Tuesday, April 24, 2012

News and Events from Member Maria G. Pisano


Announcing a new book from Memory Press:
Lost and Found - a response to the Al-Mutanabbi Street bombing in Iraq in 2007.For additional information please visit: <http://mariagpisano.com/?page_id=902>

Upcoming Exhibit:
Maria G Pisano - Curator: “Book as Witness: The Artist's Response” July 11-Sept 15, 2012
Center for Book Arts 28 West 27th St, NYC - www.centerforbookarts.org
Book as Witness: The Artist's Response - presents artists who are continuing the tradition of creating book works as keepers of our collective memory. They use the book format, in its myriad transformative powers, to express their interpretive and personal memory stories. The exhibit will present works of artists who use the book form to create pieces dealing with death and destruction as a result of global conflicts, prejudice, terrorism, natural disasters, and individual losses. These books are powerful mementos, and even as they focus on death, they commemorate life. The artists assemble objects, memories and realities, and embody them in a tactile form that resonates with their journey to find meaning in personal or communal losses. The books speak of time, memory and history. As memories accumulate they are selected, organized and stored within; accessing these visual echoes and finding these markers, they surface as art objects.

Upcoming workshops taught by Maria G Pisano:

April 28-29     You're Booked! Center for Book Arts, NYC

May 26-27, 2012 - Carousel Book - Professione Libro, Milan, Italy

June 23, 2012 -Tunnel Book - Morristown and Morris Township Public Library

Past Lecture:
Speaker: ARLIS/NA 40th Annual Conference, Toronto
April 1, 2012 -“Editioning a Fine Press Artist Book: Viva Voce” www.arlisna.org/toronto2012

Book Arts/ Conservation Workshops:

April 17-18 - Protective Enclosures - Morris Ct Park Commission/Horticultural 
Collection

Article by Maria G Pisano “Valentine Card” Kiki Magazine, pgs 21-22 - Feb/March 2012: Vol.5 Issue 4.


Have some news of your own that you'd like us to feature?  Email us!

Cool Books on Book Arts


The Silent Scream 

The Silent Scream: Political and Social Comment in Books by Artists presents not 
only a companion catalogue to an exhibition held at the Monash University Rare 
Books Library, but also provides insights into 77 influential books and works presented 
in book form in the past 90 years. Monica Oppen and Peter Lyssiotis, both practicing 
artists, lend their unique perspective in the social content and the techniques 
behind the production of these books. 

The catalogue presents phases of books by artists in three sections with an additional 
category for those works that stand on the periphery of the blurred line defining 
"artists' books." The sections are organized chronologically beginning in 1918 and 
extending to today. Sections include "Across Two World Wars 1918-1950," "Cold War 
in a Nuclear Era: Alienation and Engagement 1960-1990," Imperialism, Fundamentalism, 
Democracy, Oil, and its Shadow," and "Along the Tangent: Books on the Edge." Beginning 
with essays by Walter Struve, Scott McQuire, Humphrey McQueen and Des Cowley, the 
sections serve to analyze each period's distinctive characteristics. 

In a field where few books cover such a wide range of work, The Silent Scream both 
educates and entertains through informed commentary. It focuses on a particular 
field of ideas: social and political, and on a particular area of book production: 
books made by artists. With over 200 color illustrations, this book is beautiful 
and formatted in an original style. 

Click Here for more information. 
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

Multiple, Limited, Unique 

Multiple, Limited, Unique is the culmination of the three-year effort of the Center 
for Book Arts Collections Initiative. It offers an overview of the history and development 
of book arts over the past 40 years, and examines the role of the Center in both 
nurturing and promoting innovative artists and preserving traditional artistic 
practices. 

Click Here for more information. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

Fine & Dirty 

This book explores letterpress printing in the twenty-first century. By looking 
at recent developments in letterpress and examining art made by several influential 
artists, this catalogue shows many facets of fine press printing such as typography, 
book design, binding, and papermaking. It also examines the cause of the radical 
change in the letterpress medium and investigates the rebirth of letterpress printing 
as an art. 

Click Here for more information. 

For Students, for Teachers, and for Book Fans of All Kinds



FOR STUDENTS:


Artist Books—A Structural Approach
Esther K Smith
April 30–May 4
Monday–Friday, 1:30–5:00 pm
Fee: $400
Instructor present each day
Enrollment limited to 12 students

Artist books work as containers for drawings, paintings, prints, collages, and even experimental and electronic media.  This workshop explores a new approach each day, with students first making quick models and looking at artist books, and then developing their pieces in the studio. Students will make books from Eastern and Early Western traditions that require only a few tools and almost no glue: simple stitched books, accordion-based forms, and simple pop-ups. Students will make their own long-stitch leather- covered sketchbooks with their favorite drawing paper.

Esther K. Smith is the author of How to Make Books (Random House).  She makes collaborative limited edition artist books with printer Dikko Faust and other artists at Purgatory Pie Press. Solo exhibitions include: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Victoria & Albert Museum (London), Rhode Island School of Design (RISD), and Harvard University.  Her work is in the collections of the Museum of Modern Art, the National Gallery, the Whitney, Cooper Hewitt, and the Tate. Smith has taught how to make artist books at Cooper Union since 1992, and has been a visiting artist at Maryland Institute College of Arts (MICA), Center for Book Arts, RISD, Princeton University, London College of Communication, Camberwell College of Arts (London), and many other institutions.


FOR TEACHERS:

Construction is complete at the Mt. Airy Art Garage, and they are going to be launching their first series of classes soon -- hopefully with a whole bunch of book art classes! Interested in teaching?  Contact donna@mtairyartgarage.org



FOR EVERYONE!!!

Philadelphia Photo Arts Center
3rd Annual Book Fair
May 5th 2012*
12-6pm
Free and open to the public
PPAC will be hosting its third annual book fair on May 5th of 2012. A number of local, national and international presses, publishers and artists will be in attendance selling books, prints and other ephemera.


For inquiries, please contact us at:
Bookfair@philaphotoarts.org


Friday, April 13, 2012

Call for Teaching Artists!

At Philadelphia Center for the Book, we're looking for committee volunteers AND teaching artists with workshop proposals (for which we may be able to provide spaces).  Email us!

The Art Center is also looking for Teaching Artists!  Details and contact information are below.


Call For Teaching Artist:
Fairmount Art Center
Experimental Paper: Collage, Books & Mixed Media
Tuesday 6:30 PM to 9:30PM
5/1/12 - 6/5/12 [6wks]
Explore paper, book arts, collage, and media for working on paper! In this exciting class, you'll experience a range of materials and techniques. Create collages of various scales.  Craft books of various binding types and fill them with collections of your ideas and explorations.  Use 2-D drawing media in and through your pieces including pencil, charcoal, paint, and pastel. Explore ways for mixing materials and techniques and follow your process as you work from 2-D to 3-D book arts constructions! All materials are included!


Jill Markovitz
Director

Fairmount Art Center
2501 Olive Street
Philadelphia, PA 19130

Queen Village Art Center
514 Bainbridge Street
Philadelphia, PA 19147

Wednesday, April 11, 2012

Call for Committee Members and Volunteers

With the induction of the new board, PCB now has several volunteer opportunities for committee members.  We'd love to have you join our team!  

Marketing Committee

Are you excited about advocating for the arts?  Are you a social media butterfly?  Do you already love to attend members meetings and workshops, or are you interested in attending more? We're looking for a few good folks to join the Marketing Committee and help spread the word about PCB.  As a volunteer for the committee, you would help with marketing campaigns, social media strategy and posts, and blogging to keep our members and book arts community informed and engaged.  If interested, please emailmarketing@philadelphiacenterforthebook.org.

Events Committee

The Events Committee is looking for members to help with every aspect of event and workshop planning and execution - from liaising with other organizations and artists to scheduling and planning catering and decorations.  To get involved please email events@philadelphiacenterforthebook.org.

Exhibitions Committee

The goal of the Exhibitions Committee is to create and implement opportunities for exhibiting the work of PCB members in the Philadelphia region, and to engage with local cultural institutions to promote book arts through exhibitions. PCB can have up to two large exhibitions every year and numerous small ones. The Committee organizes everything for PCB's exhibitions from curating shows, soliciting gallery space from local institution, to label making and receptions. If you would like to contribute to our efforts, we are happy to have you volunteer!  Please emailexhibitions@philadelphiacenterforthebook.org.

Development Committee

The Development Committee is looking for members who are familiar with raising funds online through social networking and other sites such as Crowdrise.  This committee plays a major roll in planning for the organization through fundraising, grant writing, and donor outreach.  If you'd like to join or learn more, please email development@philadelphiacenterforthebook.org.

Not sure what committee to join?  Interested in learning more about how the board works and how we plan out the year for PCB?  Join us for our Open Board Meeting!

Central Library of the Free Library of Philadelphia
Prints and Pictures Department

April 11, 2012 (TONIGHT)
6pm-8pm

Hope to see you there!

Tuesday, April 3, 2012

MEMBERS & FRIENDS MEETING AT BARTRAM'S GARDEN

Tuesday, April 17, 2012, 6:00 to 8:00pm

Join us this Spring at the historic home and garden of the Bartrams, America’s pioneering family of naturalists, botanists and explorers.

On this site more than 275 years ago, John Bartram, a Quaker farmer, was stopped in his tracks by a daisy while plowing his fields. The plant’s simplicity and beauty inspired John and his son, William to spend the rest of their lives exploring, collecting and seeking to understand all forms of nature.

Included in their historic collection are examples of John and William Bartram's publications, and a small selection of artwork by William Bartram.

We will be led by Curator Joel Fry on a tour the garden, visit the John Bowman Bartram Special Collections Library, and will learn about the history of the Bartram family.

Bartram’s Garden
54th St. and Lindbergh Blvd.
Philadelphia, PA 19143