ACT Heritage Library Manuscript Collection
HMSS 0297 Canberra Craft Bookbinders' Guild Records
Call Number |
HMSS 0297 |
Collection |
Canberra Craft Bookbinders' Guild Records |
Date Range |
1981-2002 |
Quantity |
1.25m (4 boxes, one oversized bundle) |
Access Conditions |
open |
Copying conditions |
with attribution |
Related Collections |
The Craft Bookbinders’ Guild was formed in Canberra in May 1981 by a group of interested persons working in the binding trade and amateur craftspeople and artists with the inaugural president as Neale Wootton. Membership is open to the public and includes professional bookbinders working in some of the national collecting institutions :(National Library of Australia; National Archives of Australia); hobby and creative bookbinders, and related craftspeople.
Regular general meetings and Committee meetings were held in various community locations in Canberra. In 2008, general evening meetings are held every two months at the Woden Community Centre. The Committee meets regularly at the homes of Committee members.
The Guild changed its name in 1990 to the Canberra Craft Bookbinders’ Guild. (See Raised Bands December 1990)
The Guild published a newsletter and a continuing publication ‘Raised Bands’ which, from 2007 is published on the Guild’s website and issued in paper form to exchange partners and collecting institutions. The Guild maintains exchanges of publications with a number of Australian and international bookbinding groups.
The Guild’s objectives are to:
— To promote and exhibit the art of the hand-bound book.
— To maintain traditional craft bookbinding skills
— To seek to exert a progressive influence on the design and technique of bookbinding.
A highlight of the Guild’s activities was the organisation of the First National Conference of Craft Bookbinders – Australia, Canberra 9-11 November 1984, at the Canberra School of Art. In 1990 an exhibition of contemporary bindings was held in collaboration with the Crafts Council of the ACT in the National Library of Australia.
The Guild’s activities in 2006-2007 include a website and publication of the newsletter bi-monthly meetings at the Woden Community Centre. Meetings incorporate information sessions; guest speakers and hands-on skill sharing activities. A regular program of introductory workshops has been conducted to share basic bookbinding skills with the general public and with other craftspeople and visual artists. Some of these classes have been conducted by Linda Newbown. The Guild has also sought to maintain its membership and profile by regularly displaying work by members at branches of the ACT Library Service, the first of which was held in 2005 at the Griffith Library prior to its closure.
In 2008 principal office bearers of the Guild are Dario Castello (President); Wendy Taylor (Secretary), and Peter Field (Treasurer).
The Guild arranged to place papers relating to the development of the Guild and its activities in the collection of the ACT Heritage Library in 2008. The papers had been held by various members and by Neale Wootton, on behalf of the Guild, in the Binding Studio at the Canberra Institute of Technology.
References
Guild website: http://www.canberrabookbinders.org.au
Louise Burmester
Vice President
Canberra Craft Bookbinders’ Guild
18 June 2008
Canberra Craft Bookbinders’ Guild
Series list
Series |
Items |
Title |
Date Range |
Extent |
Notes |
1 |
1-5 |
Rules of the Guild, foundation, inauguration and membership |
1981-1992 |
5 files |
Item 1 is a list of files in original arrangement |
2 |
1-7 |
Publications and newsletters |
1981-1989 |
6 files |
|
3 |
1-2 |
Minutes of meetings held Committee and general |
1982-1991 |
2 files |
|
4 |
Not numbered
|
General correspondence |
1981-1991 |
6 files |
Items arranged in files in chronological order |
5 |
1-2 |
Conferences |
1983-1990 |
2 files |
|
6 |
1-7 |
Miscellaneous papers of the Guild |
1973-1993 |
7 files |
Includes newspaper cuttings, catalogues, and material relating to suppliers and insurance for Guild activities. |
7 |
Not numbered |
Material relating to the organisation of the First National Conference of Craft Bookbinders – Australia, Canberra, 9-11 November 1984, Canberra School of Art |
1983-1984 |
1 Type 4 box |
Items not further arranged but held in order as received. Some materials have been gathered into folders and tied to keep them together. Image materials included in this box. |
8 |
Not numbered |
Sound recordings (on cassette) and image materials relating to activities of the Canberra Craft Bookbinders’ Guild. Slides relate to the catalogue produced for the 1989-1990 exhibition of Contemporary Binding. Sound recordings relate to the first four annual general meetings and guest speakers on bookbinding topics. |
1980s-1990s |
1 Type 2 box |
One cassette tape (18 minutes, 1990?) is a sound recording of the Hon Gough Whitlam opening Fine Books Fine Bindings Exhibition as part of the National Word Festival at the National Library (?) in association of the Crafts Council of the ACT. Mr Whitlam talks about the art of bookbinding and the work of Monique de la Motte one of the exhibitors, (an Australian working in Paris),.who has rebound some of his books. He also speaks of the work of Geoffrey and Percival Searle; relating to one of the works bound by several binders in the exhibition; the Australian Dictionary of Biography; early South Australian Governors, and the references in that work to the awards of the Hanoverian Order and imperial awards generally. He also mentions Alec Bolton and Rosemary Dobson and whether or not the books on exhibitions are available for sale |
9 |
|
Large format art works and signage of the Canberra Craft Bookbinders’ Guild. |
1980s-1990s |
1 large format item |
|
BOX LIST
Box |
Series |
Item |
Extent |
Date Range or latest covered |
Item description |
Contents notes |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 file |
[undated] |
List of numbered files |
Files numbered 1-14 File list with manuscript annotations removed from top of box |
1 |
1 |
2 |
1 file |
[undated] |
Rules of the Guild |
|
1 |
1 |
3 |
1 file |
1981-1985 |
Foundation and history |
|
1 |
1 |
4 |
1 file |
1981-1992 |
Membership applications |
File numbered 2 (see file list Series 1 Item 1) May contain personal information on members |
1 |
1 |
5 |
1 file |
1981-1991 |
Membership lists |
File numbered 3 (see file list Series 1 Item 1) May contain personal information on members |
1 |
2 |
1 |
1 file |
July 1981–June 1987 |
Newsletters of the Guild |
File numbered 4 (see file list Series 1 Item 1) |
1 |
2 |
2 |
1 file |
June 1987–June 1988 |
Newsletters of the Guild |
File numbered 4 (see file list Series 1 Item 1) |
1 |
2 |
3 |
1 file |
1983-2002 |
Raised Bands issues |
Some gaps |
1 |
2 |
4 |
1 file |
[undated] |
Brochures and related publications of the Guild |
|
1 |
2 |
5 |
1 file |
[undated] |
Stationery, forms |
Stationery and forms located across the collection have been placed here. |
1 |
2 |
6 |
1 file |
[undated] |
Notes and publications other than those of the Guild |
|
1 |
2 |
7 |
1 file |
1985-1989 |
Notes for workshops and for information of members |
File numbered 5 (see file list Series 1 Item 1) |
1 |
3 |
1 |
1 file |
Feb 1982–Nov 1983 |
Minutes of meetings general and annual general meetings |
|
1 |
3 |
2 |
1 file |
July 1982–August 1991 |
Minutes of Committee meetings |
File numbered 6 (see file list Series 1 Item 1) |
1 |
4 |
----- |
1 files |
1981-1991 |
General correspondence |
Files numbered 7 1-5 (see file list Series 1 Item 1) File 6 empty file cover only. Original arrangement retained. Files not renumbered into series arrangement. |
2 |
4 |
----- |
5 files |
1981-1991 |
General correspondence |
Files numbered 7 1-5 (see file list Series 1 Item 1) File 6 empty file cover only. Original arrangement retained. Files not renumbered into series arrangement. |
2 |
5 |
1 |
2 files |
1983-1984 |
Conferences and exhibitions |
File numbered 8 (see file list Series 1 Item 1) is an empty file cover only. Contains a file of material relating to the First National Conference of Craft Bookbinders held in Canberra in November 1984 |
2 |
5 |
2 |
1 file |
1989-1990 |
Material related to the exhibition of contemporary bindings, 1989-1990 |
File numbered 11 (see file list Series 1 Item 1) Some material relating to this event which had been filed in Box 3 has been incorporated into this file |
2 |
6 |
1 |
1 file |
1973-1984 |
Newspaper cuttings |
File numbered 9 (see file list Series 1 Item 1) |
2 |
6 |
2 |
1 file |
1980s |
Miscellaneous articles and cuttings |
File numbered 10 (see file list Series 1 Item 1) |
2 |
6 |
3 |
1 file |
1989-1990 |
Bookbinding International |
File numbered 12 (see file list Series 1 Item 1) |
2 |
6 |
4 |
1 file |
1992-1993 |
Insurance |
|
2 |
6 |
5 |
1 file |
1989-1992 |
Hire record for the James Brockman parer |
|
2 |
6 |
6 |
1 file |
[undated] |
Catalogues |
Catalogues relating to bookbinding equipment and supplies |
2 |
6 |
7 |
1 file |
1981 |
Correspondence from supplier Derek Beck, London |
Contains some black and white photographic print images of bookbinding equipment on offer for sale to the Guild |
3 |
7 |
----- |
1 box (Type 4) |
1983-1984 |
Material relating to the organisation of the First National Conference of Craft Bookbinders – Australia, Canberra, 9-11 November 1984, Canberra School of Art |
One file numbered 8 (see file list Series 1 Item 1). This file contains a satchel as distributed at the conference. This file also contains draft conference papers; publicity artwork and photographic prints and negatives of conference activities. |
4 |
6 |
8 |
1 file |
1996-2002 |
Annual Accounts |
|
4 |
8 |
----- |
1 box |
1980s-1990s |
Sound recordings (on cassette) and image materials relating to activities of the Canberra Craft Bookbinders’ Guild. Slides relate to the catalogue produced for the 1989-1990 exhibition of Contemporary Binding. Sound recordings relate to the first four annual general meetings and guest speakers on bookbinding topics. |
One cassette tape (18 minutes, 1990?) is a sound recording of the Hon Gough Whitlam opening Fine Books Fine Bindings Exhibition as part of the National Word Festival at the National Library (?) in association of the Crafts Council of the ACT. Mr Whitlam talks about the art of bookbinding and the work of Monique de la Motte one of the exhibitors, (an Australian working in Paris),.who has rebound some of his books. He also speaks of the work of Geoffrey and Percival Searle; relating to one of the works bound by several binders in the exhibition; the Australian Dictionary of Biography; early South Australian Governors, and the references in that work to the awards of the Hanoverian Order and imperial awards generally. He also mentions Alec Bolton and Rosemary Dobson and whether or not the books on exhibitions are available for sale |
5 |
9 |
----- |
1 large format item |
1980s-1990s |
Large format art works and signage of the Canberra Craft Bookbinders’ Guild. |
Includes copies of life memberships awarded to Bill Thorn and Linda Newbown |