Volume 9, Number 5
Sep 1985

Events in the News

• From February to April this year, at the University of Iowa Museum of Art, Bill Anthony's exhibit "The Art and Craft of Bookbinding" was on view. Susan Spring Wilson gave it an enthusiastic review in the July Fine Print, saying that the exhibition of about 60 books "traced the development of bookbinding with actual examples of early bindings, but, more unusual, by means of modern models of historical book forms and structures, most of them created especially for the exhibition by the Conservation Department." She found herself "drawn again and again to the historical models which were left uncovered so that one could view the underlying structures, the endbands, and lacing-in of the boards." Cutaways were also used for the modern fine binding part of the exhibit. There was a display of models for limited edition binding, including some nonadhesive structures.
• The Washington Conservation Group, in Washington, IC, usually schedules what they call a "three-ring circus once a year with simultaneous meetings in different rooms for specialists in paintings, objects and paper. This year they tried a different approach: on three separate days in July, they met in members' homes or studios. The paper conservators met on July 16 at Marian Dirda's home for a pot luck supper and an informal discussion on light bleaching.
• An exhibition entitled "Keeping Harvard's Books: Preserving Information, Conserving the Artifact" opened in the main lobby of Widener Library at Harvard University August 5 and runs through October 10. Conservator Doris Freitag organized the exhibition, which covers the microfilming of fragile material; book repair and restoration; paper treatment; hand bookbinding; styles of binding; "enemies of books"; protective wrappers, boxes and folders; library binding; and books and periodicals in the field of preservation and conservation.
• The program for the Society of Archivists' meeting in Warwick September 3-6 includes lectures on: New bindings and old books; Conservation of leather bindings; Training for archive conservators; Analytical techniques and paper conservation; a systematic approach to solvent choice; Exhibitions and the safe handling of books; and Protection against light damage. Registration for nonmembers was £95 or about $73.
• At Gregynog in Wales, September 4-6, the National Library of Wales held its second conference on conservation, called "Keeping the Word." for information on next year's conference write the National Library of Wales, Aberystwyth, Dyfed 5Y23 3BU, Wales.
• ICCM the Australian counterpart of the AIC, will have its 1985 conference in Perth Sept. 28-Oct. 6. One day will be devoted to conservation of paper and photographic materials and there will be a session on "the use and conservation of information storage and retrieval systems." Guy Petherbridge will give a workshop on leafcasting Oct. 4-6, and Mark Nizet one on photographic materials Sept. 28-29. Registration deadline was Aug. 30.
• At the GBW Seminar on Standards of Excellence in Bookbinding Nov. 1-2 at the Bellevue-Stratford in Philadelphia, the speakers will be:

  Bill Anthony: Covering a fine binding in full leather
  David Brock: Tool sharpening
  Jerilyn Davis: Rebacking cloth bindings
  Hedi Kyle: Expandable piano-hinge album, and pamphlets and small books

  All attendees will be able to hear all the speakers. Although it is open to nonmembers, members will be given preference, and many are applying. There will be a reception the evening before at the Library Company. Fee for members: $60. For more information call 215/546-2465 and speak to Jennifer Woods.

• One of the dozen or so regional conservation centers in the U.S., the Intermuseum Conservation Association, is giving a symposium for museum directors and curators October 21-22, entitled "Making Informed Conservation Decisions." About half of the papers are at a general enough level that they are relevant to book and paper conservation too, e.g.:

  The cost of conservation: What price excellence? - Thom Gentle
  Curatorial options in the conservation of paper collections: How to get the most from your investment -Lois Olcott Price
  The ultimate decision: Selecting a conservator - Round table discussion co-chaired by Evan Turner and Arthur Beale

  Registration is $100. Write Intermuseum Laboratory, Allen Art Building, Oberlin, OH 44074.

• About 100 directors of national libraries from around the world will meet in Vienna next April 7-10 for a conference on library preservation that will have a large didactic component. In a way, it will be like the first of the three seminars given by the AlA and LC jointly, on April 29, 1983, for library directors and associate directors, in that it will bring them up to date on the problem and ways of addressing it. They will also hear about IFLA's new core program for preservation and conservation which will be launched soon, and which these directors will play a part in carrying out, presumably.
• Classes are given in bookbinding and a variety of bookbinding-related subjects at the Canter for Hook Arts in New York City, the Creative Arts Workshop in New Haven, the Pacific Center for Book Arts and elsewhere, practically constantly. The Editor regrets that it is not always possible to announce them in the Newsletter.