The Tradition of Fine Bookbinding in the Twentieth Century : Catalogue of an Exhibition, 1979-1980 by Callery, Bernadette G. & Mosimann, Elizabeth A. (eds) - 1979

Pittsburgh: Hunt Institute for Botanical Documentation, 1979. Well illustrated, tall slim quarto, pp 129, very clean internally, cloth-backed boards very slightly bumped, spine very slightly marked, otherwise a very good copy. [The preface states "The Tradition of Fine Bookbinding in the Twentieth Century" explores the tension that results from modern craftsmen working in a traditional craft. The twentieth century binder must always contend with traditions of binding structure, material and cover design, and this conflict is compounded when facing the re-binding of an older book. We have attempted to gather representative examples of what we see as the two major divisions of modem binding : the traditional or retrospective approach, and the modem design or intuitive approach where the design is intended to be an expressive extension of the book within. Such distinctions are somewhat arbitrary, and the binders are even less easily categorized than their bindings. Retrospective bindings need not be restrictively imitative. And binders frequently look to historical styles for inspiration even when creating new designs that reflect the artistic tastes of the twentieth century. The requirements of the book itself should also determine some aspects of the binding. All works of value deserve a careful choice of conservation binding techniques. The exquisite twentieth century livre d'artiste and the primary scientific source of the eighteenth century demand equal respect, though different design considerations. Our survey includes selected original examples of major historical styles, countered with a variety of twentieth century bindings, both modem and retrospective. By grouping the bindings according to style, we hope to demonstrate relationships in design and technique which suggest that no modem binder is beyond tradition."]. First Edition. Cloth-backed boards. Very Good.