Monthly Archives: February 2013

Lab Assignment: The Story of Writing Part 4

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As I mentioned in a previous blog post, I seem to only associate electronic things with the term technology. For example, I never thought of a book as being considered technology; and until watching this documentary, I never thought of a pen as being such either. But seeing the process of it evolving from a quill, made me realize otherwise.

I thought it was really neat seeing the one man in the documentary explain how to write with the early fountain pens, while at the same time seeing it being done up close. The way that the narrator described and showed the way of writing as a “push, pull” process was particularly cool. I was actually intrigued enough to try it with the fountain pens we were given for class, but it didn’t work very well, unfortunately.

In relation to the sound and camera work of the documentary,The Story of Writing part 4, one part that I thought was particularly well done, was from about 44:59-45:49. In this part the documentary showed the machines working to make the fountain pens. But rather than hearing the noises of the machines, there was music played over, almost as if it was made for the particular machines. It made the machines seem as if they were dancing to the beat of the music. This seemed to portray technology in a good light, even though the narrator seemed partial to old ways during some parts of the documentary. For example, referring to replacing calligraphy, the narrator stated, “technology has already demanded one new and ugly set of letter shapes with the computer.”

Medieval Printing and Education Today

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Because the process of bookmaking was so labor-intensive, owning a book was an example of your wealth and prestige, if you could afford one of these expensive luxuries. Books are directly tied to knowledge, and thus if you owned and were able to read a book, you were considered to be an educated person. Since this ability was not very common in the early days of printing, education was valued above anything because it meant that you had “made it” – you were wealthy enough to purchase, and had the time, to learn to read and actually read a book. It would make sense that this notion of becoming learned would carry into today’s world; that education, and having a higher education degree, seems like the most desirable thing in the world. Even though we now know that people without college degrees can be more successful than people who have a multitude of college degrees, we still strive for academic success even though it’s been proven to not necessarily be a direct indicator of success. This notion, that academic prosperity will ensure a good future, seems to stem directly from the times when owning a book meant that you were at the peak of your success.

Making of a Medieval Book

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For my documentary, I watched the making of a medieval book. It amazed me just how difficult it was to make each individual letter, or “punch”, and how someone could have a job just becoming a professional letter-maker. The skill and patience it took to make each individual letter was extraordinary. The mold was extremely exquisite, each individual part fitting together like the modern machinery of today. The act of actually getting the print onto paper is a process similar to one I have seen before, where ink is applied directly on the letters and then the paper pressed on top of that. Despite being from the Renaissance, the placing of letters was almost identical to the process we saw being done in the EPI. It was extraordinary to see such advanced technology – the ink rollers – coupled with a medieval technology. This documentary really made me appreciate the work that went into making a book, and made me realize how little regard we have for our books today.

The Making of a Renaissance Book

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Before beginning the short, 20 minute documentary, The Making of a Renaissance Book, I mentally prepared myself for what I believed would be an extremely boring video experience.  Much to my surprise, I found the documentary to be more interesting than I thought it would be. The documentary is in black and white giving it an older, more almost vintage, feel. The music they play throughout the documentary is enough to give you a headache, making me at times, want to turn it off.  The documentary really shows you how precise and time consuming making the letters that are to be used in printing is.  Until seeing craftsmen carve out the letters, I hadn’t realized just how time consuming the process is.  This made me appreciate all the books we saw at class.  When we went to EPI we only printed a sheet.  We didn’t have to lay out the letters which is also a time consuming process.  Until seeing this video, I hadn’t given as much thought to the process of making the letters as I had to other aspects of printing.  Craftsmen had to neatly and precisely create letters of different sizes and fonts.  Today, we simply just type away on our computers, just as I am doing now, with a multitude of fonts and sizes to choose from.  I always took this for granted.

Medieval Manuscript Making

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In the second part of The Story of Writing we are treated to a demonstration of medieval quill pens and illumination coupled with a few historical announcements. One of which, towards the beginning of the section, reminded me of the pain I felt in 9th grade. The video explains that in Ireland during the middle ages, the art of manuscripts flourished. Ireland was the only bastion of literate society during this time, according to Thomas Cahill in his book How the Irish Saved Civilization. Unlike the article here, I would not consider this book a “small treasure.”

Back to the video: I was enthralled looking at the first pen presented making letters on parchment. From about 35:30-37:15 the pen made beautiful brushstrokes to create multiple fonts. The flexibility of this tool entranced me. It could make all sorts of Gothic variations depending on how you held it, bent your hand, stopped short, or pressed firmly. Unfortunately, they did not give the name of this tool; it was different from the feather quills discussed in greater detail later.

Alphabet Part 1 Video Definition

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The definition in this video is substandard but I was already in the mindset of watching an educational video so I was pleased that it was at least in color.  The definition also slightly aided in the feeling of an aura with regards to the old techniques of writing.  I feel like if i was watching this in HD it would look more like someone using tools they just took from a showcase in a museum. With 1970s definition, the actor looked like he may have owned these items personally especially because of his ability to use them with precision.

Lab Assignment: Alphabet Introduction

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I was most impressed by the introduction to this video.  It begins by showing an average city and zooms in on all their signs and posters.  Then an old man appears in a park talking about how letters are used in daily life.  After being partially enticed by the thought of the numerous uses of letters, at 1:02 he states, “Our lives are ruled by words” and then his name appears.  That moment was more climactic and shocking than i thought a 1970s video about the alphabet could ever be.  he then states “words made up by those 26 symbols, which are the letters of our alphabet” to demonstrate how all of the uses of words in daily life he just stated are all symbolized through only 26 letters.

 

Artist’s Books

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The viewing of the artist book collection we have here at Lafayette was a lot more impressive than what I first thought it was going to be. When we first walked into the room, it looked like there were hundreds of colorful children’s books lying on the tables. At closer look however, it was apparently that the books were not mere printings of colorful pictures, but were hand-done pieces made by authors that took time and patience to make it such a beautiful work of art. The Hemingway piece stood out to me beautifully. The watercolor was so exquisite and the portrayal of the story was so vivid that it seemed as if the story was coming to life before our very eyes. As a huge Hemingway fan, it was exciting to see such a beautiful piece displayed for him.

Lab Assignment

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For today’s lab assignment, I watched the documentary The Making of a Renaissance Book.  While the demonstration in the Experimental Printmaking Institute made me more appreciative of the hard work that goes into printing, this documentary enhanced that feeling of appreciation immensely.  The documentary shows many clips of artists creating the individual letters of the typecast for printing by hand.  From setting the mold to carving the letters, these jobs took an enormous amount of technical skill and artistry that I was previously unaware of.

The filmmaker did an excellent job of portraying these artists as real people.  Many of the shots focused on the artist’s hands as they were working, but the filmmaker also made sure to focus on the faces of the artists as well.  The documentary also included diagrams of the various objects used in printing that explained the parts of those objects.  This aspect of the film helped demonstrate how these objects worked and arouse even more appreciation for these artists and engineers of book history.

Lorenz, You Have Given Me a Mighty Burden

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To begin, I must first say that this is one adorable essay.

When I first heard the phrase “artists’ books,” I thought that they would be a portfolio or journal of an artist’s work, like a series. However, after our time with them on Tuesday, I came to a better definition which reflects the first one given by Lorenz in her article. Artists’ books are really just another artists’ work. It is a piece of art, a stand alone piece. Though I would love to call whatever new craze as art, I was skeptical for once in my life about these books. They are not, in my opinion, works derived entirely by the artist alone. They are parodies, plays, and mutilations of former books. While I would still grant them their status as parody, the uniqueness of their creation seems blurred. Then again, that is essentially what art does. It comments on everything, including the history of art.