International   

Book-binding tradition attracts new enthusiasts

Back to ancient and painstaking techniques

— AP

ART AND CRAFT: Book-binders at work, at the Craft Guild of Dallas.

DALLAS: Revolutionary War re-enactor DeLea Sayers already has an unusual hobby. He recently stumbled across another one when he decided to record his rebellious activity in an 18th-century-style journal. Unable to find books from the era, Mr. Sayers decided to make his own and discovered the intricate world of book-binding.

"Nobody made any that were historically correct," said Mr. Sayers, surrounded by binding tools and machines — including a guillotine for paper — in a workshop at the Craft Guild of Dallas. He thought he could "grab a book" and teach himself about book-binding, but soon learned otherwise. He discovered a small but growing subculture of master binders employing a range of ancient and painstaking techniques in workshops around the country.

Amateurs and professionals rebind books and build them from scratch — sometimes even making the paper for pages — and often submit their work to international competitions. The national Guild of Bookworkers has an estimated 900 members.

"It probably isn't the first thing that comes to people's minds, but it is definitely growing in popularity," said Sarah Nicholls, programme director at the Centre for Book Arts in New York. "I see more and more places opening up that give book-binding classes."

The New York centre offered 240 classes last year, up from 140 in 1998. Ms. Nicholls said people were increasingly attracted to the ancient craft and its hands-on nature. "As publishing gets more and more technically advanced, and kind of away from the actual product of the book, people get more and more interested in kind of retaining that quality," she said. "As something becomes less commercially viable, then artists sort of take it up."

"We love books, but in a different kind of a way than your typical book person," said Catherine Levine, chairwoman of the book-binding department at the Craft Guild of Dallas. She said binders appreciate books' structure, form, history and art — and "how that all sort of comes together."

A handful of advanced binders gather every week at the Dallas workshop, tackling everything from generations-old Bibles to new, unique blank journals. Their techniques vary from design binding, which reflects the book's text in its structure and appearance, to fine binding, which focusses mainly on perfecting details such as etched designs and gilded edges. In another method, known as book arts, binders produce works that look more like artistic masterpieces than practical reading tools.

Some of their works are among those on display through July 21 at SMU's Bridwell Library, an exhibit that has attracted hundreds of visitors, said Elizabeth Haluska-Rausch, curator of special collections. "I was surprised myself," she said of the book-binding subculture. "Part of it is just the book as art... It's a movement away from the mechanic." — AP

Printer friendly page  
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Stories in this Section

16 killed as LTTE, army clash
Israel ratchets up Lebanon campaign
Nepal talks next week
Birth of G-8: Russian scholars
Book-binding tradition attracts new enthusiasts
Stolen 25 years ago, returned with apologies
Now, the world's largest photo
Big deal for the Bard
Plame sues Cheney
Woman official killed
Pakistani nationals remanded
Manmohan a positive human being: Musharraf

Copyright © 2006, The Hindu. Republication or redissemination of the contents of this screen are expressly prohibited without the written consent of The Hindu