arage Annex School is pleased to join the Mortimer Rare Book Room at Smith College in offering this hands-on overview of the history of the book from medieval manuscripts to contemporary bookworks.

This workshop, which is specifically designed for the book arts practitioner, will survey all the major movements in the history of the book, and provide relevant historical, artistic, and technical background for those working in the field today.

Class meetings will be held in a variety of formats, combining formal lectures and presentations with the study of rare books themselves.

Topics include: bookbinding styles and materials; technologies of printing and type founding; letterforms and typography; paper and parchment; the history of design and mise-en-page; techniques of book illustration; the organization of the booktrade; and theories of reading.

Over the course of the two-day workshop we will have the opportunity to work with many examples of original manuscripts and early printed books from Smith College’s Mortimer Rare Book Room. We will also examine many examples of artists’ books from the important 20th-century art movements, from Italian Futurism through Fluxus and beyond.

Our overall aim will be to learn the basic taxonomy of the book in all of its historical manifestations and to contextualize current concepts and practice.

No previous knowledge of the history of the book required.

Workshop hours are from 9:30 until about 5:00. Please do not buy an airplane ticket or make any other non-refundable payment before checking with us to be sure the workshop for which you have registered has sufficient enrollment.

(This workshop is not currently on the schedule. You may to request that we offer it sometime in the future.)