Die Brücke Catalogue with Original Woodcuts Found at Flea Market

By Susan Benne

Earlier this year, a German citizen purchased a thin brochure inscribed with the name “Brücke” for €5 at a local flea market. It turns out this was quite a find; the brochure was a catalogue for a 1912 travelling exhibition of the Die Brücke collective. Die Brücke ("The Bridge") was a German artists' group formed in 1905 by four architectural students in DresdenErnest Ludwig Kirchner, Fritz Bleyl, Enrich Heckel, and Karl Schmidt-Rottluff. (Later members included Emil Nolde, Max Pechstein, and Otto Mueller.) The group aimed to discover new methods of artistic expression and to "free themselves from the traditional academic style of the time." Through doing so, they strived to create a bridge between the past and the present (hence the name of the group). The resulting artistic style is what we refer to today as Expressionism, which has the signifying trait of presenting the world "solely from a subjective perspective, distorting it radically for emotional effect in order to evoke moods or ideas." In addition to developing their own individual art, Die Brücke had two other major objectives: to establish contact with artists with similar sensibilities and to introduce their new art to the public through collective exhibitions. The brochure that was found was a catalogue for one of these showcases and it has an interesting backstory. Apparently it wasn't long after the exhibition went on tour that members of Die Brücke discovered that fellow artist Max Pechstein had a... [more Die Brücke Catalogue with Original Woodcuts Found at Flea Market]



Member in the News: Adam Davis of Division Leap (Portland, OR)

By Susan Benne

The Seventh Annual NY Art Book Fair was held two weeks ago at MoMA PS 1, and I'm sorry that I missed it. Organized by Printed Matter, the fair had more than 200 local and international exhibitors and also included screenings, lectures, musical performances, and book signings. ABAA member Adam Davis of Division Leap (Portland, OR) was exhibiting at the fair for his fourth consecutive year. Division Leap, which just moved to a great new location last month, specializes in zines, artists' books, the Mimeograph Revolution, radical Americana, and a host of other printed miscellany. Adam spoke with Capital New York about technological advances and the future of the book, a topic that is on everyone's mind. He made the following thoughtful and astute observation: I think that the changes in technology—lifting the burden of having it be a purely informational transfer—will lead to people paying attention to what is really important about books and what it is you can't get from . The aura, the presence of it, the feeling that you're actually holding a work from an artist. That's really apparent with handmade books or books that the artist made themselves. You pick it up, you get a shock, you feel what's going on here in a way that you don't reading about on a website. I'm incredibly optimistic about the future of independent publishing. I'm a cheerleader in the face of gloom and doom. I couldn't agree more. I can only surmise, as many others have, that as we become increasingly ac... [more Member in the News: Adam Davis of Division Leap (Portland, OR)]



UPDATE: Stolen 1865 Lyminge Map

By Susan Benne

UPDATE: This item was recovered. The following item has been reported stolen: Title : The Lyminge Map Authors : Thomas Hill Date of publication : 1685 Description : "A mapp and description of a farme with 12 parcells of land thereunto belonging in the parish of Liminge in the county of Kent belonging to Capt. Timothy BEDINGFEILD gent and by his order measured and herein described being now in the tenure or occupation of Tho: HOGBEN. Each peece is distinguished by colours with all the wast thereunto belonging is found to conteine the same therein mentioned in acres, roods and perches and all being added together (including 70 perches for wast of high wayes) the summ is 33 acres 1 rood 1 perches. Also shewing the persons names whose lands bound therunto measured and mapt by Tho: HILL sworne survey 1685." If you have any information on this item, please contact Duncan Harrington at history.research@btinternet.com or +44 (0)1303 862368 [more UPDATE: Stolen 1865 Lyminge Map]



First American Woman Wins 2012 Forward Prize for Poetry

By Susan Benne

Jorie Graham has the distinction of being the first American woman to win the Forward Prize for Poetry. Her book P L A C E was awarded Best Collection, a prize that was last awarded to a woman in 2004. P L A C E "explores the ways in which our imagination, intuition, and experience - increasingly devalued by a culture that regards them as 'mere' subjectivity - aid us in navigating a world moving blindly towards its own annihilation and a political reality where the human person and its dignity are increasingly disposable." It is Graham's twelfth collection of poetry. Judges described the collection as "startling, powerful, never predictable" and a "joy" to read. Leonie Rushforth, Chair of the judging panel, said that Graham's collection was a "happy unanimous choice for the judges." "It is a challenging collection of unusual force and originality, forging connections between inner experience and a world in crisis," Rushforth said. Click here to read selected poems from P L A C E . This is not the first time that Graham has broken through a glass ceiling. In 1998 she replaced Seamus Heaney as Boylston Professor of Rhetoric and Oratory at Harvard University. This appointment followed Graham's Pulitzer Prize for Poetry in 1996 for The Dream of the Unifired Field: Selected Poems 1974-1994. The U.S. Poetry Foundation has said that Graham is "perhaps the most celebrated poet of the American post-war generation." This year's other winners of Forward Prizes were Sam Riviere, who won ... [more First American Woman Wins 2012 Forward Prize for Poetry]



De-silking 'A Christmas Carol'

By Susan Benne

In the late 19th century, librarians and conservationists began silking manuscripts in an effort to best preserve the materials. It was thought that this process would help strengthen the paper, making it less susceptible to damage. Silking involved cleaning the manuscript and then applying paste and a silk gauze, sometimes referred to as crepeline, to either one or both sides of the leaf. However, it did not take very long for conservationists to realize that this was not an adequate method of preservation. Over time the silk became brittle; discoloration occurred; it could separate from the document; some silks had a rapid rate of deterioration; and silking generally "failed to render the document any more resistant to the enemies of paper" than untreated pages (William Barrow, 1939 Newport News (Virginia) Daily Press article). Which brings us to the process of de-silking, through which the silk gauze is very carefully removed. The Morgan Museum & Library had to de-silk their manuscript of Charles Dickens's A Christmas Carol last year in anticipation for their exhibit Dickens at 200. The procedure is explained in the informative video below and is also summarized on their website. [more De-silking 'A Christmas Carol']



Shakespeare On Your iPad

By Susan Benne

Sourcebooks publishing house has recently released a line of ebook/iPad apps called The Shakesperience. Using the iPad's technological capabilities, these books provide a multimedia experience that allow readers to interact with Shakespeare's plays. Each play features an embedded glossary of approximately 2,000 terms; video and audio commentary, interviews, and introductions by thespians; classic scenes and performances by respected actors like Orson Welles, Paul Robeson, Sir Laurence Olivier, and Dame Judy Dench, to name a few; presentations analyzing the historical and social context of selected scenes; production notes from past performances that include costume and set design, and stage directions; interviews with the full casts and directors of productions; and, finally, "interviews with voice coaches on how to approach the Bard's various characters." Dominique Raccah, CEO of Sourcebooks, said that the app was developed with input from teachers and theatre professionals, specifically in regard to the difficulties they encounter teaching and relating Shakespeare to students and modern audiences. The glossary and other elements that deal with Elizabethan language were a central focus because "getting into the language of Shakespeare" was identified as a universal hurdle for educators. Audio content took precedence over video, as teachers felt that audio forces students to engage with the text, whereas videos present a more passive experience. "We've taken what has traditio... [more Shakespeare On Your iPad]



Stolen: Der Americanischen Neuen Welt Beschreibung (engraved title; 1664)

By Susan Benne

This item was still reported missing as of June 11, 2019. The following item has been reported stolen: Title : Der Americanischen Neuen Welt Beschreibung (engraved title) Authors : Winckelmann, Johann Just Date of publication : 1664 Publisher : Heinrich Conrad Zimmer, Oldenbourg Description : With copper engraved title, 1 (of 2) full-page portraits (of Hans Staden) in woodcut and 32 woodcuts in the text after Hans Staden. 8 unn. leaves, 228 pp., 6 unn. leaves of index. Modern gilt violet/red leather binding. If you have any information on this item, please contact yueksel@erasmushaus.ch [more Stolen: Der Americanischen Neuen Welt Beschreibung (engraved title; 1664)]