Print with Impression Whitney Lyn Stahl in Partial Fulfillment of The

Print With Impression Whitney Lyn Stahl In partial fulfillment of the requirements For the Degree of Master of the Arts in Art and the Book Corcoran College of Art & Design Washington, DC Spring 2013 We hereby recommend that the thesis prepared under our supervision by Whitney Lyn Stahl entitled Print With Impression be accepted as fulfilling, in part, requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Art and the Book. Graduate Thesis Committee Whitney Lyn Stahl ________________________________________________________________________ Thesis Advisor ________________________________________________________________________ Program Director ________________________________________________________________________ Committee Member ________________________________________________________________________ Thesis Statement Many of the artists over the years that have arrived in Massachusetts arrived by mere coincidence, and others were drawn there to be a part of the community; all have stayed for the love of printing. The printers of this book art mecca have acquired a long history through the love for the art of the book by these artists and their record of the past. Book history is passed through strong ties to past traditions and legacy. Early educational institutions with the help of unique and invested individuals have continued a historical documentation through Fine Press bookwork. As technology and times have changed, the Fine Press movement in Massachusetts continues to draw new blood with communal appeal, love of the craft, and a sense of allure that book making seems to cast on artists who settle in the area. The book art community will need to continue this custom of captivating and educating the next generation of book artists with their time honored craft and new ideas for the tradition to persevere. i Table of Contents Introduction 1 What is Fine Press? William Morris and the Arts & Crafts Movement 3 Contemporary Aspects of Fine Printing 4 Book Arts in Massachusetts Early Printers 7 Eighteenth Century 9 Nineteenth Century 15 Early Twentieth Century & Typography 16 Free Academy of Book Arts Arno Werner 25 Leonard Baskin 27 Harold McGrath 30 Benefactors of the Free Academy 31 Conclusion 39 ii Introduction “Your questions remind me that we all come to books for different reasons, be it a love of images, words or typography, a love of paper or binding or for that matter, simply a love of books.” -Michael Kuch A small book arts community exists in Western Massachusetts that construct the most magnificent Fine Press books. They have continued to come together due to a mix of fate and a passion for the craft. In the tradition of printmaking and book arts, dating back to Colonial times, this community has survived through the collaboration of artists in the area that believe the education of younger generations is pertinent to the survival of book arts. These unique individuals have realized and mastered their different skills and conspired to produce Fine Press books with masterful printmaking, premiere bookbinding and handmade paper. Many of the artists over the years that have arrived in Massachusetts arrived by mere coincidence, and others were drawn there to be a part of the community; all have stayed for the love of printing. The printers of this book art mecca have acquired a long history through the love for the art of the book by these artists and their record of the past. Book history is passed through strong ties to past traditions and legacy. Early educational institutions with the help of unique and invested individuals have continued a historical documentation through Fine Press bookwork. As technology and times have changed, the Fine Press movement in Massachusetts continues to draw new blood with communal appeal, love of the craft, and a sense of allure that book making seems to cast on artists who settle in the area. The book art community will 1 need to continue this custom of captivating and educating the next generation of book artists with their time honored craft and new ideas for the tradition to persevere. As Joseph Blumenthal ended his history of the Printed Book in America, “The Art of the Book, one of the slender graces of civilization, works its charms on each new generation.”1 1 Joseph Blumenthal, The Printed Book in America, Hanover and London: Trustees of Dartmouth, 1989. 156. 2 Chapter One What is Fine Press? “People like me, who care about printing - the architecture of the page - constitute the tiniest lunatic fringe in the nation.” -Leonard Baskin William Morris and the Arts & Crafts Movement It is easy to say William Morris began the “renaissance in printing”2 with a romantic idea to take the book and apply old world workmanship and craft to create a Fine Press book. During his time, Morris saw his own books being published with little regard to design and publishers more eager to produce larger, cheaper editions than care for the actual book. Presses would dilute their ink creating an overall gray effect rather than a black line needed for the typefaces being used. Uneven printing was common because of the wood pulp and bleach used in the paper. Some design was used but as Susan Otis Thompson points out, “There was as yet no profession of book designer, while the practicing printer was more noteworthy for his technical than his artistic knowledge. A book’s illustrations might be by several different hands, reproduced by several different processes. In any case, no one saw the advisability of relating the lines of the type to those of the drawings or imposing any kind of unity on the decoration of the book.”3 Joseph Blumenthal, Typographic Years: A Printer’s Journey Through A Half Century, 1925-1975, (New York: Frederic C. Beil, 1982), 3. 3 3 Betty Bright, No Longer Innocent: Book Art in America, 1960-1980, 20. 3 William Morris believed the book was like a building, type was comparable to the mortar that holds a building together. He set out to make a well designed book for the people and he believed the only way to do this was to carefully plan every aspect of the design -- paper, ink, type, spacing, margins, illustration, and ornament. Contemporary Aspects of Fine Printing After World War II, Morris still had a devoted following, but his immediate influence dispelled as the fine book evolved. Morris’ devotion to the high quality of materials, binding, ink, and craftsmanship remained the basis for printing, but his medieval style was no longer relevant.4 Book artists of his time strove for a more contemporary look: combing their imagery, typography affected by ever evolving technology, which has had a substantial effect on design. From the establishment of offset lithography to today’s polymer plates it is inevitable that technology would have an effect on the Fine Press Book, but some basic concepts have always remained. In a contemporary Fine Press book: -The typographer should approach the book knowing the type origins and development. -The book designer should pay homage to the illuminated manuscript, and have studied the history of the book over its 500 years, as well as balance the author’s text and artists’ imagery without complication. 4 Martin Hunter and Jerry Kelly, A Century for the Century: Fine Printed Books from 1900 to 1999, (Jaffrey, New Hampshire: The Grolier Club and David R. Godine, 2004), xix. 4 -The knowledge of the paper and its uses is crucial for the mechanics and potential for binding.5 A binder must consider all aspects presented by the printer. One must question size, weight, images and printmaking techniques. Should thread or tape be best to sew the folios? The flyleaf, the part connecting the book to the cover, should be considered. Are the edges trimmed, gilded, or decorated? A material fitting the cover must be chosen. All of these must come together to achieve the desired end result. Master binder Arno Werner concludes, “A convincing piece of work comes from having a clear conviction and understanding of what the craft of bookbinding is really about.”6 He believed that a book with a purpose must be functional and be able to last, and a book artist can not forget these two essentials. The most important factor of the fine press book is the letterpress.7 Finding the relation between type and paper is a skill not many achieve without years of experience. Many learn the letterpress, but finding the delicate balance of ink and pressure is key to printing a fine press book. Many printers have different ways of describing this: Max Weber said, “Let the paper breathe”8 and Harold McGrath would tell his students, “We don’t print 6 Arno Werner, Arno Werner: One Man’s Work, Edited by Carol J. Blinn, (East Hampton, Massachusetts: Warwick Press, 1982), 7. 7 Blumenthal, Typographic Years, 74. 8 Blumenthal, Typographic Years, 72. 5 with ink here, we print with impression.”9 By looking at the type it should be well covered, but with a magnifying glass the texture of the paper will be breaking through the ink. Thus, “minimum ink and maximum coverage” gives a sense of crispness to the page.10 9 Alan J. Robinson Editor, H.P.M., Harold Patrick McGrath, (Easthampton, Massachusetts: Cheloniidae Press, 1991), 20. 10 Blumenthal, Typographic Years, 72. 6 Chapter Two Book Arts in Massachusetts “So far as relates to the introduction of the art of printing, and establishing the press in this section of the continent, Massachusetts claims precedence over all the other colonies.” -Isaiah Thomas Early Printers Printing in Massachusetts has a long history dating back to Colonial times when the first press was started in 1638 in Cambridge, Massachusetts. British Minister, Joseph Glover, transported his family, a press, and type across the Atlantic with Massachusetts as their destination.11 Unfortunately, Glover died mid-atlantic, passing his press along to his wife.

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