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Inspiration comes from many sources. For this exhibition, students in my fall, 2007, class, Artists’ Books: Concept, Content, Form, at Mills College were inspired by their visit to the Book Club and its rich and diverse library. During their visits, each student chose one book that particularly caught her attention, then created her own artist’s book based on ideas gleaned from the source book. Not surprisingly, books by W.A. Dwiggins proved to be especially popular with the students, but they found many books to be evocative sources for their own inspired bookmaking.
The goal of the project was not to copy the books but to identify aspects of them—concept, content or form—that could become embarkation points for new work. In some cases the connections are obvious, in others less so. Evoking the actress Scarlett Johansson from Dwiggins’ Towards a reform of paper currency, for instance, requires a certain leap of faith on the part of the viewer. There are sly references (see especially Epytolloc) or results that challenge both artist and viewer (creating a visual book with no text, images or color). In every case the student book has become a highly original artwork in its own right, proudly taking its place beside its source of inspiration. The students also wrote the wall statements, collected, formatted and mounted labels, sorted through Club holdings for the historic Eucalyptus Press materials, installed the exhibition, designed the post card and participated in every aspect of the project. I would like to thank them collectively for their extraordinary work that extended well past the usual requirements of the course. Lara Durback printed the postcard; we all thank her for her good work.
The inspiration for the exhibition came from the wonderful staff of the Book Club, who opened the doors of the Club to this exploration. I would like to thank Lucy Rodgers Cohen for her inspired leadership, Catherine Mutz for so carefully and diplomatically guiding us all through the process, and Barbara Land for her generosity and her prescience in choosing such stellar examples from the Club’s library. Without them my students would never have had this unique opportunity to work and exhibit in these inspiring surroundings.
Kathleen Walkup
Professor of Book Art
Mills College
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Eucalyptus Press
Professor Rosalind Amelia Keep wrote that at Mills College, “Students could have an opportunity to take courses in typography and learn much about printing that would in later life make them sensitive to good and bad type, paper, printing, [and] binding."1
The Eucalyptus Press was founded by Professor Keep in
1932. It was closed in 1949 with 110 titles in its bibliography. This volume of work is remarkable when we consider that all of these were undertaken essentially by Miss Keep alone. She worked in the evenings after her days at the college, where her jobs ranged from Alumnae Secretary to Assistant Professor of English, Professor of Printing, and Director of Publications.
Miss Keep herself bought the equipment for the press, starting with a Washington hand press, and kept it outside her office until 1933 when it was moved to her studio. The studio was housed in Eucalyptus House, named for its location, which was "situated in the midst of a beautiful grove of these trees planted years ago by Miss Keep's father."2
"The booklets and broadsides issuing from the Press are characterized by restraint of design, simplicity and clarity, daintiness and femininity.”In addition to the output of hand-bound books and paper-covered booklets, there were Christmas cards, broadsides that were given to graduates as mementos, and other ephemera including club programs, social stationery, and even sets of cookie recipes. The contents of the studio were bequeathed by Miss Keep to Mills in 1958 and housed in the Art Department. The type and presses lay in a state of neglect until 197 4 and the intervention of then Special Collections Librarian Lynda Corey Claassen. She resuscitated the press and raised funds for the bindery; soon after that classes were renewed.
Together the Eucalyptus Press and the Florence Walter Bindery make up the Book Art Program at Mills, which flourishes under the leadership of Kathleen Walkup, with the help of Assistant Professor Julie Chen and Special Collections Librarian Janice Braun.
1. Lynda Corey Claassen. "Notes on the Eucalyptus Press, Then and Now." Quarterly Newsletter of the Book Club of California. Vol. XLIII, No.3, Summer 1978.
2. Helen R. Blasdael. Eucalyptus Press Bibliography.
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The Five Machines of Storage
Molly Bower
 I first realized my interest in Artists' Books when I started
to discover the challenges in communication they can create. To many artists, the artist's book is the ultimate way of making a personal communication to the reader. I try to take advantage of that and challenge it in my work. Themes in my work often explore the difficulty of communication, and artists' books provide the opportunities I need to approach that topic. In my books I try to use a variety of methods to express content instead of relying on text. By working this way I can focus on the subtle interactions people have with books.
Inspired by: The Dwiggins Marionettes; a pictorial record of W.A. Dwiggins’ experimental theatre
Author(s): Abbe, Dorothy.
Publication: Massachusetts, 1964 |
Carrefour
Kimi Taira
 Based on the type specimen pages of Tangible typography, Carrefour explores the idea of experiencing a book focused on touch instead of sight. Most books rely on the printed word as a vehicle for information because there are general assumptions about the reader: he or she can see, is literate, has a moderate vocabulary, etc. This book experiments with compositions of rectangles in conjunction with a series of textural variations and asks the reader to feel the changes instead of simply "reading" them. Instead of presenting ideas attached to words, Carrefour is about the unique physical dialogue with each reader.
Inspired by:
Tangible typography: or, How the blind read
Author(s): Johnson, Edmund C. (Edmund Charles) Publication: London, J. Whitaker, 1853
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No Strings Attached?
Katherine Frey
 I was inspired by the Dwiggins Marionettes book to create my own puppet book. I sought to combine the idea of puppetry with something that is relevant today. I wanted my book to be a combination of my past and present interests, a modern spin off. I have chosen to portray three governments that were turned into puppets by others. The first book shows how President George Bush is a puppet of Dick Cheney. The second is the relationship between the United States and Ngo Dinh Diem. The last book is about the United States involvement with Islamic groups in Afghanistan. For this “Inspire Me” book I stamped each page with a red confidential stamp to make the overall look be very CIA and top secret.
Inspired by:
The Dwiggins Marionettes; a complete experimental theatre in miniature
Author(s): Abbe, Dorothy. Dwiggins; W.A.
Publication: New York, Abrams, 1970
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The Heart Is My Current Obsession
June Coryell
 My work is about the tangible validation of noticing and appreciating the beauty of the little things in life - the precious nature of small collected objects and innocent memories. I am constantly challenging myself to find new and unique ways of looking at and appreciating old ideas that have lost meaning in their repeated and familiar use. In all of my artwork, be it bookmaking, writing, or photography, I strive to convey a certain urgency and longing for connectedness that I believe all humans possess, but have somehow forgotten how to express outside of themselves. I attempt to be brave and say the things that no one will say; I don't shy away from developing personal connections to viewers through intimate revelations and putting my vulnerable truths on display for everyone to see. I feel there is always a purpose for this kind of art, always a place for these feelings. I prefer to stick close to the hand-made element, and my art often comes across as a precious collection of objects that I am presenting to my viewers for their intellectual and emotional consideration. I like to think of the things I make as secret presents - tiny charms of personal thoughts and feelings represented by colors and textures that I am offering to anyone who is brave enough to take home and make one’s own.
Inspired by: Bradley, His Book
Author(s): Bradley, Will
Publication: Massachusetts, Wayside Press,1896
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Towards a Reform of a Celebrity’s Face Particularly in Point of Its Design
Jennie Ottinger
 I chose to respond to W.A. Dwiggins' book Towards a reform of the paper currency, particularly in point of its design. I was amused by his academic yet catty tone. He presents his opinions without pulling punches and offers more effective alternatives. With his extensive vocabulary and straightforward style, his criticisms have authority. This might be polarizing if it weren't for his wry sense of humor providing levity and perspective. I was inspired to analyze something rather inconsequential and treat it seriously.
The design problem I decided to tackle is Scarlett Johansson's face. According to my extensive research, she is in fact only mildly attractive on her best day. Despite this, she is promoted as one of the most beautiful women in Hollywood, the same Hollywood populated by the likes of Angelina Jolie, Natalie Portman, Halle Berry, Lindsey Lohan (I am speaking about appearance, not comportment), and Wynona Ryder among countless others. I propose that, due to the efforts of the media and publicists, we have been fooled into believing she is beautiful. It is propaganda and it must be stopped.
Inspired by:
Towards a reform of the paper currency, particularly in point of its design
Author(s): Dwiggins, W.A., Rogers. Bruce.
Publication: New York, 1932
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 EGGY
Gina Tuzzi
My book EGGY was made in response to D.W. Dwiggins' book, Towards a reform of the paper currency, particularly in point of its design. In his text he mentions how modern currency is a direct reflection of the inhabitants of its country, with its design choices in no way controlled by its people but instead by their government.
I decided to have a similar approach with my book by making 4 notes of currency for the incoming residents to my hometown, Santa Cruz, California, a community rich with localism.
Inspired by:
Towards a reform of the paper currency, particularly in point of its design
Author(s): Dwiggins, W.A., Rogers. Bruce.
Publication: New York, 1932
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An Autobiography in Color
Danica Collins
 As an artist and as a person, I am new to the medium of book arts, but I have found that my work in this field is a way for me to explore my obsession with color and memory. Throughout my life I've considered memory and color dependent on one another. The color printer. A treatise on the use of color in typographic printing by John Franklin Earhart introduced me to a standardized way of recognizing and mixing colors. I have used the system described in his book as a way to define the colors that represent some of my memories.
By assigning these colors both my own autobiographical titles and numbers from Earhart's book, I want to convey that color is both emotionally and physically descriptive. I also find it a little absurd that these colors, holding so much personal value, can be classified by a numbering system. Can memories be standardized in this way? And furthermore, can color actually be so accurately mixed? Can colors, like digits in a math equation, always come out to the same result? Color, like memory, fades over time, but with a standardized system, it can be retrieved.
Inspired by: The color printer. A treatise on the use of colors in typographic printing
Author(s): Earhart, John Franklin.
Publication: Cincinnati, Earhart & Richardson.1892
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Heroine
Cat Lyons
 With this book project I wanted to summarize and capture everything that has happened during this difficult semester. I did
this by asking each of my friends to write a poem. The content of the poems is very diverse. Some are about adventures a friend and I have had; a lot of the poems are about things we've all had to go through, either together or alone. Others are about spiritual experiences. The name of my book is Heroine because I feel as if I have had to be a heroine this past semester with everything I have overcome. If art should express and reflect who you are at the time and what you are experiencing, this book does that for me.
Inspired by:
The Little Garden of Gloria Stuart
Author(s): Poe, Edgar Allan
Publication: S.L.: D'Ambrosio. 1986 |
The Prince and His Worm
Aurora Arding
 The Prince and His Worm is based on a true story. It attempts to explore the psychological and social ramifications of addiction and incest. I have used the Grimm's fairy tale model and the rule of three to illustrate how psychological trauma at an early age can develop self-destructive behaviors that follow the victim into adulthood if not recognized and treated.
I took advantage of the same set structure as Edward Gorey's toy theatre. The collage effect is an echo of his aesthetic, and functions as the surreal visual voice that runs parallel to the written narrative. I have incorporated mismatched and cartoon-like qualities in order to bring a child-like atmosphere and thus a sense of the disturbing.
Inspired by:
Edward Gorey’s Dracula: A toy theatre
Author(s): Edward Gorey
Publisher: Pomegranate Communications, Rohnert Park CA. 2002
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 Feel, Dream, Memory
Amber Connelly
Inspired by:
The Dwiggins Marionettes; a complete experimental theatre in miniature
Author(s): Abbe, Dorothy. Dwiggins; W.A.
Publication: New York, Abrams, 1970
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Epytolloc
Terri Northcutt
 Epytolloc is an embodiment of the artist's experience with Collotype: being a history, practicum, bibliography. This work focuses on the confusion that arose from not understanding the content of the book and the mystery surrounding a nearly obsolete process of printing. This work mimics Collotype in structure, but bypasses the content by creating false information for an imaginary machine. In doing this, the artist is trying to recreate the confusion for the viewers while capturing their interest through structure and material.
Inspired by: Collotype: being a history, Practicum, bibliography
Author(s): Steven Chayt; Meryl Chayt
Publication: Winter Haven, Fla.: Anachronic Editions, 1983
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Antiquated Systems
Samantha Giles
 Among the many things that I found striking about the book Tangible typography was that the various systems other than Braille that had been perfectly constructed and documented are now almost completely unknown. This got me to consider the notion of creating a record of antiquated systems.
Human beings are currently causing the greatest mass extinction of species since the disappearance of the dinosaurs sixty-five million years ago. Particularly startling is the current state of the marine environment, once thick with strange and largely unseen creatures, now a graveyard of over-fishing and chemical dumping.
This work attempts to negotiate the idea of representing animals that are recently extinct, while also exposing the larger systems that work for and against our connectivity with these creatures. The images are those of marine animals that are now completely lost to us forever. The text works to wrangle with the web that ties our culpability and our complicity with the complexity of co-habitation and co-extermination. The hide-and-reveal construction of the text and images allows the reader to continue to reckon with the continual collective and individual disappearance of each of these creatures.
Inspired by: Tangible typography: or, How the blind read
Author(s): Johnson, Edmund C. (Edmund Charles) Publication: London, J. Whitaker, 1853
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45 Books on the Frontier
April 21-June 17, 2008
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October 29th -January 29th – “The Book Art of Edward Gorey,”
Viewing hours: Mondays 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.,
Tuesdays through Fridays 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
For more information call 415 781-7532
Edward St. John Gorey (1925-2000): master of the book art. Although he is most recognized for the animated introduction to PBS-TV’s Mystery! Series, Gorey wrote, illustrated, or designed over 500 books of disparate subjects and diverse formats. He collected books, too. The books that he absorbed through work and recreation became the basis of his creativity, and he paid homage to them throughout his near 50-year career.
From the Collection of
Malcolm & Karen Whyte |
September 10 - October 22nd – “The Club’s Publishing Program: A Selection of Notable Books and Keepsakes.”
The Club’s publishing endeavors began in 1914 with Robert Ernest Cowans’ A Bibliography of the History of California and the Pacific West 1510 – 1906. They continue today through its 222nd book and a variety of keepsakes. The Club “promotes the interests of discriminating readers, book artisans, collectors, scholars, and libraries through the creation of books of fine design and high quality printing that will be read with pleasure and owned with pride.” The exhibition will reflect this statement. |
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