Inky Fingers

Organized by Brian Hannon.

Works by small & fine presses.

Brian Hannon, former Executive Director of the Center for Book Arts and curator of this exhibition, said of the exhibit: “…The history of printing is inherent in this exhibition of contemporary, printed books. All of the works in some way acknowledge the traditions of printing and typography to convey the ideas of the artist and recognize the authority of print. Some, however, purposely undermine that authority or use it to impact ironic or whimsical notions. In each book, there is a unique emphasis on either the text, image, subject, or book structure that transcends the usual expectations regarding printed works. These bookworks confirm that printing remains an eloquent form of expression for artist who have the character and talent to transform this mechanical universe into one of ideas and beauty.”

Support for the Center for Book Arts’ visual arts programming is provided, in part, by the New York State Council on the Arts, with the support of Andrew Cuomo and the New York State Legislature, and by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council.

Exhibition Checklist:

Libretto (1993)
Artist: Typography students.

Manifold Tales (1993)
Artist: Typography class. Tyvek folded binding.

The Uncommon Perspective of M.E.J. Colter (1992)
Lynne  Avadenka
Letterpress printed on hand made paper. 16 printed pages. Accordion and pamphlet binding.

Frosting (1991)
Meg  Belichick
Paper, board and caulk.

Counting (1994)
Susanna  Bergtold
Printed by Earl Kallemeyn, Kallemeyn Press, bound by Nicholas G. Yeager. Letterpress printed in three colors.

Flatfishes of the Hudson River Estuary, The; Owls of the Hudson River Estuary; Terns of the Hudson River Estuary; L’Etat de Fourire: Various Island Postal Services; L’Etat de Fourire: Mirages de Mer (1993)
Helen  Buttfield
Watercolor, color laser prints, letterpress printing. Number of pages vary depending on each book. Hand sewn bindings with soft covers.

Beans (1991)
Marylee  Bytheriver
Letterpress with linoleum block prints.

El Sol y Los de Abajo (1992)
Carolee  Campbell
Author and artist: Jose Montoya. Letterpress with wood type on title page. Modified accordion binding.

Satanic Loves (1994)
Margarita Becerra  Cano
Letterpress printing, photographs, handmade paper, mixed media.

#2 Capital Letters (1992)
Martha  Carothers
Author: Beatrice Warde; born and died, 20th century. Laserprinter, bound in cloth covered boards.

Good War, Bad Peace (1991)
Martha  Carothers
Letterpress, LaserWriter, pencil and hand-stamping. Bound in cloth covered boards.

Song of Songs (1991)
Maureen  Cummins
Unknown author, illustrated by Maureen Cummins. Letterpress with hand-colored woodblock prints. Accordion bound into purple covers of Japanese silk.

The Lark (1993)
Guy  Davenport
Printed by Barry Magid/Dim Gray Bar Press, Author & Artist: Guy Davenport. Letterpress with illustrations. Case binding with illustrated Sekishu dust jacket.

If There Weren’t So Many of Them You Might Say They Were Beautiful (1992)
Barbara  de la Cuesta
Author & Artist: Barbara de la Cuesta. Tom Tolnay of Birch Brook Press cast the type for this book on a Monotype system and printed it on 80 lb. Mohawk Vellum Text in Black Marvel ink. Linocuts are printed in Superior Sepia. A V-45 Miehle vertical was used for the text. Type on the cover was set by hand and printed on a 10″ x 15″ Chandler & Price.

Selected Discourses Regarding War and Peace (1993)
Elsi Vassdal  Ellis
A collection of quotes illustrated by Elsi Vassdal Ellis. Linoleum cuts, zinc cuts, letterpress with lead and wood type. Non-adhesive binding using a German Medieval chain stitch.

Picture Alphabet (1993)
Dikko  Faust
Art by E.K. Smith & Dikko Faust, and K1 students from PS 234. Letterpress with wood type, metal type and styrographs.

Travelog Map & Guide (1994)
Dikko  Faust
Artist: Esther K. Smith & Dikko Faust; Illustrator: Jessie Hartland. Letterpress with photo engravings and hand set type. Bound folded in wrapper.

Mr. Bear’s Song (1994)
Fiona  Garrick
Letterpress printed, hot metal type, copper engravings, archival papers, and hand marbled endpapers. Handbound in leather with a slipcase.

Poet in Cuba (1992)
Christine  Le Goff
Text by Rene Depestre. Handmade paper and museum board. Case binding.

Alchemical Lion (1991)
Jim  Lee
Text by Jesse Glass. Letterpress, offset and silkscreen printed with woodcuts. 10 panels. Co-published with Brandywine Workshop.

Bologna Sample (1992)
Angela  Lorenz
Lithograph, watercolor, cord handle. 4 folding sheets of card, 8 pages of text. Bound to appear as a decorator’s sample book.

Pandora’s Hieroglyphic Primer (1992)
Angela  Lorenz
Silkscreen and handcolored on cotton, buttons sewn on. Bound with a safety pin.

Lizards (1992)
Jim  Machacek
Book featureing original alphabet sentences set in 18 pt. Gil Sans in one directin and 14 pt. Litho Roman in the other, with engraved illustrations. The cover image comes from a passage on the natural history of reptiles found in a Czechoslovakian textbook inherited from the Machacek grandfather.

Lina Tsipin Poems (1994)
Mikhail  Magaril
Poems by Lina Tsipin, artist: Mikhail Magaril. Cyrillic language text letterpress printed with photo engravings. Accordion binding with leather covers.

The Lark (1993)
Barry  Magid
Printed by Barry Magid/Dim Gray Bar Press, Author & Artist: Guy Davenport. Letterpress with illustrations. Case binding with illustrated Sekishu dust jacket.

Numbering the Days of Eternity (1994)
Ruth  McGurk
Letterpress and colored pencil. Non-adhesive long stitch binding.

Towers (1992)
David  Moyer
Letterpress with wood engravings.

Loxahatchee, Everglades, Florida (1992)
Denise  Mullen
Letterpress with polaroid transfer photos. Embossed leather bound accordion fold binding.

The Anti-Warhol Museum (1993)
Bonnie  O’Connell
Printed offset. Star shaped concertina binding with reverse fold inner concertina. Co-published with Nexus Press.

Nebraska (1991)
Bonnie  O’Connell
Author: Ron Hansen; Artist: Karen Kunc; Cover art, head and tail pieces: Bonnie O’Connell. Letterpress with multiple color woodcuts. Two section pamphlet stitch binding.

Happy Accidents (1993)
Richard  Pardee
Intaglio, relief, collograph, chine colle, photo engravings, wood and metal type on handmade paper.

The Sun in the Road (1990)
Sarah  Plimpton
Aquatints and letterpress. Loose pages housed in a box.

John Donne: a fragment (1993)
Robin  Price
Author: John Donne, born 1572, died 1631. Artist: Robin Price. Letterpress with monotype prints. Accordion style binding over boards.

Street of Crocodiles (1990)
Nina M.  Schneider
Text by Bruno Shulz, died c. 1942, designed and printed by Nina Schneider, title page illustration by Jean Butterfield. Letterpress printed. Linoleum cuts and foundry type. Single signature binding with dust jacket.

the Blind Men and the Elephant (1994)
Carol  Schwartzott
Author: John Godfrey Saxe; born 19th century; Artist: Carol Schwartzott; Printed by: Anthony Amendola. Hand-colored paper. Deluxe edition with wooden box.

Lizards (1992)
Genie  Shenk
Book featureing original alphabet sentences set in 18 pt. Gil Sans in one directin and 14 pt. Litho Roman in the other, with engraved illustrations. The cover image comes from a passage on the natural history of reptiles found in a Czechoslovakian textbook inherited from the Machacek grandfather.

Trains (1993)
Steven  Stankiewicz
Etching, hand bound.

If There Weren’t So Many of Them You Might Say They Were Beautiful (1992)
Tom  Tolnay
Author & Artist: Barbara de la Cuesta. Tom Tolnay of Birch Brook Press cast the type for this book on a Monotype system and printed it on 80 lb. Mohawk Vellum Text in Black Marvel ink. Linocuts are printed in Superior Sepia. A V-45 Miehle vertical was used for the text. Type on the cover was set by hand and printed on a 10″ x 15″ Chandler & Price.

Acrophony (1991)
George A.  Walker
Handmade paper, board, letterpress printing, woodcuts, linocuts, and compact disc. Housed in a box.

Specialist (1993)
James  Wintner
Text by Robert Sheckley, illustrations by Susanna Bergtold, letterpress printing by Jerry Kelly, etching by Nathan Kanovsky. Letterpress and die cut with line cut engravings. Photoetched aluminun cover.

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