Study Opportunities
by Peter Verheyen
This will be the first of occasional writings on the Internet in the Newsletter. As we were packing up our lives for a recent move, I found a print-out of my first-ever web page and was able to count on it a total of seven book arts-related sites. Anyone who has gone to look at the "Book Arts Web" will find that that number has grown exponentially since then. Book_Arts_L, an electronic discussion group founded three years ago, has grown to over 900 subscribers and has postings estimated at well over 3000 for this year. Many book arts-related organizations, as well as binderies, paper mills, marbling studios, and individuals have established presences on the web. The greatest benefit of all this growth has been the exchange of information, be it in the form of technical advice or leads on study opportunities.
For anyone wishing to learn any facet of the book arts, the Internet is a great starting point. Many book arts centers and organizations have developed their presence, often with complete workshop schedules. One of the first was New York's Center for Book Arts, Inc. Others now include the Women's Studio Workshop, Lower East Side Print Shop, Penland School of Arts and Crafts, Honolulu Printmakers, and Dieu Donné Papermill. The Canadian Bookbinders & Book Artists Guild also offers a series of workshops. These organizations offer everything from weekend to extended courses in all areas related to the book arts. Not to be left out of this category is PBI: Paper & Book Intensive, held every year for two weeks at various locations. The academic programs are also very well represented with the Universities of Alabama, Idaho and Iowa leading the way. The programs there are either apprenticeships, in the case of Iowa, or conclude with an MFA, as with the other two. Rare Book School, at the University of Virginia, is held every year and lists its full program on a web site. Here the focus is more on the history of the book, rare book librarianship and bibliography.
There are, however, many other places one can find study opportunities, the best being the Guild's own "Study Opportunities List", which has just recently been updated on its online version. This list includes not only the programs just mentioned, but also many fine individuals offering everything from evening classes to workshops and apprenticeships. For those more autodidactically inclined, several bibliographies have been compiled by subscribers to Book_Arts_L. These include bookbinding and marbling manuals, and one on book and paper arts for children. Several tutorials have also been published on the web, and selected articles from the GBW Journal will follow shortly. Links to all the organizations and programs listed in this article can all be found conveniently at the Book Arts Web, accessible via the Guild's own web page at <http:// palimpsest.stanford.edu/byorg/gbw/>. Following the link to Book_Arts_L will take one to full subscription information for this very active listserv. N.B. Dieu Donné Papermill in New York City now has their own Website at: <http://colophon.com/ dieudonne/>