Course Information:

Title: Book Arts Summer Workshop, ART 342 30238 / EPC 582 60307

Credits: 3.00

Dates: Summer 2024: Monday, July 8 – Friday July 19

Meeting Times: M-T-W-R-F from 9:00am – 5:00pm

Location: Portland Campus – Luther Bonney 424 (Campus Map)

Instructor: Annie Lee-Zimerle

Prerequisite(s): ART 241 and successful completion of the Foundation Portfolio review, or permission of instructor. Email Annie Lee-Zimerle at aemin.leezimerle@maine.edu to request permission.

The Summer Book Arts Workshop is a two-week intensive course that will introduce students to the foundational skills of creating artist’s books and items related to the book arts. Students will learn from USM faculty and visiting artists the techniques that give them insights into design, history, and the aesthetics specific to book arts. Each student creates an artist’s book for a September exhibition in USM Glickman Library on the USM campus.

This course may be taken multiple times as the workshop changes each summer.

Additional Course fee: $250

COURSE REQUIREMENTS: 

  • Completed prerequisite ART 241 OR received instructor permission to add the course.
  • Students attend all 10-day (two-week) class sessions on the Portland Campus.
  • Students Complete One Book after the Workshop as a Final Project to be exhibited on the 6th floor of Glickman Library during the months of September and October.
  • Attendance to the opening reception/lecture of the exhibition early September.
  • Failure to complete projects by the end of the semester will result in a failing grade.  


REQUIRED ESSENTIAL TOOLS: (For every class, and every day have this kit with you)

  • X-acto knife and blades or a knife with break away blades or Olfa knife (small, with snap-off blades), and supply of replacement blades
  • 12”-18” Metal Ruler-preferably stainless steel / non skid
  • Self-Healing Cutting Mat about 12” x 18” (Classroom has some to share.)
  • Pencil & Eraser
  • Notebook
  • Scissors
  • Bone Folder
  • Glue brushes: white Bristle brush 1-1.5” and .5” small flat bristle brush for glue (inexpensive chip brush, about $1.50 each)

DAILY WORKSHOP SCHEDULES:

Monday, July 8 – Wednesday, July 10

  • Korean Papermaking: Joomchi and Beyond with Jiyoung Chung

Thursday, July 11 

  • Gel Plate Printing and Folded Book Variations with Anna Low

Friday, July 12

  • Coptic Bookbinding with Anna Low

Monday, July 15

  • Metamorphosis Book: Carve and Print with Stephanie Stigliano

Tuesday, July 16

  • Suminagashi Marbling and Side-Sewn Book Workday with Stephanie Stigliano

Wednesday, July 17

  • Paper Engineering with Sarah Marcella Parella

Thursday, July 18 

  • Drum Leaf Binding with Sarah Marcella Parella

Friday, July 19 

  • Creating and Presenting with Annie Lee-Zimerle

WORKSHOP INFORMATION

DESCRIPTIONS, ARTISTS BIOS, & ADDITIONAL SUPPLY LISTS: 

Monday, July 8 – Wednesday, July 10

Students will discover its history, practice, and role in Korean society, as well as learn the hands-on techniques and reinterpreted adaptations into a contemporary art form. Joomchi creates strong and painterly textured surfaces by layering and agitating Hanji (Korean mulberry papers). Its usage is diverse and can be incorporated into surface design, collage, new ways of drawing, or wearable, unconventional body ornaments. Joomchi can also be used as 2D and 3D sculptural objects that are functional or fine art-oriented.

ADDITIONAL SUPPLY LISTS will be provided to the registered students.

Jiyoung Chung is a Joomchi artist, painter, and freelance writer who shows her works nationally and internationally. She has developed an innovative method for utilizing a traditional Korean method of papermaking called Joomchi into a contemporary art form. Jiyoung (B.F.A., Painting from RISD, and M.F.A., Print/Media from Cranbrook Academy of Art) has had numerous solo shows in Korea, the U.S.A., Australia, France, Finland, Romania, and the UK. In 2010, she curated the Int’l Korean/ American Joomchi show for European Patchwork Meeting in France, later toured in Korea (2010/2011/2014/2016) and in America (2012, 2015). She authored a How-to-Do book titled Joomchi & Beyond. She was awarded several times; including ‘Gold Award’ by Smithsonian Craft Show, Washington, DC (2019), ‘Award of Excellence’ by American Craft Council/Baltimore show (2012) and Adrianna Farrelli Prize, and ‘Excellence in Fiber Art’ by Philadelphia Museum of Art Craft Show (2012). Her works are in the permanent collections of Fidelity Corporate Art Collection, Boston, and Museum of Art & Design, NY.  

Thursday, July 11 

We’ll start the day by playing with gel plate printing using plants, stencils, textural objects, and torn paper to make layered prints. These prints can be abstract color studies or focused on simple shapes or silhouettes. When we have a stack of prints to play with, we’ll use them to make a series of simple folded books including an x book, pants book, and snake book.

ADDITIONAL SUPPLY LISTS: 

  • Textured objects like leaves, string, thread, mesh produce bags, bubble wrap…
  • Gel Plates, (8 x 10” or larger)
  • Plexiglas for plate to sit on

Anna Low’s formal education is in photography and art education, with a BA from Hampshire College, a year studying at Speós – The Paris Photographic Institute, and a MA in Art Education from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. After many years of teaching, first in the Chicago Public School System and then running an art department at a private school in Rhode Island, she made the leap to full-time artist. She now focuses her energies on bookbinding and is the creator behind Purplebean Bindery, a business focused on creating unique, durable and inspiring blank journals. To satisfy her endless creative itch, she makes artists’ books using a variety of printmaking and photographic processes. She also teaches workshops in bookbinding. Her photographs and artist books have been exhibited throughout New England and published in several periodicals, including Maine Magazine. Her home studio is bright and sunny, in Auburn, Maine. When not in the studio, Anna is out in her vegetable garden, snowshoeing through the woods with her husband and sassy rescue mutt, or traveling to far-flung islands.

Friday, July 12

The Coptic binding stitch is ancient, functional, and decorative, and allows for amazing contemporary binding options including different cover materials, page paper, and the size of a finished book. We’ll make two books. Our first book is practice, focused on hand-stitched binding. In the second book, we’ll recycle a hardcover book, using the covers as a base for building a blank journal.

ADDITIONAL SUPPLY LISTS:

  • Hardcover Book (to cut up), no larger than 9” in any direction (old/found hardcover book)
  • Awls
  • Paste brushes and a container (for glue/water)

Monday, July 15

This project combines a reduction linocut with an accordion fold structure. The blocks will be printed in black ink on a Woodzilla portable press. Students will carve and print sequential proofs. These will be joined to form a metamorphosis book that shows the transformation across six pages.

Stephanie Stigliano contributed to a limited edition book inspired by Susan Roney-O’Brien’s poem, The Edge of the Ocean, which was displayed at  Zea Mays Printmaking in Florence, MA. Her book, Current Events, was included in Building Books at The University of Southern Maine. Together with three other artists she produced an artist book, Four Women for Freedom,  created for the FREEDOM Project exhibition shown at the Book Art Museum / Fundacja Correspondance Des Arts in Łódź in 2023 and is now part of their permanent collection. Her books were included in Page Turner at ArtsWorcester and Fresh Ink: Contemporary Explorations in Printmaking at the Umbrella Arts Center in Concord, MA, fall, 2023. In June of 2024, Bromer Booksellers of Boston, MA hosts an exhibit of her books and prints. She co-founded New England Book Artists. Stigliano teaches Making Prints/Making Books at Boston College. 

Tuesday, July 16

This project introduces Suminagashi marbling, a non-toxic technique inspired by ancient processes from Japan, Korea, and China. The students will marble paper and use it for the covers and end papers of the Side-Sewn bound book they create. This structure is also known as a Stab binding or Japanese Binding.Stephanie Stigliano 

ADDITIONAL SUPPLY LISTS:

  • Plastic pint container with a lid

Wednesday, July 17

Paper engineering always carries a “wow” factor. It looks impressive to the viewer and daunting to the maker. However, no matter how complex the paper engineering gets, most “pop-up” or movable book structures start with some very basic techniques. In this class you’ll learn a number of simple techniques that build on each other, giving you a toolbox for building movable designs. In the first half of the day, we’ll go over techniques including triangle and parallel folds, stages, supports and pull tabs. In the second half of the day, we’ll put your new skills to use to create a spread or two of movable scenes. Bring your creative ideas!

ADDITIONAL SUPPLY LISTS: 

  • Glue stick or double-sided tape 
  • Spring divider (optional; if you own one, please bring it.)

Sarah Marcella Parella is the proprietor of Pimento Press, a division of Olfactory Gleanings. She is also the Book Arts Workshop Program Manager at Dartmouth College Libraries, in Hanover NH and advisor for MFA students at the Center for Cartoon Studies, in White River Junction VT. Sarah received her MFA in Book Arts/Printmaking at University of the Arts in Philadelphia. She teaches letterpress printing, bookbinding and occasionally printmaking, illustration and graphic design. She taught at Maryland Institute College of Art, Massachusetts College of Art, Endicott College, Simmons College and Montserrat College of Art, where she helped create a letterpress printing studio and BFA concentration in Book Arts.

Sarah produces books, broadsides and comics in the realm of nonsense and absurdity. Her work is often letterpress printed, involving her writing and drawings, and relief printed imagery. Her work can be found in many collections such as Printed Matter, MoMa Artist Book Collection, The Kohler Art Library, University of Wisconsin, Boston Public Library, The Art Museums at Harvard University, and Yale University.

Thursday, July 18 

The drum leaf book is a popular structure for book artists. It’s a book that works well with fairly thick papers such as printmaking or watercolor papers. This makes for a terrific sketchbook when working with ink washes or watercolors. It also allows for text/images to be placed across the gutter of the book without interruption. We will make book models in the beginning of the day, discussing variations on the structure and creating a cover. You’ll also learn some illustration techniques such as stenciling, carving rubber stamps and other low-tech methods of image-making to incorporate in your book. In the latter part of the day, you’ll have a chance to explore the structure and mark-making techniques with your own papers and ideas.

ADDITIONAL SUPPLY LISTS:

  • Any extra materials for mark-making 

Friday, July 19

Students will work on their final project and/or dummy books for the final project. We will have opportunities to review and share work in class through individual and group critiques and presentations.

Annie Lee-Zimerle is an associate professor and faculty director of the Kate Cheney Chappell Center for Book Arts at the University of Southern Maine.

ADDITIONAL SUPPLY LISTS:

  • Bring materials that you would like to use for the final project and/or dummy book(s).

Questions about the workshop?

Please email Annie Lee-Zimerle, the faculty director of the Summer Book Arts and the Kate Cheney Chappell Center for Book Arts, at aemin.leezimerle@maine.edu.

Registration Dates

  • Current USM/UMS students: March 1 & 2
  • Open Registration*: March 3
  • For Information on Registration Click Here

*Registration continues up to the first start date of a course.

Summer 2024 Registration Options:

When registering for undergraduate/graduate academic credit, participants may choose to receive a grade or to audit the course. Auditing means that the participant is enrolled in the course for academic credit but will not receive a grade.

Costs for participation include full workshop participation, undergraduate tuition, university fees, and some course materials. Participation in the September student exhibition and attendance at the September public lecture is required for all those who wish to receive a grade. In order to complete this course for full academic credit, you must design and make an artist’s book inspired in some way by your week in the program.

Undergraduate course code: ART 342 60238

  • Visit Undergraduate Student Financial Services for tuition & fees based on residency: In-State residents, NEBHE residents (NEBHE states include: New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island.), Out-of-state residents.
  • Additional Course fee: $250
  • Payment for summer is due on or before May 13, 2023.

Costs for participation include full workshop participation, graduate tuition, university fees, and some course materials. Participation in the September student exhibition and attendance at the September public lecture is required. In order to complete this course, you must design and make an artist’s book inspired in some way by your week in the program.

  • Graduate Students Only: In addition, you will write a research paper on some aspect of the week-long program.  For instance, you might write about the history of printmaking, or on a particular book artist, binding, and/or Artist’s Books. This will also be due on or before September 6, 2023.

Graduate course code: EPC 582 60307

  • Visit Graduate Student Financial Services for tuition & fees based on residency: In-State residents, NEBHE residents (NEBHE states include: New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island.), Out-of-state residents.
  • Additional Course fee: $250
  • Payment for summer is due on or before May 13, 2023.

Maine residents 65 and older are eligible to apply for a Senior Citizen Tuition Waiver. The Senior Citizen Tuition Waiver covers tuition, unified fee, and the summer administrative fee. Individuals must be a Maine resident, 65 or older, and registered for undergraduate academic credit. Learn more about USM’s Senior Citizen Tuition Waiver.