Creative practice has been important to me for many years, even when I didn’t have a name for it. More recently, creative practice has not only been an outlet but a kind of salvation in times of darkness, doubt, and difficulty. Sometimes the words are messages of hope, sometimes of encouragement, sometimes of challenge. The ritual act of creation — whether artistic or ordinary — is a sustaining motion forward and sometimes that’s all we can strive for. The images here represent recent acts of doing and making – not for art’s sake, but for hope’s sake.
This past week in the Baylor University Libraries Book Arts & Letterpress Lab we uncovered a really beautiful font specimen that was part of a gift to the lab hiding in the shadows of a type with its roommate, the big, bold, bossy Cooper Black font. Our intern Mary Grace got to work identifying this lovely and mysterious, elongated font with a hint of modernity using an online font identification tool (http://www.identifont.com/) and landed on Binner Gothic as our mystery font. It was clearly a match though there were a few variations that didn’t match up. We shared this find on the @baylorbookarts instagram account and one of our followers, @siennajewisharts, had this to say: “I think it is BG! It’s so distinctive. The font specimen that Mary is holding is from the *digitized* version of BG which has some subtle differences from the original type forms! Compare the crossbar of the “f,” for example, which is much higher in the original Bruce foundry specimen than in the digital version and pointed us to the 1901 type specimen book by the Bruce Foundry of New York that was established in 1813. This type specimen book belongs to the University of Michigan and was digitized and included in HathiTrust Digital Library (a collaborative repository of digital content from research libraries). Access to the digitized type specimen book here. So thanks to University of Michigan for scanning this specimen book, to HathiTrust for providing access, to the IdentiFont website for helping us identify the font and to instagram for providing a community of people interested in pre-internet stuff who are willing to share their expertise!
Question and exclamation marks from Cooper Black font metal type Binner Gothic metal type in type case.Intern Mary Grace showing Gothic Binner typeface on iPad screenExcerpt of Bruce Foundry Type Specimen Book (1901) showing Binner Gothic typeface
Yesterday, the Baylor University Libraries Book Arts and Letterpress Lab welcomed its newest addition to press family, a Washington style standing iron press from 1870 made by R. Hoe & Co. (New York/London). This press came to us by way of Steve Robinson of Letterpreservation in Indiana. According to documentation accompanying the press, it was used to publish the Spanish-language daily newspaper El Cronista del Valle (The Chronicler of the Valley) in Brownsville, Texas (which according to other sources, began publication in 1917 with extant issues possibly only from 1924, and 1927-30?). The same document – apparently from a publication at the University of Texas (for which I’m still trying to confirm a citation) – indicates that this press was purchased by Bishop’s Print Shop in Brownsville in 1915 “to use as a proof press in his commercial print shop.” It also notes that the press was used to produce El Cronista del Valle “for many years” prior to mentioning Bishop’s acquisition of the press creating some vagueness about the timeline. At first I took that to mean that the paper used it prior to Bishop but if indeed the paper began in 1917, would mean that it was used for that publication while in Bishop’s Print Shop unless there are issues with the reported timeline and chain of custody. Apparently the press was then acquired in 1944 by the University Library at the University of Texas at Austin. I’m not sure of it’s story from that point until 1979, when then Associate Professor Don Davis of the Graduate School of Library Science at UT wrote to the director of the UT Printing Division, Walter Neal, stating that “The library school presently has an early Hoe hand press and we are in the process of establishing a small laboratory press for student use.” He then went on to inquire if the Printing Division could loan the Graduate School of Library Science the necessary equipment and supplies for this lab. This letter provides a clear window into this press’s history as well as a personal connection for me as a graduate of that program.* Even more interesting to me is knowing that this press was connected to the library at UT and was being used to create a lab for students and now, 45 years later, the same press is starting a new, similar chapter at the Baylor Libraries. I’m still working on the press’s story between this letter in 1979 and its journey to Indiana before arriving back in the heart of Texas this week. Stay tuned!
* The University of Texas’s Graduate School of Library Science was founded in 1948. In 1980, the name was changed to Graduate School of Library and Information Science and then again, shortly after I graduated in 2000, to the School of Information.
Since the spring, a lot of my thinking and energy has been devoted to the development of an exciting new endeavor in the Baylor Libraries – the creation of the Book Arts and Letterpress Lab. The spring and this summer have been busy developing the space (on the first floor of Jones Library) and the concepts behind this space. Part of this journey was attempting to articulate the What and the Why of this idea. Often when people learn about the Book Arts and Letterpress Lab that we’re building, the response is in ONE or BOTH of the following camps:
“That’s amazing! When do we start?” and “What does this have to do with libraries?”
To set the stage for my musings on the Why, I want to share with you a couple questions that I think about a lot that help shape my thoughts on this topic – questions I would encourage you to think about from your own perspectives on your work and what you do.
What do we want this place to be known for?
What things are happening here in the libraries that manifest the role of research and engagement on campus?
To preface why we’re starting this lab, I want to first talk about “library as place.” I’m using the word “place” to mean the intersection, interconnection of geographical and philosophical spaces and opportunities (think events, workshops, collaborations, teaching/learning moments, and conversations (formal and informal).
I see library as a place:
for community and creativity
for experimentation and collaboration
of belonging and flourishing
to engage with ideas and with others
for active learning and transformational education
In earlier centuries, we might define library as the repository of humanity’s recorded communication. Some might argue that this is still the definition, but as we think about the miles of shelves full of printed matter, I would suggest that these artifacts are, in and of themselves, the final iteration of creative practice – a record of someone’s research, documentation, poetry, novels, or ideas. And in an academic library especially, these recorded ideas — these artifacts — are part of a larger, ongoing iteration as others engage with, refute, support, or build upon them.
The books and journals that sit seemingly static on the shelves are both the result of creative practice and are building blocks for more creative practice. These materials as well as all the recorded information that exists online, reflect this same activity of creative practice, though the practice might be invisible.
This is why you’ll see visible signs of other kinds of creative practice throughout the Baylor Libraries (like in galleries and exhibition spaces and makerspaces), to remind us that creative practice comes in many different forms and the library is a perfect reflection of that, not just a storage facility.
It’s a place that illuminates and celebrates all forms and stages of scholarship and creative practice. This is precisely why I believe makerspaces make perfect sense in libraries and the new Book Arts and Letterpress Lab is another example of that – with clear historical connections to the history of recorded communication and creative practice with which libraries have always been connected.
So why are we creating a Book Arts and Letterpress Lab?
In addition to the reasons listed above, I think the creation of this lab is also a response to the university’s focus on transformative educational experiences for Baylor students. I would add that I think it’s just as important that this focus also creates ripples that even the rest of the community can benefit from as well.
The vision for the lab is to:
Support the integration of literacies and active learning experiences into the curriculum – specifically in the technologies and histories of communication, printing, and the book,
Serve as a working model of printing practice and history that ushered in a pivotal chapter in the creation, documentation, and dissemination of knowledge and human expression, and
Serve as an experiential lab where users can create their own expressions rooted in the rich heritage of the book and printed communication and a place to learn about the history and craft of book arts and letterpress printing.
Some have asked (for various reasons) why this lab isn’t in the art department. It’s a great question and the art department could certainly support such a creative space, but such a space in the art department would be for art students. Creating this lab in the library puts it on neutral ground and makes the resources and opportunities available to the entire Baylor community and students of all disciplines, just like all the other spaces and services of the University Libraries.
My hope for this lab is that it provides all of the expressions in the above vision for the lab, but also serves as another window to how the library can provide tools and spaces for manifesting the role of research, engagement, and creativity on our campus.
POST SCRIPT
I want to share a story of the naming of this new adventure that I think really reflects what we’re seeking to create. Initially I thought we should name it something like “The Center for Letterpress and Book Arts” as this space will provide the tools and experiences in letterpress printing and other realms of book arts. After mulling over this potential name, my colleague Jeffry Archer (Dean of University Libraries, Museums, and the Press) said [something like], “I was thinking about the word “center” and to me it implies a place to learn about something and that doesn’t quite capture what I think you’re trying to create here as a place for “doing” rather than just learning about.” We talked about how the word “studio” seems like more of a label you would see if this were in an art department and then said, “What about this — you know how you might have a physics class where you go to a lecture hall and learn ABOUT physics, but then you go to the physics lab where you actively DO experiments (the practice and work of what you learned about)? What if we use the word “lab” to reflect the idea that this is an active space. Not a museum on the history of printing or the book or book arts, but a place where people will be actively creating?” I thought this was brilliant! (not just because he’s my boss!) I really do like how the word “lab” embraces the act of practicing what you’ve learned about as well as the experimentation I envision for this space. A place to learn, experiment, practice, and create.
My friend and colleague Jane Carlin, former Library Director at Collins Memorial Library at the University of Puget Sound, just had an article published the recent issue (vol 85 no 5 (2024))of College & Research Libraries News (Association of College and Research Libraries). “The Power of Artists’ Books: Catalysts for Creative Thinking Across the Curriculum” looks at the impact of remote and hybrid experiences in education and ways to increase engagement through the use of primary source materials.
Students want and need to connect with one another and with course content in meaningful and innovative ways. Teaching and pedagogy literature abounds with examples looking for ways to engage students and create a sense of belonging.
Our advice is to advocate for the use of unique primary resources in the classroom. The use of primary source materials provides students with a hands-on, haptic experience, away from the screen or mobile electronic devices. When students work with primary sources, whether historical or contemporary, they make a connection with the artifact. In this article, we explore our use of one type of primary source material, artists’ books, as a tool for student engagement.
Artists’ books in the classroom – and really in any setting where people can engage with them – provide rich opportunities to explore artistic expression and commentary. We are called to engage kinesthetically in this art, and through the works of these artists, we are called to be active participants in the unfolding of their voices and messages. Just as these artists challenge our notion of art and book, they also challenge us to think in new ways about ourselves and our world.
Recently I received an email from a student who graduates this semester that reminded me that you never know how the work you do and the small decisions you make can a profound impact for someone else. Over the course of my work as a librarian, I founded and curate a collection of artists’ books (started nearly 20 years ago). This collection is used heavily to create hands-on, interactive experiences for students in courses in a wide variety of disciplines. The excepted emails below are from a studio art student about a work they encountered earlier in their experience but came around full circle in an art history course this past semester. What I love about this email is that it’s not about me – not about something I taught or some memorable way I talked about something – it’s just about one particular artist’s book that I collected….one that really never struck me as anything significant (probably more a commentary on me than on the work!), but made a difference to this student.
Here’s what they shared in the email:
“As my time at Baylor is coming to a close, I have been more and more reflecting on how my art has changed through the years. My work is heavily centered around found imagery and when thinking back to where that interest came from, I realized it was the book arts collection! My sophomore year, I saw [title/artist]. I had never before seen anyone use collage and the archives in a fine arts context and it really opened my eyes to a new possibility. Ever since then, I have been working in collage and found imagery and even created my own digital archive. I would not have taken this direction with my work if it weren’t for the book arts collection, it has had such an impact on me. I just wanted to share with you my love for the book arts!”
I’m grateful to be involved in meaningful work, especially work that might seem small or insignificant on the surface and I’m grateful for the time this student took to shine a light on how those little things can ripple out beyond our control to influence the world.
This academic year has seen a number of really exciting collaborations with courses and the Baylor Libraries Special Collections. There are many more than the ones I’ll talk about here, but these are the ones in which I’ve been directly involved. Just during this year, I worked with over 1400 students in 43 different instructional settings, some of these were research related, but many were about incorporating engagement with our special collections. This work is at the heart of creating transformative educational experiences for Baylor students and has made such an impact that students write glowingly about these sessions on their course evaluations- sometimes months after the experience! As a library administrator, I’m very fortunate to be able to hold onto the opportunity to still be a practitioner librarian. It brings me a lot of joy and reward, even though it often makes for a much busy and chaotic schedule.
Over this past year, I’ve had the distinct pleasure of working with my colleague Jane Carlin, who recently retired as Library Director of the Collins Library at the University of Puget Sound in Tacoma, Washington. She and I worked together on an essay that appeared in a 2023 exhibition catalog for a show at Collins: “Artists’ Books Do Change the Conversation.”. Changing the Conversation: Artists’ Books, Zines and Broadsides from the Collins Memorial Library Collection and another essay we’ve recently submitted for publication (stay tuned!) entitled “The power of artists’ books: catalysts for creative thinking across the curriculum”. This past summer I had the wonderful experience of jurying the exhibition Dreams: an International Juried Exhibition of Book Art with Jane and Erin Mickelson of 23 Sandy Gallery. Visiting with Jane and Erin in Tacoma and installing this show was a highlight of the summer. While there, I also had amazing visits with many Puget Sound artists.
While the pandemic has been difficult in many ways, it also provided space for reflection and renewal and sparked many new art works and projects for me including calligraphic, musical, and artist’s books.
Several of my artist’s books created over the last year have been selected for a variety of exhibitions, including invitational and juried shows, both national and international.
