Here’s another one from the Biblio Files, a periodic profile of a community member, highlighting what makes ABAC an awesome place to work and to learn!

1.  What drew you to study the book arts?

 I collect old books.  Often the books I buy are damaged and frail.  In 2014 I met a book conservator at an antiquarian book fair who introduced me to the craft of book conservation.  It astonished me that a 200 year old book, broken into pieces, could be made whole and beautiful again.  Over the next couple years I sent her a dozen books for repair.   With each repair she taught me a bit more about book structure and even suggested that I could do simpler repairs myself.    

In 2017 I happened upon ABAC during the East Austin Studio Tour.  On the wall of the studio, next to the presses and guillotine, was the upcoming class schedule.

2.  What classes have you taken at the center?

I have taken Bookbinding 1 &2, Book Repair 1 & 2, Design binding (Frankenstein), Letterpress Printing, and Box Making.  Every one was fun.  

3.  What have you done with the knowledge gained from the classes?

Outside of class I have repaired about a dozen case bound books from my collection; replaced the spine on a quarter leather 1836 sailing directory of the East India Company; rebound 19^th early 20^th century editions of the collected works of Tennyson, Hugo, and Smollet; and made custom boxes to organize my book repair tools.

4.  How does being a part of ABAC inform or inspire your work?

ABAC was instrumental to me learning bookbinding and book repair.

5.  What do you enjoy the most about book arts?

The parts that appeal to me are the structural aspects of the bindings, the aesthetic decisions, and striving to perfect my technique and craft.  And I enjoy spending time with book artist who are unfailingly generous with their knowledge.  I enjoy reading a beautiful old book that I have myself restored.   And I enjoy the pleasure of imagining that someone will hold and read that very same book 150 years from now.  

6.  What advice would you give someone interested in this area?

Sign up for a class at ABAC right now today!

7.  What are you working on now?

I am binding an 1874 first edition of “Picturesque America, or the Land We Live In”.  This was a very popular work of its time, sold only by subscription in 48 bi-monthly parts, each part containing 3 signatures (24 pages) with one steel engraving, sewn into a paper cover.  I bought a tatty, smelly, but fully complete set of the 48 original parts in their covers. So far I have dry cleaned, mended, and reinforced all the parts, and sewn them on cords into four volumes.  Next step is to attach boards.  The text blocks together weigh 20 pounds!  Oh boy it’s been a lot of work but I have learned a lot.

Here’s another one from the Biblio Files, a periodic profile of a community member, highlighting what makes ABAC an awesome place to work and to learn!

1. What is your role at Austin Book Arts Center? If you teach and volunteer, please write about both. 

I teach book-arts classes for teachers in a happy-hour style. Participants enjoy a glass of wine and snacks along the way, then go home with about eight structures to teach to their students. It’s always a fun and productive time. I also teach a tunnel book class, which is great for artists wanting to make their collages and paintings three-dimensional. I hope to develop a series of classes for artists: linocuts printed on the Vandercook Press, sketchbook design, gallery-type books to house art, and pop-up books, among other ideas. Also I want to help create some Thursday evening date-night events with a “make and take” in a happy hour format. I volunteer weekly as a steward, assisting folks who rent time in the bindery or print shop.

2. Why do you choose to volunteer at ABAC? 

When I retired from teaching art in an elementary school, I created a theme for the rest of my life: everything BOOKS. Reading novels in the middle of the morning, for instance, is perfectly acceptable. I was trained as a book conservator and worked in the field for many years before deciding to become an art teacher. So I was well immersed in book arts. It was only natural to join my friends Mary Baughman and Amanda Stevenson and many others, endeavoring to start up the Austin Book Arts Center. It has been wonderful to see the Center thrive and bloom into what it is now—and so much more that the future holds! I am quite lucky.

3. How long have you been a volunteer?

I have volunteered since the very beginning, in 2015.

4. Are you active in other formal or informal Austin arts organizations?

I am part of a small group of artists who call ourselves the “Austin Five.” We meet monthly for camaraderie and critique, and we put together an annual exhibition of our work. Diverse in our directions but profiting from shared ideas, we help each other through thick and thin. I feel blessed to have them in my life.

5. What other information do you want ABAC fans to know about your life, your philosophy, your dreams and goals, and life events? 

I am thrilled to show an exhibit of some of my books in the Austin Central Library until February 24^th. It is part of a bigger display about fairy tales called Mirror Mirrored. The exhibit is amazing, and I’m happy to be a part of it. The book it was named after and whose author curated the show makes a fabulous and magical journey. I found in him a fellow fairy-tale geek. The book, though produced commercially, is quite an art object in itself.  

I was also featured in the book arts blog of designer, photographer, printer, binder, and publisher Louise Levergneux. That connection inspired me to catch up on my own blog and maybe even create a website of my work!