Book Arts is a program for aspiring artists, writers, and craftspersons—and anyone who loves books. This introduction to book arts emphasizes hand-bookbinding and experimental artist's books, with the option to integrate letterpress printing. Students who have some familiarity with book arts, including those who took "Medium and Message: Fine Metals, Book Arts, and Design Thinking" in the fall, are welcome and will be supported in developing their skills further.
Hand-bookbinding instruction will include ancient and modern practices and explore experimental artists' books, a practice of engaging with books as an expressive form latent with cultural values and formal intricacies. Weekly assignments will challenge students to integrate form and idea and to develop proficiency with a variety of hand tools and material practices. A quarter-long individual project will allow students to develop project planning skills, articulate conceptual foundations for creative work, and focus on a chosen area of practice.
Readings, lectures, and seminars will provide historical and critical context for the arts and crafts associated with the book. In addition to historical and critical material, we will encounter literary and poetic works: some that already seem to require or exploit their "bookness," some that contribute to our understanding of books as icons, totems, or conceptually potent forms, and others that allow us to look deeply into language and the art of writing in a way that brings us close to the bookish materiality of literature. In the course of studying these works, students will learn to connect theory with practice as they develop critical writing skills and enjoy many creative hours in Evergreen's Letterpress and Book Arts Studio.
Registration
Academic Details
Visual Arts, Literature, Publishing, Library Science, History, Graphic Design, Fine Crafts, and Writing.
$100 for required project tools and materials.