MAY/JUNE
Modern Nag Hammadi
3 Sessions // May 31 – June 7 (Tuesday and Thursday evenings)
6:00 – 8:30pm (EST)
Sign up by May 19 to receive your material kit! – Only 1 Spot Left!
In this workshop, we will explore how some of the earliest known codices may have been constructed. The best-known examples were discovered in a jar near the Egyptian village of Nag Hammadi in 1945. These mostly intact bindings date back to the 3rd or 4th century, but fragments of similar bindings date back further to the 2nd century.
These single signature bindings are held in their leather covers with the use of knotted leather tackets. The bindings also include ties at the head, tail and fore edge to keep the binding secure. During this workshop we will be using contemporary materials to build two models of these ancient binding structures.
Artists’ Books with Guest Instructor Keri Miki-Lani Schroeder
6 Sessions // June 8 – July 13 (Wednesday evenings)
6:00 – 8:00pm (EST)
Online through North Bennet Street School
Learn to create your very own artist’s book, a versatile medium for creative expression. This class will offer different folding and binding techniques, creative ways to fill pages with content, and time to develop and share ideas with your classmates. Students are required to complete the pre-recorded session on folding pages prior to the first live session on June 8. During the live sessions, students will work alongside the instructor to build structures for their folded pages.
Box Series
4 Sessions // June 14 – 23 (Tuesday and Thursday evenings)
6:00 – 8:30pm (EST)
Sign-up by June 2 to receive your material kit!
Boxes come in all shapes and sizes. In this workshop, we’ll look at just three examples: French-Tray with Drop Spine, Clamshell and Japanese Box Case. Students will learn how to assemble these three styles of boxes while also discussing the ways to measure for custom box-making. This workshop will give you the foundational skills to build and modify your own boxes and different ways of creating closures for boxes.
JULY/AUGUST
Secret Belgian Binding
4 Sessions // July 9 – 17 (Saturday – Sunday)
10:00am – 12:30pm (EST)
Sign-up by June 28 to receive your material kit!
The Secret Belgian binding, also known as Criss Cross binding, was developed by Anne Goy in the mid-1980s and is influenced by traditional Japanese binding styles. The binding is simple and easy to construct; it opens flat and is perfect for thinner text blocks. Students will construct 3 variations of this structure, including a style which uses Tyvek as the binding agent.
Japanese Box Making
1 Session // July 23 (Saturday)
8:30am – 4:30pm
North Bennet Street School, Boston
Register here – Only 1 Spot Left!
In this workshop, students will learn techniques used to create a traditional Japanese box; an assembly that varies from the more common clamshell box used in Western cultures. During the class students will construct a four-walled box with lid, which will be covered in an elegant Japanese book cloth and held together with bone clasps.
Focus on Clamshell
4 Sessions // July 26 – August 4 (Tues and Thurs evenings)
6:00 – 8:30pm (EST)
Sign-up by July 14 to receive you material kit!
A clamshell box is a common and elegant way to house and protect a binding. In this workshop students will learn how to measure and cut down materials to make two custom clamshell boxes to house books from their own library. The first box will be covered in full cloth, while the second box will have a leather spine with suede lining the inside. Each box will be finished with a printed label.
Fundamentals of Bookbinding I
5 Sessions // August 8 – 12 (Monday – Friday)
8:30am – 4:30pm
North Bennet Street School, Boston
Students will learn the foundations of bookbinding by combining hands-on exercises and discussion. The class starts by exploring non-adhesive structures: soft cover pamphlet, Coptic, historical longstitch, and link stitch. The class ends with a look at case bindings, with the creation of two hardcover flatback bindings. Students also learn different structural elements, sewing variations, covering and cutting techniques using various materials, tools and equipment. Throughout the course, discussions will cover terminology, paper grain and folding, selecting proper materials and tools, and adhesives and their properties.
