DESIGNER BOOKBINDERS LECTURES Spring 2013
The Art Workers Guild, 6 Queen Square, London WC1
Nearest underground stations: Holborn and Russell Square
Admission: DB members & full time students £5, non-members £7, per lecture
Further details from Mark Cockram: 0208 563 2158 / studio5bookarts@aol.co.uk
WILLEM de BRUIJN Tuesday 5th February 2013 6.30pm
‘OUTSIDE THE TEXT’: SOME DECORATIVE ENDPAPERS IN THE ARCADIAN LIBRARY
This evening’s illustrated lecture will concentrate on Willem’s research into (and work on) decorative endpapers. As librarian of the Arcadian Library, Willem is able to combine his interest in making with access to rare historical material and will aim to highlight some decorative endpapers that he considers of special interest in this unique collection. He will also talk about the way in which this research feeds into his practice as an editor and designer of some academic publications.
Willem’s background is in architecture. He completed a PhD in History and Theory of Architecture at the Bartlett School of Architecture, UCL, in 2010 (his MSc in Architecture was obtained from Delft University of Technology). His doctoral thesis looks at books and their making with specific reference to the exchange of knowledge between architecture and alchemy during the early seventeenth century. In this context he coins the term ‘book-building’ to denote the way in which authors, publishers and craftspeople collaborate in the construction of a book. As part of his research, he undertook to learn basic skills in bookbinding at Morley College. Willem has since tried to integrate an amateur’s love of binding and paper decorating with in-depth research into historical material and with the design of academic publications (primarily for the Bartlett School). He is happy to cover these varied facets of his practice and try to show how they relate, with an emphasis on the role of decorative endpapers.
The Arcadian Library is a private, family-owned library focusing on the shared cultural heritage of Europe and the Arab World. For further information, please visit www.arcadian-library.com
