by Noella Noelophile®
Books are a lifelong love for me.
Crafts run a very close second.
If that’s true for you, as well, you might like to check out The International Printing Museum, in Torrance. They’ve just opened their brand-new Book Arts Institute teaching lab!
And they’re currently accepting registrations for all kinds of weekend book- and printing-related workshops.
You’ll recall that The International Printing Museum houses one of the world’s largest collections of working antique printing presses. During holidays, they host special events, such as last December’s “Holiday Krafts Day for Kids”. Often, visitors get the opportunity to print something special (greeting cards, posters, gift tags) on a vintage printer.
Now, you’ll get a chance to present your best literary works in a handcrafted edition.
Or, if you’d rather, create custom posters for your living space or upcoming event. Or craft unique cards for the special people in your life.
Currently, the Book Arts Institute lists five new classes for which they’re accepting registrations. Most are one-day workshops, running between six and seven hours with a one-hour lunch break. (The exception: “Composing and Impressions with Metal Type”, which is a two-day course in April.)
Course offerings
The first listed workshop, “Women’s History Month Wood Type Posters”, happens Saturday, March 19th. Artist and award-winning typography educator Christina Aumann is the instructor for this inaugural workshop. Among the areas the class will cover: how to handset wood type, and the basics of printing with a Vandercook proofing press.
I’m particularly intrigued by the workshop which studio artist and author Madeline Holland will offer, on Saturday, March 26th: “Sumingashi Marbling and Japanese Binding”. “Suminagashi”, in Japanese, means “floating ink”, and is an art which dates back to twelfth-century Japan. A look at the Book Arts Institute’s page reveals beautiful and delicate swirls created with this technique.
In April, Christina and Marilyn will be offering workshops in “Composing & Impressions with Metal Type” and “Intro to Bookbinding”, respectively. And in May, International Printing Museum Founding Director /Curator Mark Barbour will host “Intro to Printing on a Platen Press”.
Fees for the workshops range from $125 to $250 for the two day workshop. Class sizes are generally small: most often, eight students, though the “Suminagashi Marbling” and “Intro to Bookbinding” will accept ten. You’ll find all the information here.