It was my first time participating in the Book Arts workshop's open bindery studio, and all I knew about what to expect was that the project of the week was the "venetian blind book," described on the workshop's website as a "fun and versatile book that will delight the beholder, as if opening your blinds to a new day and a fresh beginning." Well, okay. That sounds very beautiful and mystical, but a little befuddling to the novice book-artist. What exactly is this book art? Is it bookbinding? Drawing illustrations? All supplies and equipment are free of charge -- so do I get to keep whatever I end up with?
Confusion aside, I headed to the studio which is located in the lower floor of Baker Library, near the entrance to the reserves. The bindery workshop room is rather small, and I was surprised to find eight people already listening tentatively to Deborah Howe, the instructor. There was a good mix of adults and students, although the gender ratio skewed heavily on the female side. Almost all of them were regulars to the program. I squeezed into a seat at the table, and Ms. Howe handed me a large sheet of blue construction paper.
Howe, who is also a librarian at the preservation lab, stressed the tradition and functionality of book arts. "You can learn traditional and creative methods of book construction," she said. "It is also a good way to learn how to use materials."
I found out that venetian blind book is part of the exploring artists books theme, with project ideas inspired by the books in the Sherman Art Library collection. (They do have regular book binding workshops, but special activities are incorporated to keep things interesting.) This special book looks like, in its completed form, a window blind that was folded up and bound into a long slender book form.
The basic structure of the book is made by folding the paper into halves over and over again -- just like the way you made paper fans in elementary school. This sounds simple, but folding was no laughing matter in the bindery studio. Like an origami race, fingers were moving everywhere with great precision. In a few minutes, everybody had perfectly aligned crisp folds.
"The precision appeals to my type-A side," Clara Savage, a graduate student, told me later.
Somehow, after a panicked sprint of finger-folding, I managed to finish mine on time with the others, but my performance suffered significantly under time pressure and my book took on an odd slant. But the steps after that were much easier -- we glued on cardboard covers to encase our fans/blinds and then ran string through the book to hold the structure together. The workshop had a variety of decorative papers and craft materials open to students, and some decorated their covers with fancy paper or attached beading to their strings.
And that was it! My book was completed in a surprisingly short time, and the process was relatively simple. It looked a little incomplete, as my folding was crooked and my manila-shaded covers were left un-ornamented, but nonetheless, I had myself a nice little venetian blind book. It felt good -- and like a viable accomplishment -- to have a finished work to take home.
This productive satisfaction seems to be what draws the studio regulars. Even though the weekly workshops are non-committal, students keep on coming back.
"I like the creative aspect, and being able to work with my hands, and having a product at the end of the day," Bailey Massey '08 said.
"It's like arts and crafts for big kids," Amanda Carye '07 added.
Book arts basically entails all artistic pursuits that use the book format, and the skills you learn at the bindery studio are not limited to just making different kinds books; they are apparently also great for handmade birthday gifts (you're only so lucky to have a friend who does book arts).
The next workshop scheduled for May 8 will be on candy boxes -- tell me that doesn't sound like fun.
