Private Press Books Limited Editions, and Artist's Books
Private Press Books and Limited Editions
The department of Special Collections in Waldo Library at Western Michigan
University owns a wide variety of fine press and limited edition books, including
one or more examples from some the most notable presses of the nineteenth and
twentieth centuries. Some of the presses in our collection include: The Kelmscott
Press, The Doves Press, The Arion Press, The Nonesuch Press, The Adagio Press,
Gwasg Gregynog, The Flying Fish Press, The Black Sparrow Press, and The Golden
Cockerel Press.
What constitutes a "fine press" book?
A fine press book is usually printed and bound in smaller numbers than a
book from an average commercial publishing company. The edition can number anywhere
from five to two thousand copies depending on what the press wants their edition
run to be. Fine press books are usually printed on a higher quality paper than
the larger companies and may include hand colored illustrations, wood blocks,
steel or copper engravings, or even calligraphy. Most importantly, these books
are generally printed on an old handpress, like the Vandercook SP 15 on display
in our reading room. The text of the book is set by hand using lead type, run
through the handpress, and then the book is bound by hand. A large majority of
these books contain a colophon at the back of the text indicating who printed
the book, when it was printed, and how it was bound. These books are often signed
and numbered by the author, artist, and/or printer, thus increasing their value.
What is an "artist's" book?
An artist's book is similar to a fine press book in that a lot of handwork
went into the process of creating the book. These artist's books, however, tend
to vary in shape and format from the standard idea of the book. These books may
come in a variety of shapes, some of them open up and form a star, others have
a three dimensional quality like a peep show book or tunnel, some resemble pop-up
books, others can unfold and be hung on the wall like a picture or broadside
(a broadside is generally a single sheet of paper with a printed poem, or short
passage printed on it).
Some of these books may be completely calligraphed or
printed with hand-illuminated initials, other books may consist only of illustrations
done by hand or lithographed. No matter what format the book takes, conventional
or unconventional, one thing these books do have in common is that they are produced
in very limited editions. The more difficult the book is to make the fewer copies
get produced. Many of these books are one of a kind, meaning there is no other
existing copy anywhere else in the world.
Special Collections contains a wide variety of materials on paper and fine
printing. This aspect of Special Collections reaches every collection we have.
The Carol Ann Haenicke American Women's Poetry Collection for instance is particularly
strong in fine press works and artist's books.
The books in this collection include
works by Julie Chen of the Flying Fish Press, Claire Van Vliet of the Janus Press,
calligraphy by Jan Owen, Nancy Leavitt, and Nancy Culmone, as well as broadsides
from various presses. Special Collections also has subscriptions to the Sutton
Hoo Press, the Ninja Press, the Bloodroot Press, and the Scripps College Press.
We also have a collection of fine printing serials including: 21 st : The
Journal of Contemporary Photography, Émigré , Fine
Print , and Colophon.
The following images are examples of fine
press books in Special Collections. The first image is from The Story of
the Glittering Plain, or the Land of Living Men printed at the Kelmscott
Press in Hammersmith, England. It was written and printed by William Morris proprietor
of the Kelmscott Press in 1894.
The image shown from this text is the engraved
double page title containing one of the twenty-three wood engravings by Walter
Crane. This book is one of 250 copies printed on handmade paper and is bound
in parchment. The second image is a double page spread of John Milton's L'Allegro
and Il Penseroso printed
by Clarke Conwell at the Elston Press in New Rochelle, New York in 1903. The
illustrations from this text are also woodcuts made from the designs of H.M.
O'Kane. This book is one of one hundred and sixty copies printed.
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