December HBC Newsletter

Membership Events Exhibitions Workshops About HBC

MEMBERSHIP

HBC BINDERY NIGHTS AT SFCB

Need studio space to work on your Rainbow Flag project for HBC53? Or maybe you’re working on a set book and could use advice from a fellow bookbinder? Then come to the San Francisco Center for the Book for HBC Bindery Nights!

It’s like open studio, but with a bookbinder onsite to answer questions and offer tips. Free and open to HBC members, from 5:00 PM - 9:00 PM, the dates for HBC Bindery Nights are:

Thursday, December 12, 2024
Wednesday, January 15, 2025
Thursday, February 13, 2025
Tuesday, March 25, 2025

No registration required, come to SFCB to work on your set book or your flag project or any other binding project. Learn and share with other HBC members. A Big Thanks to SFCB for making this possible!

BECOME A MEMBER OR RENEW YOUR MEMBERSHIP TODAY!

Click the button below to become a member online.

JOIN HBC

Annual memberships begin January 1st so please renew today. If you are a new member, you get a month of membership free by signing up today!

HBC has several types of memberships available: Single, Double, Student and Group ranging from $20 a year to $50 a year.

Also please consider contributing to the Jane Aaron Scholarship Fund. It provides memberships to binders who otherwise couldn't afford it. Find out more here: https://handbookbinders.org/jane-aaron-foundation

Please email membership@handbookbinders.org if you have any questions.

MEMBER RECOGNITION

Our very own Board member, Megan Gibes, was recently featured in Arion Press’s newsletter for her amazing work as their Lead Bookbinder.

Please be sure to read this fascinating interview, “Five Questions with Lead Bookbinder Megan Gibes” to learn more about one of your fellow bookbinders. Congratulations, Megan!

EXHIBITIONS

HBC53: Annual Members’ Exhibition at the American Bookbinders Museum

The intent to enter will open in February.

Books will be due at the beginning of April.

The exhibition will run May 17th through August 23rd.

You can participate in the catalog design for HBC53 by sending photos of any interesting plaquettes or models you have made. They do not need to be related to the book you are entering in HBC53. Please photograph the plaquettes in natural light, against a white background, without shadows and send them to robin@robinbrandes.com See example photo above.

EVENTS

HBC HOLIDAY PARTY THIS TUESDAY, DECEMBER 3RD

It’s not too late to RSVP for our holiday party. This year we are having it at the Book Club of California in downtown San Francisco from 6PM to 8PM this Tuesday. It will be a potluck get-together and there will also be an optional White Elephant gift swap.

For more details and to RSVP, please check out our website.

RSVP

WORKSHOPS

We were pleased to welcome Gavin Dovey to the Bay Area to teach a short series of workshops for HBC in early November. The series was the culmination of months of planning, and Gavin did not disappoint! In two one-day workshops, students got to practice two decorative techniques that Gavin has mastered in his bindings: eggshell veneer and applied photo transfer on leather. In a longer, more in-depth workshop, Gavin guided students in making a complete binding using a variation of a Bradel binding that can be used for fine/design bindings.

Many thanks to the CODEX Foundation for hosting us at their Flex Space in Berkeley. We hope to hold a similar series with Gavin in the fall of next year, so stay tuned!

If there are any bookbinders, book artists, or experts of the related arts you know who might be interested in teaching for HBC, please email board@handbookbinders.org. Potential instructors can be located in the Bay Area or far afield!

JANE AARON SCHOLARSHIP FUND

We would like to raise $1500 for the scholarship fund by the end of 2025. This could provide three students with partial-tuition scholarships to advanced workshops we plan to hold. Educating bookbinders has been an essential part of our founding mission since our inception in 1972. Bringing instructors from outside the Bay Area allows our members to be exposed to cutting-edge ideas and techniques, but due to instructor travel expenses, these workshops can be too costly for bookbinders just starting out in their careers. To help these students, the scholarship program was established in 2014 by Jane Aaron, an early HBC member. We are grateful to carry on her spirit of generosity.

Annual membership renewal season is here; why not add a small amount to your dues and help a fellow bookbinder? If everyone gave an average of just $15, we could meet our goal. Thanks for considering!

We will also be rolling out some exciting new HBC merch in 2025 that will benefit the scholarship fund that we will preview at the Holiday party! Keep your browser locked to handbookbinders.org.

JOIN HBC

CLASSIFIEDS

Do you have something you’d like to advertise? Please email us at editor@handbookbinders.org!

BOOKISH EVENTS

Upcoming events from around the Bay Area and beyond!

From the Bench of Erin Fletcher virtually hosted by SFCB on December 5th from 12pm - 1:30pm.
Rare Books: What Makes Them Rare & How to Care For Them virtually hosted by the American Bookbinders Museum on December 7th from 11am - 12pm.
Mark your calendars for the Rare Book Sale 2024 at the Letterform Archive, in-person and online. December 8 from 12pm - 4pm.

If you would like to add events to our website, please fill out the event submission form.