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literature

A Week at Rare Book School

1.

A Week at Rare Book School
Stewart Plein
Visiting Staff Librarian
Rare Books and Archives
WVU College of Law

2.

In Memoriam
Sue Allen
August 2, 1918 – August 25, 2011

What is Rare Book School?
• RARE BOOK SCHOOL
(RBS) provides
continuing-education
opportunities for
students from all
disciplines and levels
to study the history of
written, printed, and
born digital materials
with leading scholars
and professionals in
the field.

4.

Where is Rare Book School?
• Thomas Jefferson’s
University:
• The University of
Virginia,
• Charlottesville, Va.

5.

University of Virginia Campus

6.

Campus

7.

Campus

8.

A little background please?
• Terry Belanger, the founder
of Rare Book School, a UVA based institute that supports
the study of the history of
books and printing, rare book
librarianship and related
subjects including
typography, binding,
illustration, the regulation of
the press, publishing history,
the geography of reading and
book collecting. The school
attracts about 300 people
each year from around the
world to study at UVA.

9.

And now – for something
completely different!
• Michael Suarez, the
new director of RBS,
continues the
historical, traditional
approach to book arts,
but he is also
integrating courses
that approach the
study of the book with
an emphasis on the
modern and practical.

10.

It sounds interesting but . . .
just what exactly
Do you Do
at
Rare Book School?

11.

Well, we do a lot of this . . .

12.

And a lot of this . . .

13.

And some of this . . .

14.

What is he doing and what does
he see?
• Examining illustration
techniques.
• Looking closely at the
technique used to
create the illustration
we can determine the
type of illustration,
the manufacturing
method and time
period.

15.

Looking for clues, searching for
evidence . . .
• Evidence that
points to
provenance.
• Examining
marginalia.
• Evidence of the
sewing structure.
• Evidence of
purchasers.

16.

What are they looking at?
The Paper!
• By looking at paper we can
determine it’s origin. If it’s
made from flax, it’s France or
England, if it was made with
wool , it’s from Germany.
• We can examine the
watermark to learn what
firm produced the paper and
where it originated.
• We can examine the chain
lines, the lines created by the
wire mold used to make the
paper to see how the page
was folded in order to make
the book.

17.

There is much more to be
gained by simply looking at a
book than there is by actually
reading one.

18.

NPR
Students Get Up Close
And Personal With Rare Books
Sandy Hausman
http://www.npr.org/2011/07/17/137824808/students-get-up-close-and-personal-with-rare-books

19.

I want to go! What do I do first?
• Browse the website:
http://www.rarebookschool.org/schedule/
• Select a course:
• Law Books: History & Connoisseurship
• Look up the instructor: Mike Widener,
Head of Special Collection, Yale Law
Library.
• Note the date: 13-17 June 2011

20.

The Application Process
http://www.rarebookschool.org/applications/RBS_Application_2011-10.pdf
• Applying for Rare Book School is much
like applying for college. Beside the
usual information, such as name and
address, you will be asked to provide
employment information and a personal
statement. The personal statement is
very important.

21.

Personal statement
Make it count!
What’s your motivation?
What experience do you have?
What will you bring to the course?
What do you hope to gain?
How will this experience enrich what you do and
how do you plan to use what you’ve learned?
• Classes are limited to 10 – 12 students.
• The instructor reads all personal statements.
• Instructors selects students from the applicant pool
they believe will add the most to the class and/or
will receive the most from class attendance.
In essence - You are hand picked!

22.

What’s next?
• Tuition: $1,095.00.
• Accommodations: dorm or hotel?
• Travel : Plan to arrive on Sunday evening.
Classes begin 8:30 am Monday.
• Food: Breakfast is provided, lunch and
dinner on your own.

23.

Accommodations:
The Lawn

24.

The Lawn

25.

The Lawn

26.

Class Preparation
• The Preliminary Reading List
• http://www.rarebookschool.org/reading/binding/b90/
• Websites
• Online Exhibitions
• It is expected that each student will read
the designated materials and to have
browsed any websites in order to fully
participate in class discussion.

27.

Other courses meeting at the
same time:
June 13-17, 2011
1. Intro to the History of Illustration
2. Type, Lettering & Calligraphy, 1450-1830
3. Provenance: Tracing Owners & Collections
4. Teaching the History of the Book
5. Law Books: History & Connoisseurship

28.

A Typical Day at Rare Book
School
• 8:30 – 9:00: Course Goals
• 9:00 – 10:00: Book as physical object
• 10:00 – 10:30: Coffee break!
• 10:30 – 12:00: Terminology
• 12:00 – 1:30: Lunch!
• 1:30 – 3:00: English law books to 1700
• 3:00 – 3:30: Coffee break!
• 3:30 – 5:00: English law books since 1700.

29.

Evenings
•Lectures
•Movie Night
•Bookseller
Night!!!!

30.

Classes I have attended:
1. Publishers’ Bookbindings 1840 – 1915
2. Descriptive Bibliography
3. Special Collections Librarianship
4. Law Books: History and
Connoisseurship.

31.

Publishers’ Bookbindings
Sue Allen

32.

Publishers’ Bookbindings
• An examination of
book covers
manufactured through
a stamping process
that used heavy force
to imprint the design
and apply gold leaf
and color ink to a
book’s binding after a
design was created by
an artist.

33.

What did I learn and how have I
applied it?

34.

Descriptive Bibliography
• An introduction to the physical examination and
description of printed books, especially of the period 15501875. Designed both for those with little previous formal
exposure to this subject and for those with some general
knowledge of the field who wish to be presented with a
systematic discussion of the elements of physical
description.
• A major part of the course will consist of small, closely
supervised laboratory sessions in which students will
practice the determination of format and collation and the
writing of standard descriptions of signings and
pagination. In daily museum sessions, students will have
the opportunity to see a wide variety of printed books and
other materials drawn from the extensive Rare Book
School laboratory collections.

35.

What did I learn?
• Processes of book manufacturing that
guided book workers, such as the
method of marking pages so that binders
could assemble the book correctly.
• The purpose of catchwords.

36.

Catchwords

37.

Signature
• A letter, number, or
symbol placed at the
bottom of the first
page on each sheet of
printed pages of a
book as a guide to
the proper sequence
of the sheets in
binding.

38.

Special Collections Librarianship
• An introduction to the principles and practice of
special collections librarianship, including current
issues, standards and best practices
• Topics include developing physical and digital
collections; access and preservation; exhibitions,
outreach and instruction; physical facilities and
security; ethics and donor relations; collaborations
and partnerships.
• The course is designed for those with an interest in
special collections librarianship but no prior formal
coursework, and beginners are welcome.
• In their personal statements, applicants should
describe any relevant training, education and
experience; and how the course fits into current
responsibilities and career goals.

39.

Special Collections Librarianship
• What did I learn and how do I use this
knowledge in the workplace?
• Working with donors,
• Handling copyright issues,
• Planning digital exhibits
• Creating exhibitions

40.

Law Books History &
Connoisseurship
• Aimed at individual book collectors and librarians.
The course surveys printed and manuscript legal
materials and introduce its bibliography and
curatorship.
• The objective of the course is to acquaint collectors
and librarians with the tools and techniques needed
to form focused collections. Particular attention will
be paid to planning collections in light of intended
use and availability of materials and funds.
• In their personal statement, prospective students
should describe briefly their knowledge of legal
history and bibliography and their (or their
institution’s) collecting and/or research interests.