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In January of 2022, I began a new phase in my
work as as print maker and multiform artist.
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As a result, my vision for smallPress/handmade
- and how I could better serve the community of
Wordsmiths - expanded and transformed into what I call
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the Chapbook as a "Work of Art"
Above: (Center) 4"x6" hard bound chapbook of original poetry; steel pins; hand-set stamp and hand-printed boarder; (R) hand-set letterpress poem that inspired the theme of the chapbook on an 5.5"x8.25" single sheet of aged paper with hand colored illustration; (L) hand wrapped chapbook in an aged paper envelope tied with jute string.
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Beginning: A simple, intimate portfolio design and an attractive 4"x6" over all size. Upper (L) Raw, 2-ply cardboard template; (C) Single, printed aged paper cover sheets; (R) Inkjet printed page; bottom row preliminary sizing of the pages on the chapbook.
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Chapbook cover: (L) Black card stock
(R) Interior cover: designer wallpaper
from high-end sample books.
Below: Laying out pages and corresponding images. (L) Single sheet, one side per poem inkjet printed on Crane's off-white vintage paper; (R) hand-cut, original inkjet images were placed on one side of a single page.
Top: Three of ten books compiled
and ready to bind.
Finished binding, above and below:
Butterfly pins finished with brass washers secured the book. Designer wallpaper and gold ink roller stamp accented the back.
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Binding a thirty-two page chapbook.
Below: After the cover, pages & images were arranged, I decided to bind the book with gold, steel pins by drilling holes through the cover and inserting three, well placed pins.
Experimenting with electricians tape: Above right & right.
Below: The electricians tape was perfect for hinging the spine of the book to the front cover. Flexible yet very strong - and it nicely accents the front interior.
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Single pages for both poems and images.
Top: See-through vellum dust cover.
Set of four, completed chapbooks
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Typeset letter press block for the poem that inspired the theme for
the chapbook "Yearning for the Good" - Hildegard of Bingham -
Hildegard's "Yearning for the Good" as a single typeset page:
Above (L): Goudy 18pt hand-set letterpress type block with boarder embellishments. (R) "I am..." is the refrain throughout Hildegard's poem that speaks of All Creation "yearning for good."
(L) A preliminary impression to discern the consistency and uniform of each letter. Under (L) Detecting a "rogue" letter that was replaced.
Below (R) After replacing letters, realigning and inking the block, finishing touches with color pens and silver inks.
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"Yearning for Good"
Chapbook as a Work of Art
Chapbook with letterpress poem start-to-finish: Twenty-four, six-hour days.
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The "Chapbook as a Work of Art" is an available option in the months of January - April only.
Note that I can only create one work per month as I give my full attention to your work.
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All fees, materials & time is included + an edition of ten (10) chapbook, ten (10) handset poems of one selection with embellishments and hand coloring on aged sheets; packaging and shipping:
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3000.
I will be happy to make payment arrangements.
Please give me three months notice if you are considering a chapbook edition as a "Work of Art"
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