Welcome to the 2010 Bind-O-Rama

The Bonefolder's annual online exhibition.

The Bonefolder is pleased to present the 2010 Bind-O-Rama on Pamela Leutz’s The Thread That Binds, published by Oak Knoll book. The book was introduced in the Fall 2009 issue of this journal with the chapter on Craig Jensen, and a review by Jeffrey S. Peachey was published in the Spring 2010 issue. Interestingly, the call for entries for this Bind-O-Rama also brought in 21 entries, including two from binders interviewed in the book – Catherine Burkhard and Karen Hanmer. Other binders interviewed are: Eleanore Ramsey, Tini Miura, Frank Lehmann, Monique Lallier, Jan Sobota, Priscilla Spitler, Craig Jensen, Scott Kellar, Sol Rebora, Timothy Ely, Jim Croft, Cris Clair Takacs, Don Rash, Daniel Kelm, Peer Geraty, William Minter, Gabrielle Fox, Don Glaister, and Don Etherington.

Introduction by Pamela Leutz

The Thread That Binds began from my desire to find out about the lives of some of the private practice bookbinders I had met at the Guild of Book Workers Standards of Excellence meetings. I wanted to find out what led them to book work, where they worked, where they learned, what they enjoyed about their work, what they didn’t like, how they made a living. I only planned to visit a few bookbinders and maybe write an article for our bookbinding chapter’s newsletter. My visits grew to include 21 interviews and delightfully morphed into the book, The Thread That Binds. I had a fabulous time visiting these bookbinders and hearing their stories.

I am thrilled that this book was chosen as the book to bind for the Bind-O-Rama and for the upcoming Lone Star Chapter exhibition. I had the pleasure to bind my edition in the presence of one of the people I interviewed, Jan Sobota, in the Czech Republic. I chose to bind it in Jan’s three-board binding style. I made it playful, a charming characteristic I found in most of the bookbinders I interviewed.

The Bindings

Meredeth Beckett, Columbus, OH, USA.

Description: Bound on cords, which spill out from beneath the cloth binding. The cloth was given to the binder by a fellow bookbinder, further emphasizing the theme of connectedness.

In reading this book the binder was struck by "how similar the temperment is within the bookbinding community."

Meredeth taught herself to bind books by reading other books, and now runs a small bindery out of her apartment. She runs an online shop, squeezing binding time in between a "real" job and sleeping.

Susan Bonthron, Guilford, VT, USA.

Description: Paste paper over boards, Elephant Hide inside covers and endpapers (tipped in); Coptic binding over gold painted signature spines using black linen thread; title foil-stamped on gold card stock and glued onto recessed cover board.

In reading this book the binder was struck by "how similar the stories of these binders are; how they came to binding; their love of books and handwork and the diversity of the craft."

Susan Bonthron is the owner/operator of Otter Pond Bindery in Guilford, Vermont. She has studied with Paulus Berensohn, Julie Chen, Daniel Kelm, Claire Van Vliet, Hedi Kyle, Linda Lembke, at the Center for Book Arts in NYC and the North Bennett Street School. Her work has appeared in galleries from Canberra, Australia, to Brattleboro, Vermont, was selected for the San Diego Book Arts Second and Third National Juried Shows (2008 and 2010), and will be exhibited at the Brattleboro Museum and Art Center (November 2010). She teaches book arts at her Bindery and in residencies in the US and abroad.

Patty Bruce, Boston, MA, USA.

Description: Cream colored leather fine design binding; three edge decorated; Jan Sabota's triple board structure.

In reading this book the binder was struck by "how unique each binder was and yet there truly is a common thread."

Patty Bruce is a resident of Boston, Massachusetts. She has an MSED from the University of Southern California and a degree in graphic design. The interest for binding started slowly about a decade ago and has turned into a full time passion. She trains at the American Academy of bookbinding with Monique Lallier and takes workshops from Jan Sabota in the Czech Republic. Printmaking has been included into her experiences to realize the completed book. Her work has exhibited In the GBW "In Flight" Exhibition, Helen Degolyer 2000, 2003, 2006, 2009, Chicago Public Library "One Book Many Interpretations", "Book Power" at the Sandy Gallery in Oregon 2010, as well as Chapter Exhibitions around the country. She currently works full time binding books in her studio in South Boston.

Catherine Burkhard, Dallas, TX, USA.

Description: Sewn boards binding covered in a forest green goat skin from Pergamena, using a green/gold/silver patterned Chiyogami for endsheets, with front cover decoration; decoration includes cutout window featuring a needle with green thread and title blind stamped vertically to left of window; green used to signify growth which seemed to be the theme each binder expressed in their process to become a bookbinder and be at their professional status today.

In reading this book the binder was struck by "the many different steps taken to learn and to acquire the necessary equipment."

Calligrapher for 32 years and bookbinder for 27 – both of which began in elementary school days. Formal training in both began in Dallas, along with many instructors elsewhere in US and England. Currently a binding instructor in Dallas, TX studio along with taking in commission work from the public in both fields. Serve the Guild of Book Workers as secretary and the Lone Star Chapter as president.

Carol Ceraldi, Craftsbury, VT, USA.

Description: Cover material: cow hide; endsheets: 80# Mohawk Superfine laser printed with scans of multiple images of the bookbinders; sewing structure: sewn on 3 tapes, signatures sewn with the same 100% linen maroon thread that appears in cover art; endbands of dark brown goatskin around core; decoration of hand, sculpted in translucent Sculpy and baked, actual needle and 100% linen thread; title, laser printed on walnut Bicchu Torinoko Gampi and applied to wrap around fore edge of cover.

In reading this book the binder was struck by "the similarity of all the stories of course…striving for excellence, love of the materials, the struggle to earn a living from binding, the questions of valuing work for sale as well as the many variations in the stories in the pathways to the craft. The constant to me was the passion for the "making" the danger that if one sits down at the bench, they will still be at the bench engrossed in work in the early hours of the morning."

Trained in design at the Cooper Union, bookbinding study with Dorina Parmenter and Peter Verheyen, as well as with Daniel Kelm at the Garage Annex School in Easthampton, MA.

Rebecca Chamlee, Simi Valley, CA, USA.

Description: Text pack sewn on raised cords, full dark green Harmatan leather tight back binding; cord embossed underlay; marble pastedown and fly sheets by Pam Smith; hand sewn silk endbands; watercolor decoration on head edge.

In reading this book the binder’s "fantasy was to bind this book in leather and then read it which added richness to the experience."

Rebecca Chamlee is a book artist, graphic designer, letterpress printer and bookbinder who operates Pie In The Sky Press, a private press in southern California that specializes in limited edition artist books and fine press books by selected poets. Chamlee is a professor of bookarts at Otis College of Art and Design. She has exhibited her work around the country. Her work is in the collections of Brown University; Brigham Young University; William Andrews Clark Memorial Library; Savannah College of Art and Design; Otis College of Art and Design; University of California at Riverside; University of Utah and numerous private collectors.

Juliayn Coleman, San Francisco, CA, USA.

Description: Russell's Oasis goatskin; Chena River marbled papers; 23k gold edge (gilded in the rough, before sewing), and gold tooling.

In reading this book the binder was struck by "the power of the human voice to share experience."

Juliayn Coleman received a certificate in bookbinding and book conservation from the North Bennet Street School in Boston, Massachusetts in 2003. Her books have been shown at the Boston Architectural Center, Columbia College, and the Chicago Public Library. She is a member of the Guild of Book Workers (US) and Designer Bookbinders (UK). Recent clients include the Field Museum of Natural History, the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Blackpoint Editions, and others. She currently resides in San Francisco, California.

Jane Elder, Dallas, TX, USA.

Description: Case binding in black, brown, and natural linen, with 22 inset stones representing each of the bookbinders in the volume, including its editor; hand-sewn silk headbands; splatter-painted edge decoration, and marbled endpapers by Katherine Levine.

In reading this book the binder was struck by "the enormous effort the book’s editor, Pam Leutz, invested in capturing the experiences of these artists. Binding a book is nothing compared with writing one."

I became interested in bookbinding when I began working as the Reference Librarian of Bridwell Library in 2002. Since then I have taken classes with Sally Key, David J. Lawrence, Pamela Leutz, and Priscilla Spitler.

Madelyn Garrett, South Jordan, UT, USA.

Description: Sewn on tapes and bound in UICB case paper; onlays of treated copper, combined with repurposed copper recovered from an industrial furnace, and connected by strands of dyed linen thread.

In reading this book the binder was struck by "the remarkable continuity of purpose--a shared determination to preserve the book form."

Madelyn Garrett, bookmaker and art historian, has been making books for over twenty-five years. She is most interested in the historical book, and her work often references the books and book forms of the past.

Jane Bortnick Griffith, Kensington, MD, USA.

Description: Wire-edge binding; goatskin covers; snakeskin spine covering and mosaic inlays; French hand marbled endsheets.

In reading this book the binder was struck by "The range of creative expression and individuality combined with a common commitment to quality."

Studied with Jacqueline Liekens in Brussels; additional courses and workshops with a variety of binders including Monique Lallier, Daniel Kelm, and Helene Jolis.

Karen Hanmer, Glenview, IL, USA.

Description: Hybrid of crossed structure and limp vellum bindings; calf vellum and goatskin-wrapped velum slips and Yapp edges; German primary headband sewn with red linen thread; title stamped in gold foil; three edges gilt.

In reading this book the binder was struck by "the reminder that binding is physical labor and the binder must take care of herself. I have since made ergonomic improvements to my studio."

Karen Hanmer’s work layers text and image to intertwine cultural and personal memory. The intimate scale and gestures of exploration employed to travel through each piece evoke looking through an album, diary, or the belongings of a loved one. The work is often playful in structure or content, and may include social commentary. Hanmer’s work is included in collections ranging from Tate Britain and the Library of Congress to Syracuse University and Graceland. She won the 2009 DeGolyer Jury Prize for Binding. Hanmer curated the Guild of Book Workers Marking Time exhibition, and serves on the editorial board of The Bonefolder. She is online at <http://www.karenhanmer.com>.

Barbara Adams Hebard, Melrose, MA, USA.

Description: Full brown goatskin binding finished in a 16th century style; blind tooled rule and central panel divided into blind tooled lozenge shaped compartments with English rose and Fleur-de-lis in blind (upper board), diamond shape in blind (lower board); sewn over double cords (Perma-life bi-folio endpapers sewn along); primary laced-in endbands and plaited goatskin endbands.

In reading this book the binder was struck by "the different paths people take to get to bookbinding and the mentors they find along the way."

Barbara Adams Hebard, Conservator of the John J. Burns Library at Boston College, is a graduate of the North Bennet Street School bookbinding program. Ms. Hebard is a member of the Guild of Book Workers. She is a Professional member of The American Institute for Conservation of Historic and Artistic Works, a Fellow of The International Institute for Conservation of Historic and Artistic Works, and Board Member of New England Conservation Association. She is proud to be an Overseer of North Bennet Street School. She exhibits her books nationally and internationally. Ms. Hebard also writes articles on book related topics.

Roberta Lavadour, Pendleton, OR, USA.

Description: Bound in a Coptic stitch with wrapped board attachment and Cave paper (seconds) covers; hooked endpapers; paper ribbon with silk thread embroidery; hand croched ties; silver foil.

In reading this book the binder was struck by "being able to peek into a variety of work styles."

Roberta Lavadour lives and works at the foothills of the Blue Mountains of Eastern Oregon. Her work is fueled by her rampant curiosity and explores everything from found objects and thrift store finds to personal family history to current events. She’s been recognized with several awards and received an Oregon Arts Commission, National Endowment for the Arts Visual Artist Fellowship in 2001. Her work resides in public and private collections, including the King St. Stephen Museum in Hungary and the American Embassy collection in Azerbaijan. She publishes her artist’s books and bindings under the Mission Creek Press imprint.

Pamela Leutz, Colorado Springs, CO, USA.

Description: Covered in black and red goatskin; endsheets of red goatskin; three-board structure (Sobota style); endbands of yellow goatskin with onlays; top-edge decorated with acrylic paints; middle cover boards are steel; cut-outs in covers are filled with removable pieces with embedded magnets that have each interviewee's name and picture on the bottom of the piece. The pieces can be removed and used to play the "matching game.

In reading this book the binder was struck by "the divine memories I have of interviewing each of these magnificent and talented bookbinders."

Pamela Leutz has been bookbinding since 1979. She studied at the Craft Guild of Dallas, in Switzerland with master bookbinder, Hugo Peller, and with Czech design binder, Jan Sobota. She has taught bookbinding classes in Dallas and Colorado Springs. Her work has been exhibited in Texas, Chicago, and the Czech Republic. She is the author of The Thread That Binds: Interviews with Private Practice Bookbinders. She is online at <http://www.threadthatbinds.com/>.

Celine Lombardi, Boston, MA USA.

Description: Quarter-leather binding with handmade paper thread laminated onto a backing tissue for the covering material; title is handwritten in leather onlay; endpapers are paste papers made by the binder with detail of leather onlay "thread" continuing from front cover across both inside boards; leather hinges; text was sewn on cords and laced onto boards in a tight joint, hollow back, French style binding; handsewn endbands. This book was bound (through the quarter leather spine and leather hinges) during a week of study with Monique Lallier. All the decorative work was completed on my own and was of my own devising.

In reading this book the binder felt that "as a student, I appreciate learning about the lineage of my craft."

I am currently a student at the North Bennet St School in Boston. I began my first bookbinding classes at the Center for Book Arts in New York and worked as an assistant to a bookbinder in Brooklyn for two years before deciding to make this my career.

Anna Mavromatis, Houston, TX, USA.

Description: Covered in Rives BFK with monotype in rubber based ink; endpapers are monotype used for cover scanned and reworked in Photoshop to form a graphic pattern; printed with archival pigmented inks on Velin Arches; sewn on tapes and bound in paper over boards; decor of ghost print on Rives BFK pleated, folded and joined to form a sleeve band.

In reading this book the binder was struck by "the similarity not only in the interest and dedication but also in the love for the craft I share with the interviewees!."

My background in fashion design and illustration makes it natural for me to create art based on "themes" that develop into "stories"; this method of working, together with my interest in paper art structures formed the path that brought me into the realm of Artists’ Books creation. In my work I incorporate elements of printmaking using a vast array of mediums, including digitally generated imagery. I apply these techniques in the design and construction of one of a kind and small edition Artists' Books. Degrees from London College of Fashion and in bookbinding from Glassell.

Jana Pullman, Minneapolis, MN USA.

Description: Binding using the techniques from Jen Linsay's book, Fine Bookbinding; bound in a light gray buffalo leather with the surface rubbed across with a brown spirit dye to bring out the strong texture of the leather; silk sewn endbands and edge to edge doublures; tooling and titling was done in copper foil with dark brown and dark blue onlays.

In reading this book the binder was struck by "how we all struggle with pricing our work."

Student of Jim Dast, University of Wisconsin-Madison, and Bill Anthony, University of Iowa. MFA in printmaking with an emphasis in book arts and papermaking. Worked for libraries and institutions in book and paper conservation and now I am in private practice.

Samantha Quell, Buffalo, NY, USA.

Description: Quarter leather with paste paper covers; sewn on raised cords; hand sewn end bands; speckled edge; visible hinge end sheets with gray Roma paper.

I graduated from SUNY Oneonta in 2009, with a bachelor's degree in art/art history and a minor in chemistry. An interest in conservation led me to an eighteen month internship in the Book Conservation Lab at Syracuse University Library, and a book binding course taught by Peter Verheyen. I am currently living in Buffalo, NY. I am an intern at the Western New York Book Arts Collaborative and starting my Master's in Library Science at the University at Buffalo in January 2011. She is online at <http://samquell.blogspot.com/>.

Barbara Simler, Kamloops, BC, Canada.

Description: Limp leather binding with walnut brown cowhide and nut brown cowhide strips; wrap-around strap closure; tackets and decorative stitching sewn with Irish linen thread; Canson endpapers.

In reading this book the binder was struck by "the range of backgrounds and education that the interviewees had."

Barbara Simler is originally from Woodland, Idaho. Her education in book arts is mostly the result of her own investigations; more recently she has also studied bookbinding with Jim Croft and Elsi Vassdal Ellis. She owns and operates Moon Bindery, a book arts studio in Kamloops, BC., Canada.

Christina Q. Thomas, Provo, UT, USA.

Description: English style, tight-back, single flexible binding; sewn on raised linen cords; that are laced in and out of the boards and then glued across the board surface to form the tree branch design; all edges sprinkled in 3 colors of ink; green and yellow silk headbands hand sewn on square, leather/vellum cores; bound in Nigerian goatskin with leather onlays; paste paper of my own design glued in one continuous piece across the joint to complete the decorative paste down and flyleaf; title stamped in gold foil.

In reading this book the binder was struck by "the reassuring connections I felt between myself and the binders interviewed as well as deeper connections to the craft's past, present, and future."

First trained as a book repair technician while a BYU student from 2000-2004. Later trained under Mark Andersson and Jeff Altepeter at the North Bennet Street School. Completed conservation internships at the Boston Public Library and the LDS Church History Library in Salt Lake City. Since early 2009, I have been working part-time as the assistant supervisor over repair of circulating books in the Harold B. Lee Library at Brigham Young University and part-time at home in my little attic bindery.

Peter D. Verheyen, Syracuse, NY, USA.

Description: Gebrochener Rücken (modified Bradel) binding; red Roma endpapers; sewn link stitch on four reinforced leather tapes; dark red and gray handsewn endbands; spine covered in gray leather with cutouts for tapes; boards covered in reddish brown Pergamena deer vellum; titled stamped in gold on front cover with leather onlays.

In reading this book the binder was struck by "by the tenaciousness and dedication with which the binders pursued their dreams."

Formal apprenticeship at the Buchbinderei Klein in Gelsenkirchen, Germany; internships at the Germanisches Nationalmusum in Nuremberg, Germany, and at the Folger Shakespeare Library with Frank Mowery; worked with Heinke Pensky-Adam and William Minter, and at the Yale and Cornell university libraries. Currently head of Preservation and Conservation at Syracuse University Library. Past Exhibitions and Publicity Chair for the Guild of Book Workers, publisher of The Bonefolder, Book Arts Web, and Book_Arts-L. His bindings are online here.

Bind-O-Rama 2011 -
Artistically Reversible: Where Conservation and Art Meet

Bind-O-Rama Announcement Now Online!