Oak Knoll Fest XIV
Saturday, October 6, 2007
A nice group of APHA members traveled to New Castle, Delaware to attend Oak Knoll Fest XIV.
The keynote speaker was Joanna Drucker, from the University of Virginia, the Robertson Professor of Media Studies who spoke to a packed house. She came to the University of Virginia in 1999 to create the Media Studies program of which she was Director from 1999-2003. Her PhD in Ecriture (University of California, Berkeley, 1986) and MA in Visual Studies built on her undergraduate degree in Printing/Printmaking from the California College of Arts and Crafts (1973). She brings a wide range of professional experience and interest in visual studies, fine arts, art history, book history, typography, the history of writing and the alphabet, graphic design, and digital media studies to her teaching and research. She has held faculty positions at Yale University, SUNY Purchase, Columbia University, the University of Texas at Dallas, and Harvard University. Her scholarly publications have been in the field of 20th century art history, visual and concrete poetry, artists' books, and experimental typography, as well as digital aesthetics.
Bob Fleck, owner of Oak Knoll Books, surely one of the outstanding bookstores concentrating on 'books on books' looks on as Joanna answers questions from the audience.
Tim Murray, ended this segment of the discussion by providing a description of the panel discussion which will be held at 10:00 on Sunday.
John Randall of Whittington Press in England and one of the premier fine press printers in the world slipped in late looking for a chair. He found one next to Jill Cypher while Ray Nichols was standing taking photos. Once he figured out what he had done he asked "Is this your chair." Ray said it was on and traded him a business card for the chair. A bit later Ray took this photo of him checking out the card. Was he thinking "What a piece of crap."
The APHA group and friends meet for their annual picnic on 'The Green' which always provides a great chance to get together and tell some stories.
Clockwise from left: Mike Kaylor, Mike Denker, Mike Anderson & wife, Franziska Walczak, Jim Walczak, Mark Samuels Lasner, Jill Cypher, Rebecca Johnson Melvin, Greg Coleman Sam Merrick, Melissa Lentz, Chris Sweterlitsch, Pat Manson, and Chris Manson in front. Photo by Ray Nichols who hardly gets into any pictures.
Two outstanding stories were Chris Sweterlitsch who works for the Government Printing Office describing his current project which involves the publishing of 39,000,000 (yep, million) booklets for Medicaid recipients. The books range from 48 - 100 pages depending on the state. Chris said the total books would fill 750 tractor trailer trucks. Obviously, print is not dead yet.
The second was from Sam Merrick, a recent graduate and former student of APHA member Ray Nichols. She looked into an ad for someone selling a C & P 8 x 12. Going out there she found they also had a 21" x 27" Washington iron handpress that they had tried to sell but had not takers. She called APHA member Bill Deering who co-directs Raven Press at the University of Delaware to see if he was interested FOR FREE. He was and Bill, Mike Kayor and Sam went out, picked up both the Washington and the C & P and dropped them off at their respective new homes. Moral: Take a look before you say you aren't interested.
APHA member Jill Cypher looking over the wares of a couple that produce seriously high craft books printing on four Albion handpresses. The typography was stunning.
Saturday, October 6, 2007
