Pick up William Drendel’s hand-bound book, “Ben Franklin on Lead Hazards,” or Julie Naggs’ “From A to Z,” and you’ll find these page-turning works of art hard to put down.
These hand-bound books, designed with a sense of whimsy and reverence, are just some of the colorful art books made by two dozen area bookbinders in “Fine Printers Finely Bound Two,” the Chicago Hand Bookbinders 15th anniversary exhibition at the Newberry Library.
Some of the books can be read or used as journals, but most are for fun and are a yet another innovative way to accessorize the home.
“The show is an example of our range of creativity,” says Naggs, who works as a book and paper conservator. “It’s wonderful to see our different visions, especially since everyone in the show is not a bookbinder by trade.”
Drendel’s books come as small as the hand size, wooden “San Sebastiano” book with small wooden arrow lodged through the covers or as large as the 6-foot-long “Fly away, Fly away, Fly away Tome,” which hangs from the ceiling. Both books have blank pages, ideal for journal writing or sketching.
Drendel’s work ranges from $200 to $1,200 and can be purchased by contacting him at his studio, 312-944-5411. Nagg’s books cost $250 to $800 amd can be purchased by calling her at the Scott Kellar Bookbinding Conservation Co., 312-478-2825. Both will do special orders.
The exhibit runs through Saturday at the Newberry Library, 60 W. Walton St. Then it will go to the University of Chicago’s Regenstein Library, 1100 E. 57th St., Feb. 1-23; and to Northwestern University (main) library, 1935 Sheridan Rd., Evanston, March 1-31.