[GBW] two November lectures in Boston

["Jeffrey Altepeter, Bookbinder" <jeff@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

A couple of lectures in November that may be of great interest to GBW members in the Boston area.  Both events are free but please note that the lecture at the Athenaeum requires reservations (see below for details).

 


Lecture:

Art, Craft, and Conservation

 

James Reid-Cunningham

Chief Conservator of the Boston Athenaeum

 

Tuesday, November 6, 2007, 12:00 noon

The Boston Athenaeum

 

James Reid-Cunningham has been binding books for almost thirty years, as a book conservator, design binder and book artist. In this presentation, he will explore the intersection between traditional craft, modern book conservation, and the rise of the book as a work of art. He will describe the allure of creating and conserving books, and examine why the codex with text and pictures became a vehicle for artistic expression during the last four decades. Contemporary book art developed from the confluence of four trends: luxurious French livre d'artistes, bound by master bookbinders in unique artistic bindings called design bindings, in which the text or illustrations were a catalyst for the binder's design; revivals in the arts of the book in the 1960s and 1970s, as a new generation turned to craftwork as both a career and a calling;  the interaction of contemporary art styles and traditional book structures resulting in the creation of artist's books; and the emergence of digital media and desktop publishing in the 1990s. This presentation will feature a display of Mr. Reid-Cunningham's re-bindings of sixteenth to twentieth century books, done in the Athenaeum's new conservation laboratory. Also on display will be his design bindings, miniature books, book art, and limited editions, created by uniting modern materials, such as FormicaT, rubber, and linoleum, with traditional bookbinding structures. Mr. Reid-Cunningham will survey his own bookwork to elucidate the factors that animate contemporary book art and the reasons artists still create unique books in the twenty-first century.

 

James Reid-Cunningham is the Chief Conservator of the Boston Athenaeum, and was formerly the Conservator of the Graduate School of Design at Harvard University. He studied history and art history at Johns Hopkins University and Tufts University and bookbinding at the North Bennet Street School in Boston, where he received the school's Distinguished Alumni Award in 2006. He is the President of the Guild of Book Workers and a Professional Associate of the American Institute for Conservation of Historic and Artistic Works. He teaches bookbinding and conservation workshops nationwide. His artwork can be seen at www.reid-cunningham.com.



This event is free, but reservations are required.  Please call the Athenaeum's reservation line, 617-720-7600 (after October 25, 2007) to reserve a seat.

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The second lecture will take place on Thursday, November 8, 2007, 6:30 pm, at the Boston Public Library.  This lecture is free and open to the public and takes place thanks to the organizational efforts of Barry Spence and the financial support of a small group of GBW members.

 

Lecture
The St. Cuthbert Gospel
By Jim Bloxam and Kristine Rose

November 8, 2007, 6:30pm
Mezzanine Conference Room
Boston Public Library

Jim Bloxam and Kristine Rose from Cambridge University in England will give a lecture based on the St. Cuthbert Gospel of St. John, formerly known as the Stonyhurst Gospel.

Ascribed to the end of the seventh century, the St. Cuthbert Gospel is the one of the oldest surviving western bindings. It was discovered in 1104 buried in the coffin of St. Cuthbert of Lindisfarne, Northumbria.

Jim Bloxam and Kristine Rose will present their theories and assertions based on their recent examination and reappraisal of the binding.

Jim Bloxam is a Senior Book Conservator at Cambridge University Library. His work and research is focused on early printed books, manuscripts and archives, as well as the history of books, their structural qualities and cultural context. He is an Accredited Conservator/Restorer of the Institute of Paper Conservation, and has taught at the Montefiascone Summer School Library Project.

Kristine Rose is a graduate from the Camberwell College of Art BA (Hons) Conservation. Since graduating she has been employed by Cambridge University Library where she has worked on a variety of manuscript material.

 

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