Only a block or two away from the New York Public Library for Humanities and Social Sciences, the Morgan Library was (thankfully) a very easy place to find. Even better, it’s a great place to find a variety of street vendors to get a quick lunch from. Anyway, once inside the museum library, my mind went into architectural overload. It felt as if I was passing through different time zones as we went from the bright, extremely modern glass lobby to the dimly lit rooms of painted ceilings and marble floors. I feel that the architect’s intention to give the lobby the same atmosphere of an Italian piazza actually succeeds in a strange way. Just as Italy’s piazza’s encompass both old and new, so does the Morgan Library, for it contains an interesting balance of past and modern times. Seriously, where else could one view both a Gutenberg Bible and the works of Bob Dylan in one place?
Speaking of the exhibits, throughout our tour, I felt as if I was in bibliophile heaven. Being able to see William Blake’s Songs of Innocence was absolutely amazing in my mind. I’ve seen pictures of his hand made plates before, but never the real thing. They’re so intricately and uniquely designed, that I didn’t even have to read the label below the book to know who had written it. Blake’s poetry wasn’t the only thing that excited me in that room. It seemed like every time I went to the next display case, I found something that completely wowed me, whether or not I was familiar with the work. From miniature books, to Alice in Wonderland, to Babar sketches, to old Tarot cards, that single room seemed to contain enough to keep me in there for hours.
It was also interesting to see Morgan's library. As I read the titles in the locked shelves, a part of me wished that I was a rich entrepreneur in Industrial America so I could have my own cool library. What really amazed me though was when we spotted a first folio of Shakespeare just sitting on a shelf in Morgan's private study. On one level, it was just dumbfounding to think of what it would be like to actually own it, to have one of the most rare and sought after editions in the literary world in your possession, just sitting on your shelf like it's no big deal. On the other hand, it was also amazing to think about just how much money his shelf of Shakespeare editions cost. Just two books alone could account for over 2 million dollars! I wasn't merely staring at a literary masterpiece, but a small fortune. Most of all, it disappointed me that it wasn't on display. Perhaps it was because of conservation issues.
When it comes to conservation, the Morgan Library seems to be on the stricter end of the scale. Only graduate students and scholars are allowed to use the library, and only if they have 1) a recommendation and 2) an interesting topic. I can understand their concerns though, because a majority of their materials are hundreds of years old. Perhaps the New York Historical Society's library can afford to be more lax with their materials, for the history of our country isn't very old in comparison to that of Europe. Therefore, it's only natural that the librarians at the Morgan are more concerned about their books, for they want to ensure that they will be around for future generations to see as well.
Friday, October 27, 2006
The Woman Behind the (fabulous) Morgan Collection!
Our trip to the Morgan would not be complete without my sharing the remarkable story behind the great Morgan Collection, a story that few people know! (But everyone should!)
While Mr. JP Morgan was out running and saving the world financially, he, of course, had a personal librarian managing and creating his collection for him. That woman's name was Belle da Costa Greene. And she was a woman of color!
(Stop and think about that again, this is the early, early 20th century we're talking about folks!)
This incredible woman had the most amazing and enviable life. JP would send Belle (in style of course) all around the world to purchase the rare treasures we saw today.
Her past is cloaked in mystery, and there is a theory that she "passed for white" to make it into, and survive in, the high society world she traversed. Very little is written or known about her. She was very strategic is covering her own personal background tracks, and burned all of her letters, papers, etc. before her death. As the old saying goes, those without a past have no future, and this seems to also be her fate. Many of her latter day admireres are desperate to know more about her, but alas there is very little surviving information.
Here is an entry on her from Wikipedia:
(Have a look at the Wikipedia entry to see some amazing images of her...I'd rather like to fancy myself as the "Second Coming of Belle Greene!") :)
Belle da Costa Greene
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Belle da Costa Greene (December 13, 1883 - May 10, 1950)
Librarian to J. P. Morgan and after his death she became the first director of the Pierpont Morgan Library.
She was born Belle Marion Greener in Alexandria, Virginia where she grew up until her parents separation. Her parentage has often been clouded with mystery. Her father was a distinguished attorney Richard Theodore Greener who served as dean of the Howard Law School and was the first black undergraduate at Harvard University graduated in 1870. Her mother changed their name adding "da Costa" while claiming a Portuguese background to explain their darker complexion and moved to Princeton, New Jersey. The cost of a college education out of the question, she began working at the Princeton University Library.
J. P. Morgan had in 1902 engaged Charles F. McKim to build him a library to the south of his Madison Avenue brownstone as his collection already was too large for his study. To manage his collection he hired her as his personal librarian in 1905. She would spend millions of dollars not only buying and selling rare manuscripts, books and art, but she traveled lavishly and frequently at times it is said taking her thoroughbred horse with her for rides in Hyde Park. She has been described as smart and outspoken as well as beautiful and sensual. While she enjoyed a Bohemian freedom, she also able to move with ease within elite society. "Just because I am a librarian," she reportedly announced, "doesn't mean I have to dress like one." She wore couturier gowns and jewels to work.
Not only did her bearing, style and seemingly unlimited means attract notice, but "her role at the Morgan Library placed her at the center of the art trade and her friendship was coveted by every dealer." The power that she wielded for many years was unmatched for 43 years. Her goal she told Morgan, who was willing to pay any price for important works, was to make his library "pre-eminent, especially for incunabula, manuscripts, bindings and the classics."
J.P. Morgan left her $50,000 and $10,000 a year for life, which at that time was a significant sum. Asked if she was Morgan's mistress she is said to have replied "We tried!" Although she never married, her known most lasting relationship was with Bernard Berenson whose biography mentions his wife's "reluctant acceptance (at times)" of their relationship.
She retired in 1948 and died in New York City two years later at 66 years of age.
Images:
Photo of Belle da Costa Greene by Clarence White, 1911
Painting of Belle da Costa Greene by Paul César Helleu ca. 1913.
References
John Steele Gordon, "J. P. Morgan's Accomplice", American Heritage, September, 1999, p.22.
Jean Strouse, Morgan: American Financier (Random House, 1999).
Cheers, and bon weekend,
ASH
NY Historical Society, Intima Press, and the Gutenberg Bible - Adrianna Borgia
New York Historical Society
After a 30 minute ride on the C train, I emerged from the subway to find that the weather had gotten worse while I was underground. Luckily for me though, my destination was only a short block away. Unlike the Hampden-Booth Library, the New York Historical Society wasn’t a small, hidden little building. Rather, it was large, and extremely easy to find (especially since the name was printed on the building. Being early, as usual, I took the opportunity to dry off as I waited for other people to arrive. If it had not been such a gloomy day, I felt that I would have had a nice view of the park (as opposed to the view of Gramercy Park I had at the Hampden-Booth, which I was only able to glimpse at through the iron fence that bordered it). Overall, the area seemed very open and public, especially with the large population of tourists wandering the streets.
Once inside the museum’s library, I felt that it was very similar to the New York Public Library on 42nd street. Like the research library, one has to ask a librarian to get a book off the shelf for them. Despite this small degree of restriction, the room still seemed to give off a comfortable aura of openness and access. I felt at home in a way, like I do when I enter most major public libraries.
The librarian who greeted us further increased my sense of ease. As soon as we walked in, she greeted us with a big smile and urged us to take a seat in front of the numerous old treasures she had set up for us. Not only did she fully explain each manuscript that she had brought out, but also how to find them and other materials in the library using Bobcat. When she mentioned this, I felt slightly embarrassed that I had never bothered to notice the New York Historical Society link on the Bobcat connect page. Although I’m familiar with Bobst and the New York Public Library System, I never really thought about other research libraries that I could use to find information.
What amazed me even more was that we were allowed to touch and interact with the materials that she brought out. As I looked through each book, I felt like a small child who had been allowed to touch something valuable in a museum. It was then that I truly realized that I was in a totally different environment than at the Hampden-Booth. Although both libraries are concerned about the conservation of their materials, they both go about it in different ways. While the Hampden-Booth seems to take the more “we’ll keep it safe and hush hush” approach, the Historical Society was more open with their documents, going so far as to have a full catalogue of their materials online. These thoughts about conservation were an afterthought though. At the moment, all I could think was “ooo…I can touch things! Cool!” (Yes…I’m easily amused; I’m not ashamed of it).
My experience there was such a pleasant one, that I really would like to go back there in a week or two to conduct some of my research for my final paper. With such a friendly staff, as well as reasonable access policies, how could I not? I would really like to look more into their materials about performances, and of course, the collection of Shakespeare’s plays with those wonderfully morbid woodcuts. Most of all though, I think it would be a nice change to do my research in a library other than Bobst or the NYPL.
Intima Press
Being lucky enough to live two blocks away from a 6 train station (Spring Street), I initially thought that I would have no problems at all getting to the class on time. As it turns out, I was only half right. Although I arrived at Union Square at exactly 9:05, it would be another half an hour before I would find Mindy’s studio. Feeling like a tourist in a neighborhood I thought I knew well, I reluctantly asked three people for directions to 2 Union Square East, getting a different answer each time. During my half hour of confused wandering, I was lucky enough to run into Orianna and Michelle, making me feel less alone in my search. After three calls, I finally got in touch with Mindy, who told us that she was at 32 Union Square, not 2. Thankful to learn that we weren’t completely hopeless with directions, we quickly made our way to the studio, where we found Parisa and Mindy waiting for us.
Once we were all settled, Mindy gave us a condensed history of printmaking, from cave drawings to moveable type. One important point that she stressed was that the development of Gutenberg’s printing press with moveable type was truly a large achievement, for it meant that books could be produced more quickly and distributed more widely than those that were handwritten. If a person wanted to find a book on a certain subject, they could simply buy one rather than copy a handwritten volume manually. Also, during this short talk, she showed us a few examples of printed works to illustrate that print should be “three dimensional.” Unlike the materials produced by modern laser printers, works produced by a printing press have a physical depth to them, which gives them an aesthetic appeal.
Afterwards, once we had quickly decided whose sonnet to print (Parisa’s selection, Sonnet 116), Mindy took us into the main part of the studio where we became acquainted with the printing press, the California Job Case, and the composing stick. Once we became familiar with the job case as well as how to hold the composing stick, we each began to complete a line or two from the sonnet. Although it was meticulous work, I found myself having fun putting the letters and words together on the composing stick precisely for that reason. It made me appreciate how technology has made it so much easier to print materials. Despite my lifelong love of books, literature, and writing, I realized that I had always taken printed works and laser printers for granted. If people wanted to print a book or a broadside, they had to use this method, which seems crazy to many people in our modern, fast paced society. If you make a mistake on a word processor, it’s a simple action of deleting and re-writing. However, when we were editing the mistakes in our sonnet (replacing an apostrophe with a comma, adding a period, etc), it was a more difficult and meticulous process. As much as I love works printed with a printing press and think they‘re absolutely beautiful, at the same time, I’m glad that I didn’t have to write my reaction paper using one.
The most satisfying part of the workshop was when we got to print the final copies of the sonnet ourselves using the printing press. Even though it was only a few lines of poetry, I still felt like I had accomplished something when I looked at what I had printed. My only other printing experience was on the last day of my medieval art summer class in fifth grade. The last project we had to do involved carving a stamp out of linoleum square, inking it, and pressing it. I never got to the inking and pressing stage thought because I had to get three stitches on my left thumb due to a carving accident. I really enjoyed my experience at Intima Press because not only did I not cut open any of my fingers, but I was also able to actually finish a printing project and feel satisfied with the results.
Gutenberg Bible
After checking out a book for my research paper from the Donnell Library on 53rd street, I walked down a few blocks to the New York Public Library of Humanities and Social Sciences to see the Gutenberg Bible exhibit. Being a literary geek, I had been to the main library many times before, thus guaranteeing a smooth trip there. After the confusion of trying to find Intima Press the day before, it felt good to be able to find something easily.
Once I had reached the exhibition room on the third floor, it took me a few minutes before I realized where the Gutenberg Bible was hidden amongst the larger exhibit about the history of male fashion. Although it seemed lonely and out of place amid the displays of dandies and pictures of frilly collars, I still found myself staring at it for a good ten minutes. After having to set a line and a half of type the other day, I felt that I could truly appreciate the work that went into producing this bible. It also made me realize again how much we take printed editions for granted. As others walked by the display case, they merely saw it as an old book rather than one of the biggest achievements of its time. They would stare at it for a few seconds, say “oh, how nice, an original Gutenberg Bible,” and walk away. These words are a stark contrast to those of the European agent of James Lennox, the man who gave one of the remaining Gutenberg Bibles to the U.S. in 1847. As the Bible passed through customs, Lennox’s agents demanded that the customs officials remove their hats upon viewing it. Living in a modern world, I guess we’re just a little spoiled when it comes to printed books.
One thing that always bothers me just a tiny bit when I look at books in display cases is that I only get to see two pages of the entire book. It’s not so much that I can’t touch it, but that I can’t see it in its entirety. There’s always a part of me that wonders what the other pages look like, what images and words they hold, especially illuminated works. However, at the same time, I do understand that it’s more of a question of preservation than of my personal curiosity. With only 48 remaining copies remaining in the world, I do realize why one cannot be put at the mercy of the public to touch and examine. In the end, I was simply content to be able to look at one of the greatest masterpieces of mankind through a glass panel, after which I walked across the hallway to check out a book from the research library, thus appropriately ending my weekend of books and printing.
After a 30 minute ride on the C train, I emerged from the subway to find that the weather had gotten worse while I was underground. Luckily for me though, my destination was only a short block away. Unlike the Hampden-Booth Library, the New York Historical Society wasn’t a small, hidden little building. Rather, it was large, and extremely easy to find (especially since the name was printed on the building. Being early, as usual, I took the opportunity to dry off as I waited for other people to arrive. If it had not been such a gloomy day, I felt that I would have had a nice view of the park (as opposed to the view of Gramercy Park I had at the Hampden-Booth, which I was only able to glimpse at through the iron fence that bordered it). Overall, the area seemed very open and public, especially with the large population of tourists wandering the streets.
Once inside the museum’s library, I felt that it was very similar to the New York Public Library on 42nd street. Like the research library, one has to ask a librarian to get a book off the shelf for them. Despite this small degree of restriction, the room still seemed to give off a comfortable aura of openness and access. I felt at home in a way, like I do when I enter most major public libraries.
The librarian who greeted us further increased my sense of ease. As soon as we walked in, she greeted us with a big smile and urged us to take a seat in front of the numerous old treasures she had set up for us. Not only did she fully explain each manuscript that she had brought out, but also how to find them and other materials in the library using Bobcat. When she mentioned this, I felt slightly embarrassed that I had never bothered to notice the New York Historical Society link on the Bobcat connect page. Although I’m familiar with Bobst and the New York Public Library System, I never really thought about other research libraries that I could use to find information.
What amazed me even more was that we were allowed to touch and interact with the materials that she brought out. As I looked through each book, I felt like a small child who had been allowed to touch something valuable in a museum. It was then that I truly realized that I was in a totally different environment than at the Hampden-Booth. Although both libraries are concerned about the conservation of their materials, they both go about it in different ways. While the Hampden-Booth seems to take the more “we’ll keep it safe and hush hush” approach, the Historical Society was more open with their documents, going so far as to have a full catalogue of their materials online. These thoughts about conservation were an afterthought though. At the moment, all I could think was “ooo…I can touch things! Cool!” (Yes…I’m easily amused; I’m not ashamed of it).
My experience there was such a pleasant one, that I really would like to go back there in a week or two to conduct some of my research for my final paper. With such a friendly staff, as well as reasonable access policies, how could I not? I would really like to look more into their materials about performances, and of course, the collection of Shakespeare’s plays with those wonderfully morbid woodcuts. Most of all though, I think it would be a nice change to do my research in a library other than Bobst or the NYPL.
Intima Press
Being lucky enough to live two blocks away from a 6 train station (Spring Street), I initially thought that I would have no problems at all getting to the class on time. As it turns out, I was only half right. Although I arrived at Union Square at exactly 9:05, it would be another half an hour before I would find Mindy’s studio. Feeling like a tourist in a neighborhood I thought I knew well, I reluctantly asked three people for directions to 2 Union Square East, getting a different answer each time. During my half hour of confused wandering, I was lucky enough to run into Orianna and Michelle, making me feel less alone in my search. After three calls, I finally got in touch with Mindy, who told us that she was at 32 Union Square, not 2. Thankful to learn that we weren’t completely hopeless with directions, we quickly made our way to the studio, where we found Parisa and Mindy waiting for us.
Once we were all settled, Mindy gave us a condensed history of printmaking, from cave drawings to moveable type. One important point that she stressed was that the development of Gutenberg’s printing press with moveable type was truly a large achievement, for it meant that books could be produced more quickly and distributed more widely than those that were handwritten. If a person wanted to find a book on a certain subject, they could simply buy one rather than copy a handwritten volume manually. Also, during this short talk, she showed us a few examples of printed works to illustrate that print should be “three dimensional.” Unlike the materials produced by modern laser printers, works produced by a printing press have a physical depth to them, which gives them an aesthetic appeal.
Afterwards, once we had quickly decided whose sonnet to print (Parisa’s selection, Sonnet 116), Mindy took us into the main part of the studio where we became acquainted with the printing press, the California Job Case, and the composing stick. Once we became familiar with the job case as well as how to hold the composing stick, we each began to complete a line or two from the sonnet. Although it was meticulous work, I found myself having fun putting the letters and words together on the composing stick precisely for that reason. It made me appreciate how technology has made it so much easier to print materials. Despite my lifelong love of books, literature, and writing, I realized that I had always taken printed works and laser printers for granted. If people wanted to print a book or a broadside, they had to use this method, which seems crazy to many people in our modern, fast paced society. If you make a mistake on a word processor, it’s a simple action of deleting and re-writing. However, when we were editing the mistakes in our sonnet (replacing an apostrophe with a comma, adding a period, etc), it was a more difficult and meticulous process. As much as I love works printed with a printing press and think they‘re absolutely beautiful, at the same time, I’m glad that I didn’t have to write my reaction paper using one.
The most satisfying part of the workshop was when we got to print the final copies of the sonnet ourselves using the printing press. Even though it was only a few lines of poetry, I still felt like I had accomplished something when I looked at what I had printed. My only other printing experience was on the last day of my medieval art summer class in fifth grade. The last project we had to do involved carving a stamp out of linoleum square, inking it, and pressing it. I never got to the inking and pressing stage thought because I had to get three stitches on my left thumb due to a carving accident. I really enjoyed my experience at Intima Press because not only did I not cut open any of my fingers, but I was also able to actually finish a printing project and feel satisfied with the results.
Gutenberg Bible
After checking out a book for my research paper from the Donnell Library on 53rd street, I walked down a few blocks to the New York Public Library of Humanities and Social Sciences to see the Gutenberg Bible exhibit. Being a literary geek, I had been to the main library many times before, thus guaranteeing a smooth trip there. After the confusion of trying to find Intima Press the day before, it felt good to be able to find something easily.
Once I had reached the exhibition room on the third floor, it took me a few minutes before I realized where the Gutenberg Bible was hidden amongst the larger exhibit about the history of male fashion. Although it seemed lonely and out of place amid the displays of dandies and pictures of frilly collars, I still found myself staring at it for a good ten minutes. After having to set a line and a half of type the other day, I felt that I could truly appreciate the work that went into producing this bible. It also made me realize again how much we take printed editions for granted. As others walked by the display case, they merely saw it as an old book rather than one of the biggest achievements of its time. They would stare at it for a few seconds, say “oh, how nice, an original Gutenberg Bible,” and walk away. These words are a stark contrast to those of the European agent of James Lennox, the man who gave one of the remaining Gutenberg Bibles to the U.S. in 1847. As the Bible passed through customs, Lennox’s agents demanded that the customs officials remove their hats upon viewing it. Living in a modern world, I guess we’re just a little spoiled when it comes to printed books.
One thing that always bothers me just a tiny bit when I look at books in display cases is that I only get to see two pages of the entire book. It’s not so much that I can’t touch it, but that I can’t see it in its entirety. There’s always a part of me that wonders what the other pages look like, what images and words they hold, especially illuminated works. However, at the same time, I do understand that it’s more of a question of preservation than of my personal curiosity. With only 48 remaining copies remaining in the world, I do realize why one cannot be put at the mercy of the public to touch and examine. In the end, I was simply content to be able to look at one of the greatest masterpieces of mankind through a glass panel, after which I walked across the hallway to check out a book from the research library, thus appropriately ending my weekend of books and printing.
Thursday, October 26, 2006
New York Historical Society and Intima Press - Parisa Montazaran
New York History Society
If you are “coming to use the library”, there is no admission fee. Walking from the subway on Central Park West, the museums are monumental. They checked the bags for free, which I thought was interesting. The library has books, magazines, photographs and architectural images. The website is www.nyhistory.org. The materials cover from the late 16th century to present time. Some of the maps and books are from the late 1500’s in Spanish and other languages, not in English. They have over two million manuscripts and four hundred thousand books. You have to browse the catalog and bring the call number to the desk.
In 1802, a catalog was made of what was in downtown Shakespeare gallery. In Boston, a pamphlet from a Shakespeare club. In 1844 to 47, the first printing of all Shakespeare’s collected works in illustrated form was released. From 1849 is the diary of Mr. Newfield during the Astor Place Riots, in his own handwriting and very legible. Replies from England as a counter to the letters sent to England regarding the fight between Edwin Forrest and William Charles Macready. There is a collection of twenty thousand broadsides announcing events. There is a book on the events from the history of New York regarding Shakespeare and the Shakespeare statue in Central Park (one text dedicated to the statue).
The Historical Society is open Tuesday through Saturday, from 10 AM to 5 PM and available for party rentals. There is a sign that reads, “Pens not allowed in this room.” Nina suggested we check out the New York Public Library on 42nd street and the Morgan. There is a police officer’s diary from the Upper East Side.
Everyone working in the room is monitoring people. Nina points out that there is a fine line between wanting to educate and preserve; if people do not know about it what is the point? They allow people to come here, not pay and use their collections. There was a dealer of antique maps going around the libraries and stealing them. Last year at Yale he was spotted with an exactor knife and was captured. He owned up to ninety of the maps. He has been to NYHS and they do not think he took anything. Somebody is buying this stuff even though he used an exactor knife to take it out. Nina insists that it is not “their” personal stuff but it’s “our” stuff open to the public and these people steal it for private property. Funding is partially received from the city, state and private donors. They have parties to raise funds.
Nina studied Art History as an undergraduate and did some data-basing and edited slides for photographers. She went on to get her Masters in Library Science and did paid research on Edgar Allen Poe. She worked for 7 years at the School for Visual Arts as a librarian. She also served as the Head of Library Public Service and was the Interim Director for 2 years. She is now the Associate Director.
Intima Press
I walked to the studio and actually got lost because I misread the directions. Union square is very trendy and “chic” as opposed to the refined, classical air of the upper west side. The building, 32 Union Square East is very contemporary. The studio is down a dingy hallway (the elevator was the older one on the left vs. the renovated one on the right). Mindy’s studio has papers and postcards handing up on the wall.
She studied painting and photography at NYU, went into mixed media installation, and came to books after graduate school. She opened the studio two and a half years ago and opened classes a year ago. The images on the wall are linocut, made by students. Her colleagues teach book art and book binding there too. She makes limited edition books.
We went over a history of print. Cave drawings were the beginning of communications. Next were cuneiform and clay tablets, followed by hieroglyphics and papyrus by the Egyptians. The Roman alphabet came next. Gutenberg created the printing press. In 1452, he printed the Gutenberg Bible. It can be found at the Morgan and New York Public Library on parchment and paper. He developed the metal movable type. The Chinese invented wooden movable type and papermaking. Gutenberg was a jeweler and figure out how to poor melted alloy into a mold made by a punch cutter and individual letters were carved out. Monks used to write on parchment bellum (made out of animal skin). Gutenberg was a businessperson, not an artist. His workers began working at sun up and finished at sun down. The first university was opened in 1200 in Italy and scholarly texts were copied at stationary stores. One person would set type, one would proof it and two would ink it. He also invented oil-based paint. The text on the cards is letterpress, beautiful, with depth. You can see that they are embedded in the paper. “The type is 3D, it’s a sculpture. It’s debossed, not embossed” (Mindy). The one sheet of printed press is called a broadside. Ben Franklin was a printer. Broadsides were printed to get the word out quickly. A lot of prints hops used to be at the seaport so the broadsides would announce when ships were coming and going. Shakespeare’s writings were not published in his lifetime; he was not interested in that. The colophon at the end of the book tells you who made the book, the author, artist, where it was printed, the date, edition, the type of paper and font.
We proceeded to choose a sonnet to work on, Sonnet 116, and each of us was assigned a line. Nina gave us a few handouts on learning how to handset type. I was overwhelmed by the vast amount of contributing elements to make something like one of her linocuts; the process of setting type alone required attention to the details of how to hold the composing stick and then choosing a font and adjusting the spacing, etc. After we all completed our lines, we gave them to Mindy to put on the printing machine, watched her ink the machine, and get it warmed up. It was almost funny to see that even with the intense amount of attention and care that we paid to our individual lines, there were still mistakes on the test drafts; I could only imagine the amount of skill required to put together entire books!
We took turns printing individual sheets and Mindy offered us cookies and snacks. She was very “chill” and at the same time very intense about the work. I admired her ability to create a business and living out of something she loved to do so much. I was especially impressed that she is able to carry on the business in such a higher end location in New York City; printing books out of a cottage in Vermont is one thing but to generate so much profit hat one could afford the overhead of maintaining a business and yield a profit was astounding. This observation only contributed to our conversations on the exclusivity of Shakespeare for the upper crust of society. The people ordering these limited edition books obviously have plenty of disposable income and knowledge of this type of art is reserved for the consciousness of such customers. The machines are expensive and the skill of handset typing is taught in novelty classes in order to maintain a distinction as a “lost art” or something. Overall, the trip was enriching and rewarding. I am so excited to see our sonnets completed and proud to have been a part of the process that created such a beautiful piece of art.
If you are “coming to use the library”, there is no admission fee. Walking from the subway on Central Park West, the museums are monumental. They checked the bags for free, which I thought was interesting. The library has books, magazines, photographs and architectural images. The website is www.nyhistory.org. The materials cover from the late 16th century to present time. Some of the maps and books are from the late 1500’s in Spanish and other languages, not in English. They have over two million manuscripts and four hundred thousand books. You have to browse the catalog and bring the call number to the desk.
In 1802, a catalog was made of what was in downtown Shakespeare gallery. In Boston, a pamphlet from a Shakespeare club. In 1844 to 47, the first printing of all Shakespeare’s collected works in illustrated form was released. From 1849 is the diary of Mr. Newfield during the Astor Place Riots, in his own handwriting and very legible. Replies from England as a counter to the letters sent to England regarding the fight between Edwin Forrest and William Charles Macready. There is a collection of twenty thousand broadsides announcing events. There is a book on the events from the history of New York regarding Shakespeare and the Shakespeare statue in Central Park (one text dedicated to the statue).
The Historical Society is open Tuesday through Saturday, from 10 AM to 5 PM and available for party rentals. There is a sign that reads, “Pens not allowed in this room.” Nina suggested we check out the New York Public Library on 42nd street and the Morgan. There is a police officer’s diary from the Upper East Side.
Everyone working in the room is monitoring people. Nina points out that there is a fine line between wanting to educate and preserve; if people do not know about it what is the point? They allow people to come here, not pay and use their collections. There was a dealer of antique maps going around the libraries and stealing them. Last year at Yale he was spotted with an exactor knife and was captured. He owned up to ninety of the maps. He has been to NYHS and they do not think he took anything. Somebody is buying this stuff even though he used an exactor knife to take it out. Nina insists that it is not “their” personal stuff but it’s “our” stuff open to the public and these people steal it for private property. Funding is partially received from the city, state and private donors. They have parties to raise funds.
Nina studied Art History as an undergraduate and did some data-basing and edited slides for photographers. She went on to get her Masters in Library Science and did paid research on Edgar Allen Poe. She worked for 7 years at the School for Visual Arts as a librarian. She also served as the Head of Library Public Service and was the Interim Director for 2 years. She is now the Associate Director.
Intima Press
I walked to the studio and actually got lost because I misread the directions. Union square is very trendy and “chic” as opposed to the refined, classical air of the upper west side. The building, 32 Union Square East is very contemporary. The studio is down a dingy hallway (the elevator was the older one on the left vs. the renovated one on the right). Mindy’s studio has papers and postcards handing up on the wall.
She studied painting and photography at NYU, went into mixed media installation, and came to books after graduate school. She opened the studio two and a half years ago and opened classes a year ago. The images on the wall are linocut, made by students. Her colleagues teach book art and book binding there too. She makes limited edition books.
We went over a history of print. Cave drawings were the beginning of communications. Next were cuneiform and clay tablets, followed by hieroglyphics and papyrus by the Egyptians. The Roman alphabet came next. Gutenberg created the printing press. In 1452, he printed the Gutenberg Bible. It can be found at the Morgan and New York Public Library on parchment and paper. He developed the metal movable type. The Chinese invented wooden movable type and papermaking. Gutenberg was a jeweler and figure out how to poor melted alloy into a mold made by a punch cutter and individual letters were carved out. Monks used to write on parchment bellum (made out of animal skin). Gutenberg was a businessperson, not an artist. His workers began working at sun up and finished at sun down. The first university was opened in 1200 in Italy and scholarly texts were copied at stationary stores. One person would set type, one would proof it and two would ink it. He also invented oil-based paint. The text on the cards is letterpress, beautiful, with depth. You can see that they are embedded in the paper. “The type is 3D, it’s a sculpture. It’s debossed, not embossed” (Mindy). The one sheet of printed press is called a broadside. Ben Franklin was a printer. Broadsides were printed to get the word out quickly. A lot of prints hops used to be at the seaport so the broadsides would announce when ships were coming and going. Shakespeare’s writings were not published in his lifetime; he was not interested in that. The colophon at the end of the book tells you who made the book, the author, artist, where it was printed, the date, edition, the type of paper and font.
We proceeded to choose a sonnet to work on, Sonnet 116, and each of us was assigned a line. Nina gave us a few handouts on learning how to handset type. I was overwhelmed by the vast amount of contributing elements to make something like one of her linocuts; the process of setting type alone required attention to the details of how to hold the composing stick and then choosing a font and adjusting the spacing, etc. After we all completed our lines, we gave them to Mindy to put on the printing machine, watched her ink the machine, and get it warmed up. It was almost funny to see that even with the intense amount of attention and care that we paid to our individual lines, there were still mistakes on the test drafts; I could only imagine the amount of skill required to put together entire books!
We took turns printing individual sheets and Mindy offered us cookies and snacks. She was very “chill” and at the same time very intense about the work. I admired her ability to create a business and living out of something she loved to do so much. I was especially impressed that she is able to carry on the business in such a higher end location in New York City; printing books out of a cottage in Vermont is one thing but to generate so much profit hat one could afford the overhead of maintaining a business and yield a profit was astounding. This observation only contributed to our conversations on the exclusivity of Shakespeare for the upper crust of society. The people ordering these limited edition books obviously have plenty of disposable income and knowledge of this type of art is reserved for the consciousness of such customers. The machines are expensive and the skill of handset typing is taught in novelty classes in order to maintain a distinction as a “lost art” or something. Overall, the trip was enriching and rewarding. I am so excited to see our sonnets completed and proud to have been a part of the process that created such a beautiful piece of art.
Sunday, October 22, 2006
Welcome "American Shakespeare" Scholars!
American Shakespeare Goes HI-TECH!
Dear Class:
I hope that you will find this new blog useful and that it will become an interactive extensive of your research journals.
Please post your response papers here, as well as any other Shakespeare/research/class-related thoughts, comments, etc.
I hope that this site will facilitate our on-going conversations and dialogue, and will extend our time together.
I had a fantastic day with you all on Friday at the New-York Historical Society! (Aren't librarians just the best people on earth?)
I hope that our conversation with Nina Nazionale, and the sampling of the N-YHS's Shakespeare items inspired you.
Let's please be in active dialogue about your plans/thoughts regarding your final projects.
These are thrilling times!
Cheers!
Until soon,
A.S.H.
Dear Class:
I hope that you will find this new blog useful and that it will become an interactive extensive of your research journals.
Please post your response papers here, as well as any other Shakespeare/research/class-related thoughts, comments, etc.
I hope that this site will facilitate our on-going conversations and dialogue, and will extend our time together.
I had a fantastic day with you all on Friday at the New-York Historical Society! (Aren't librarians just the best people on earth?)
I hope that our conversation with Nina Nazionale, and the sampling of the N-YHS's Shakespeare items inspired you.
Let's please be in active dialogue about your plans/thoughts regarding your final projects.
These are thrilling times!
Cheers!
Until soon,
A.S.H.
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