards of Excellence in Hand Bookbinding

 

NOVEMBER 5 & 6
Tips and Tricks for Book and Paper Conservation

 

DECEMBER 15
Annual Meeting and Holiday Party

Change of Date and Location!!!!!!

Read below for full details.

Bundle up, Brats, Fire and Feuerzangenbowle!

This year we’re going to watch pyromaniac, Renate, set herself on fire in her very own back yard!  That’s right folks, it’s a German-style Christmas party!
What’s better than standing around in the dark and the cold
drinking hot wine and eating pork products!

Not at all  like the French and the English do it! Come Join us!

Tuesday,   December     14th          6:00 PM

105 6th St SE, DC   -   walk down driveway to the left of the building

 

Here’s a picture from last year!

 

Good gods Renate! That's enough brandy!!

We’ll be grilling up some bratwursts and drinking beer and mulled wine and of course there will be hot chocolate.  We heard rumors of  marshmallows.  There will also be a fire pit to warm yourself.  If possible we’ll have a café-style gas heater as well. So bundle up, bring a blanket, schlep along your Snuggie and come celebrate the holidays the German way!!

Ein frohes Fest! – Frohe Festtage!

Lecture
Lost on the Titanic: The Making of the Great Omar
Dominic Riley
Friday, November 5th
Wine and snacks @ 5:30pm; talk will start @6:00 p.m.
Folder Shakespeare Library, Board Room
Suggested donation of $ 5.00

The Great Omar was the most fabulous, elaborate and opulent binding ever created. It was embellished with over one thousand jewels, five thousand leather onlays and a hundred square feet of gold leaf, and took a team of craftsmen over two and a half years to make. It went down with the Titanic. This lecture tells the story of the making of the fabulous Great Omar. It is also the story of the renowned bookbinding firm of Sangorski and Sutcliffe – who were known for their elaborate jeweled bindings – and the men that made this extraordinary book. It also tells the moving story of life after the tragedy, and of one young man in particular, who decided against the odds to recreate the binding, a venture which itself is mired in tragedy and which occupied him for the rest of his life.

Please rsvp to gbwpotomacchapter@gmail.com.
Two-day Workshop
Pastepapers Old and New
with Michael Burke
November 6th and 7th, 2010
9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
Folger Shakespeare Library, Werner Gundersheimer Conservation Laboratory
Members: $ 200.00 Non-members: $ 250.00

Explore the joys of making your own historical decorated papers, then experiment with contemporary designs and inventive techniques. Although known from around 1650, pastepapers were made popular in the mid 1700s by the Moravian Sisters of Herrnhut in Saxony. Recent study of these papers has sparked a revival of interest in them, and in this workshop Michael will introduce you to the methods, materials and patterns used on the original pastepapers.
We will begin by mixing the colors using natural earth pigments, and making the few simple tools used by the Sisters. We will then reproduce each of their original designs using the same colors, patterns, freehand brush strokes and tooling. Part two of the class will bring us up to date with a wide range of inventive techniques for making modern pastepapers. Michael will show you how to make combs, stamps, rollers and other mark-making tools used in pastepaper design, and show a range of techniques he uses to create many different effects, from the simple pulled papers, to the highly regular striped patterns.

Please RSVP to gbwpotomacchapter@gmail.com.

Space in the class is not guaranteed until payment is received.

Saturday, July 17th will be our first Studio Day at the Folger Lab.  The theme is “finish what you started.”  Bring in that project you’ve been meaning to wrap up but haven’t had the time, space, or inspiration to complete.  Think of all the workshops you’ve taken where you weren’t able to put the finishing touches on the end product.

Now is your chance!

The lab will be open from 9:00-5:00. Come by for part of or the entire day.  Renate will be on hand to dispense free advice if you have a question about your project or need a suggestion to help you finish.  Afterward, if people are inclined, we may go to a nearby watering hole to celebrate our accomplishments.

Paste will be provided, but please bring your own tools and any other materials you might need, including PVA.  There is no cost to attend, but space is limited, so please RSVP to gbwpotomacchapter@gmail.com if you would like to come.

Upcoming Events:

June 17^th

Join us at 5:30 for our annual summer happy hour in the garden at Café Berlin, 322 Mass Ave NE, near the Union Station stop on the red line.  Come sit outside and enjoy an early summer evening with other members of the Potomac Chapter.  If the weather is bad, the location will change to Capital City Brew Pub, 2 Mass Ave NE, across the street from Union Station.  The date and time will not change.

July 17^th

Saturday, July 17^th will be our first Studio Day at the Folger Lab.  The theme is “finish what you started.” Bring in that project you’ve been meaning to wrap up but haven’t had the time or space to complete.  Think of all the workshops you’ve taken where you weren’t able to put the finishing touches on the end product.  Now is your chance!

August 14^th

Our annual Summer Party, hosted by Linda Rollins.  Food, drinks, and a chance to get together as the summer winds down.  More details to follow.

August 26^th

Evening Tips and Tricks Session.  Come to the Folger to see a demonstration of printing on Japanese paper for use in conservation.  This technique is particularly useful for taking an image of a damaged spine, transferring it to Japanese paper, then using the paper to repair or replace the deteriorated leather.

October 29^th and 30^th

Lecture and one day workshop presented by Jacques Brejoux and Nadine Dumain.  The lecture is entitled Medieval stampers: construction and use in pulp preparation for hand papermaking. After more than 30 years exploring the craft of papermaking, Jacques Brejoux came to the conclusion that further improvement of his papers depended on building a full scale set of medieval stampers for preparation of his pulps.  Years of work and 30,000 Euros later, Mr. Brejoux has realized his goal and the accomplishment is one of the most significant events in contemporary hand papermaking.  In this lecture he will describe the entire project and the unusual papers that have resulted—a majority of which are designed for use in book and paper conservation.

One day workshop Paper cased book structures employing multi-ply papers taught by  Nadine Dumain.  Nadine Dumain’s workshop will explore the special working properties of new multi-ply paper case papers produced at the Moulin du Verger papermill in France.  Many of the features of the book structures described result from several collaborative workshop sessions and ongoing dialogue with British book conservator Chris Clarkson and master papermaker Jacques Brejoux.  All participants will complete at least one book by the end of the day.

WHAT:  “Florence: Days of Destruction” – a film directed by Franco Zeffirelli

WHEN: Saturday, 17 April 2010 at 1:00-4:00 p.m.
Film to be shown at 2:00 p.m.  Discussion & Fellowship to follow.  Later dinner in College Park

WHERE: Nonprint Media Room “J”
0300 Hornbake Library, University of Maryland, College Park

http://www.lib.umd.edu/nonprint/information/contact_us.html

Campus map: http://dots.umd.edu/2008Map.pdf

Presented by:

UM Libraries’ Non-Print Media Services (301-405-9236)
UM Libraries’ Preservation Department (301-405-9349, -9343)
Guild of Book Workers, Potomac Chapter

Narrated by British actor, Richard Burton, this rare film documents the devastation of Florence, Italy, when the Arno River overflowed its banks on November 4, 1966. The damage suffered by one of the world’s great cultural centers, filled with historic architecture, art, books and archives, resulted in an international rescue and salvage effort that fundamentally changed approaches to the preservation of cultural property.

Also on display will be a collection of printed materials relating to the Florence Flood and its aftermath.

Parking in the Regents Street Garage is free on Saturday.

UM Shuttle 104 runs between the College Park Metro Station (Green Line) and

the center of campus. Shuttle service is FREE!

Join us for dinner at a local restaurant if you are able!

SO, if you regret not having been a “mud-angel”, bring your Wellies & rain hats! (Sand bags will be provided.)

Edible Book Festival 2010

www.books2eat.com

Hope to see you there!

April 3, 2010 2:00 PM – 5:00 PM

Pyramid Atlantic 8230 Georgia Ave., Silver Spring, MD.

Come one, come all to the International Edible Book Festival! The Potomac Chapter of the Guild of Book Workers has organized, in conjunction with Pyramid Atlantic, an Edible Book Fair. The festival pays homage to Brillat-Savarin – 1755-1826 (a French Gastronome, famous for his book Physiologie du goût, a witty meditation on food.) The only rules are making edible art that have something to do with books as shapes and/or content.

The International Edible Book Festival is a yearly event on April 1 throughout the world .This event unites bibliophiles, book artists and food lovers to celebrate the ingestion of culture and its fulfilling nourishment. Participants create edible books that are exhibited, documented then consumed. April 1st is also the perfect day to eat your words and play with them.

The Edible Book was initiated by Judith A. Hoffberg over a Thanksgiving turkey with book artists in 1999, and became an international event through the artist Béatrice Coron’s Books2Eat website (www.books2eat.com), for the first event in 2000. This annual event has become a sensation.

Please join us for this lighthearted celebration of the book. We will document your creation and put it on the Web at the site above. Please go to the site and check out what others have done to celebrate both food and books and then bring us your creations. Light refreshment will be provided to enjoy with your books.

Clasp Making Workshop, Jocelyn Merchant

presented by the Potomac Chapter of the Guild of Book Workers

May 1-2, 2010    9:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m.

At Pyramid Atlantic   8230 Georgia Ave.  Silver Spring, MD 20910

Cost: $200.- members  or  $250.- non-members

Using readily available tools and materials, participants will learn simplified metal working skills and metal decorating techniques, and how to make hinges and clasps, using only cold connections, (no soldering). During a two day workshop, students will make two different clasps, one simpler strap style, and another more complex hinged style. They will also learn how to properly attach both types onto a book made with wooden cover boards.   For those who may be unfamiliar with making books in wooden boards, instructions are provided in a web link for making a simply constructed “fake” book which is perfectly suitable for use in the workshop.  The use of patinas for coloring metal will be demonstrated, and students will have an opportunity to apply a patina to their clasps if they wish. If there is extra time another clasp may be started, or there may be a demonstration of the construction of bosses or other types of book decorations.

Participants will leave the workshop with basic, practical and useful skills for making metal fasteners and decorations suitable for use on books or boxes.

Some tools, equipment and supplies are provided for students’ use. Detailed written instructions and supplier information are provided in class handouts. Students pay $20.00 materials fee to the instructor to cover shipping of tools and the cost of supplies.

Sign up by sending an email to gbwpotomacchapter@gmail.com

Remember a place in your workshop is only guaranteed when your check is received. Please mail it to:

Vicki Lee,  2820 Tipperary Lane,  Chesapeake Beach MD 20732

Potomac Chapter members plan to register early to secure your spot. Registration will open to interested others on April 1^st.