The Bookbinding Competition 2015

The set book for the Competition in 2015 is Nineteen Eighty-Four by George Orwell. The Folio edition is 234 x 156mm, 304 pages, including 10 full-page colour illustrations by Jonathan Burton.

War is Peace, Freedom is Slavery, Ignorance is Strength

George Orwell's masterpiece, Nineteen Eighty-Four, is perhaps the most pervasively influential book of the twentieth century, making famous Big Brother, newspeak, doublespeak and Room 101. Winston Smith, drudge editor of historical records for the Ministry of Truth, writes a diary, and in that act lies his catastrophic rebellion. In many ways a grown-up Brave New World, Nineteen Eighty-Four was published in 1949 on the eve of the Cold War, and feels unbearably prescient in its portrayal of totalitarian systems of power.

To obtain a copy of the 2015 set book and entry details, send your cheque for £20 (to DB members) and £25 for non-members to include packing, postage and entrance fee. Cheques should be made payable to Designer Bookbinders and sent to Lester Bath, 25 Ffordd Ffrydlas, Bethesda, Bangor, Gwynedd LL57 3BL. Each entrant must bind the set book and we welcome open choice books and artist's books.

The annual Bookbinding Competition is sponsored by Designer Bookbinders and The Folio Society and is open to anyone resident in the UK except Fellows of Designer Bookbinders. Charity Registration No. 282018.

*The Guild of Book Workers - Standards of Excellence Seminar in Hand Bookbinding 2015
14th-17th October 2015, Cleveland, Ohio

Held annually at a different location around the country, participants attend presentations by leading experts in the fields related to the book and paper arts. Tours of binderies, conservation facilities, rare book libraries and papermaking establishments are regularly arranged in conjunction with the event.

Presentations and Presenters
- Andrea Peterson:The Paper Has Been Shipped!
- Bill Minter: The Meeting Guard: Its Use Historically and its use in Fine Binding, Conservation and ArtistBooks
- Christina Amato: The Devil is in the Details
- Discussions: Conservation - Bookbinding - Book Arts

A supplier's trade fair will also be held throughout this event.

Further details and booking information are available from the Guild of Book Workers web site at www.guildofbookworkers.org

*Oxford Fine Press Book Fair
31st October-1st November 2015

Plans are now well advanced for this prestigious fair, once again in its venue at Oxford Brookes University. We hope you will be able to come along. Around sixty presses from around the world will have their work on sale, alongside specialist book dealers, trade suppliers, and associated organisations. On the Sunday there will be the usual programme of lectures and the prize-giving. The FPBA will have a stand where back issues of Parenthesis will be on sale and new members signed up.

Further details are available from www.fpba.com

*The 16th Bookbinders Book Arts Fair, Pieterskerk, Leiden, Holland
31st October-1st November 2015

Always an inspiring exhibition and a cosy meeting place for hand bookbinders, restorers, paper artists, calligrapher and all other interested parties (amateur or professional).

For more info: go to www.stichting-handboekbinden.nl

The OPEN • SET competition 2016

The Competition - The OPEN • SET competition is a NEW triennial competition that formed in response to the burgeoning interest and palpable momentum in finely crafted design book bindings in the United States. Sponsored in part by the American Academy of Bookbinding, it is designed to encourage both new binders and professionals. OPEN • SET offers prizes and acknowledgement in two categories: Participants may choose to bind the SET book or a book of their choice, the OPEN category. Entries are limited to one book per category. Binders from all levels and cultures are invited to participate, as the competition is not limited to citizens of the United States nor to students or affiliates of the AAB. All entries will be reviewed by a blind jury of three professional binders. Jurors will be announced in November of 2015.

The Exhibition - is intended to be a recognition of the beauty of the craft and a commitment to the public toward a better understanding of this art form. The exhibition will showcase 50 books and will recognize excellence in craftsmanship and design concept interpretation. Each venue may offer an Opening Reception as well as a People's Choice Award, encouraging viewers to cast their vote for the binding they find most intriguing in both the OPEN and the SET categories.

A bibliophile is a lover of books and everyone loves books! Bibliophiles recognize that working together as a community makes The Book more visible in the eye of the public. This competition and exhibition is an attempt to gather bibliophiles with the public and together celebrate finely crafted books. The exhibition will travel across the United States. Book enthusiasts who visit the exhibit will walk away with a better understanding and appreciation of a well made and artistically designed book.

Further information on prizes, registration, timelines, and entry information can may be found on the AABA web site at - bookbindingacademy.org
or
for additional information and questions, please contact Exhibition Coordinator, Lang Ingalls at lang@langingalls.com

Designer Bookbinders 3rd International Bookbinding Competition 2017

J. Hewit & Sons will have a stand at the event(s) marked '*'. If you would like us to bring specific items for you to purchase, please let us know at least 4 weeks in advance of the event.