Robert R. Reid Celebrating His 90Th Birthday and 69 Years of Designing and Printing
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Robert R. Reid Celebrating his 90th Birthday and 69 years of Designing and Printing. Curated by Chester Gryski Robertson Davies Library, Massey College, Spring 2018 Andrea Taylor, “Robert.” Wood engraving, A Young Printer in San Francisco, Heavenly Monkey, 2007. 2 Robert R. Reid School of Art as an instructor in typography. It was during these years that he designed and printed at his Abbottsford, Vancouver, Montreal, New York and New Haven variously-named private presses, The Basque Sheepherder and Vancouver and the Shepard Psalm (1955), Gold (1958), The Journal of Norman Lee (1959), Kuthan’s Menagerie (1960) and Grave This exhibition celebrates Robert Reid’s 90th birthday Sirs (1962). and 69 years of designing and printing. The items In 1962 at the urging of Carl Dair, he applied for a selected represent my personal choices and a Canada Council Fellowship to tour Europe in order to recognition of the restrictions that the available space study private presses. He was successful and left imposes. Vancouver not to return except for visits until 1997. In 1947 while climbing the stairs to the Reading After his study tour of Europe, he went to Montreal Room in the University of British Columbia Library, and joined the McGill University Press to look after the Robert Reid saw a finely-printed book in a display case design and production of books. Notable books from and decided that he wanted to print one too. The idea this period are the Le Passé Vivant de Montréal / The Living was not as preposterous as it might have seemed. He Past of Montreal by Eric McLean, Paul Roussel, and R. D. had already been printing for more or less 11 years. Wilson (1964), the Lande Bibliography of Canadiana Robert Reid was born in Medicine Hat, Alberta on (1965), Anatomy of the Brain and Nerves by Thomas Willis October 27, 1927. He saw a printing press in the toy (1965), and Portrait of a Period, the book of Notman department of the Hudson’s Bay Store when he was photographs (1967). He also produced a number of nine and later found it as a Christmas present. He did broadsides. not simply play with it and then forget about it - he Reid left Montreal for New York in 1974, later was so intrigued that he began printing newsheets for moving to New Haven. The books he designed were the family. He printed other items throughout his packages for various publishers. It was at this time that school years, and later joined the National Amateur he started publishing his “country inn” books, an Printing Association contributing examples of his enterprise that suffered when the internet and printing to that organization and seeing what other websites provided an alternative source for the amateur printers were doing. information contained in these books. He also In the first years after graduation, he worked at a acquired a press and type and set up “At the Sign of number of jobs unrelated to his interest in printing Gryphon” a private press that produced a number of and then in 1951 opened his own shop as a printer and broadsides. These displayed his love of fine printing. designer under the name of the Graphos Press. In In 1997, he returned to Vancouver to live. At this about 1955, his business was purchased by Grant-Mann time, he was introduced to the electronic means of to secure him to run their letterpress department. designing and printing. He took full advantage of this After a short while, he left them to join the Vancouver technology and produced a number of books for The 3 Alcuin Society and for others. These include Dorothy Burnett, Bookbinder (2007), Duthie Bookmarks (2008), Takao Tanabe, Sometime Printer (2010) and The Innocence of Trees by David Bellman (2010). In 2007, The Alcuin Society of Canada instituted an award to recognize lifetime achievement or extraordinary contribution to the book arts in Canada. They named it the Robert R. Reid Award and presented it to Robert Reid as the first recipient. C.G. 4 ¶ 1. Waddington, Alfred. The Fraser Mines Vindicated or the largest for any one-year period since the show began. The History of Four Months. Vancouver, 1949. Copy 11 of Altogether twenty-nine presses submitted eighty-eight books. 100 copies. The final selection by the jury revealed a more critical examination perhaps than in the past. The books are judged Colophon: This book is the first book issued from the private not one against the other, but on a point system which press of Robert R. Reid, who produced it for his personal automatically includes or rejects an item.” enjoyment. Hand-set in 12 point Caslon old style and printed One of the jurors was Will Bradley, an eminent two pages at a time on Hurlbut Cortlea antque paper with an 8 designer. Among the award winners were The Ward x 12 foot-press. Marbling executed by the printer. Bound by Ritchie Press, Edwin and Robert Grabhorn and the hand at the shop of Mr. M. I. Sochasky. Grabhorn Press, Adrian Wilson and the Centaur Press, This copy with blue marbled papers by Robert R. Grant Dahlstrom and the Castle Press, William Everson Reid and a felt slipcase. and The Equinox Press, Saul and Lillian Marks at the This is a reprint of the first book printed in British Plantin Press. It was quite an accomplishment for Reid Columbia. to be included in this company. This is the first private press book printed in Canada. The products of private press printing that ¶ 2. Waddington, Alfred. The Fraser Mines Vindicated or preceded it All Creatures Great and Small (Charles The History of Four Month. Copy 72 of 100 copies. Bradbury, 1931) or the publications of the Golden Dog Press (J. Kemp Waldie, mid-1930’s) or the Woodchuck This copy with red marbled papers by Robert R Reid Press (Thoreau Macdonald, 1932 to 1971) were not as with a felt slipcase. substantial undertakings. All contained many fewer Inscribed on the endpaper "To Stanley Read in / pages. appreciation of his efforts / on behalf of better printing / and In this book, the publisher is doing his own bookmaking / Robert R. Reid" printing rather than commissioning someone else to Stanley Read taught at the University of British print – a significant distinguishing feature. Columbia. In Reid’s Leaves (Heavenly Monkey, 2001, The Rounce & Coffin Club of Los Angeles selected it page 11) Robert Reid writes, “My English literature for its 1950 Exhibition of Western Books. This was one professor was Stanley Read, a wonderful man with an year in an annual series of exhibitions that began abiding love of books, so I spoke to him about it about 1939 and which continued into the 21st century. [Reid’s desire to print his first book]. Wisely, he sent Carey S. Bliss the Chairman of the Exhibition me to see Kaye Lamb, the University Librarian, who Committee in the Introduction to the catalogue of the was also a historian.” 1950 Exhibition stated, “The Western Book Exhibition this year is the smallest in number since the 1942 show. However, the number of separate presses submitting items for judging was 5 ¶ 3. Prospectus for Waddington, Alfred. The Fraser Mines ¶ 6. Prospectus for Claudet, F. G. Gold, Its properties, modes Vindicated or The History of Four Months. Vancouver: at of extraction, value etc. Vancouver: Robert Reid & Takao the Private Press of Robert Reid, 1950. Tanabe, 1958. Colophon: "A Book in a Limited Edition of 110 copies, has Price change in ink. Single sheet folded. Prospectus been completed by Robert R. Reid at his private press. He is now text on one side and 4 specimen pages being 7, 15, 20, pleased to offer a number of copies for sale to those interested 21 on the other (not seen when folded). collectors. This book should prove to be of especial value not only to those interested in fine Canadiana but also to those who ¶ 7. Claudet, F. G. Gold, Its properties, modes of extraction, appreciate fineness in typography & bookmaking." And (at value etc. Vancouver: Robert Reid & Takao Tanabe, 1958. page 4), “The Rounce & Coffin Club of Los Angeles has Copy 157 of 275 recently selected it for its 1950 Exhibition of Western Books. From the Colophon: "This is the second in a series of books There are 65 copies available at ten dollars a copy. The others pertaining to the history of British Columbia from the private having been previously subscribed." press of Robert Reid, now joined by Takao Tanabe. The binding In an envelope addressed to Mr. Stanley Read. This is by Felicity Reid, the marbling by Sherry Grauer." was purchased at the same time as the copy inscribed However in Reid’s Leaves Robert Reid stated that to Stanley Read. Takao Tanabe also had a hand in the binding and that, after binding over 100 books, their enthusiasm waned. ¶ 4. Reid, Robert R. A Young Printer in San Francisco 1949. The balance were bound by Fritz Braun. These copies Vancouver: Heavenly Monkey, 2007. Copy 9 of 50. can be distinguished by their vellum tips and white The linocut portrait of Robert Reid is by Andrea Taylor register ribbons. Papers made by Reg Lissel. This a Majuscule copy. Also This copy was bound by Fritz Braun. contains a photo-etching of a snapshot of Robert Reid. Signed by Robert Reid. ¶ 8. Lee, Norman. The Journal of Norman Lee, 1898, which is The text describes Reid’s trip to San Francisco in an account of a cattle-drive from the Chilcotin country to Teslin 1949 after The Fraser Mines Vindicated was selected by the Lake by the Telegraph Trail.