Immerse yourself in a new book, one you create from start to finish!

With Bookforms: A complete guide to designing and crafting hand-bound books, from the Center for Book Arts, you’ll learn to create beautiful and unique handbound books in a variety of styles and formats.

Bookforms introduces you to the art and craft of both Western and Asian bookbinding. You’ll not only learn its history, but also how you can handcraft your own books. Projects include:

• Accordion Books
• Soft Leather Covers
• Coptic Bindings
• Pamphlets
• And more!

BOOKFORMS

A COMPLETE GUIDE TO DESIGNING AND CRAFTING HAND

BOUND BOOKS, FROM THE CENTER FOR BOOK ARTS

Brought to you by the instructors at the Center for Book Arts in New York, Bookforms (Rockport Publishers / January 22, 2019 / $30.00 US) is a comprehensive guide for making books by hand with a focus on functionality in design.

Bookforms presents all the instruction you need to craft by hand a comprehensive array of historic bookbinding styles from all over the world. It traces the functional roots of each structure, explains their appropriateness for various uses, and provides projects for making an essential structure for each style of binding.

Topics covered include:

• Why books work: General bookbinding principles for functionality and what we can learn from the past.
• What you need to know for planning a special book or embarking on an edition.
• How materials affect function.

Bookforms tackles a wide range of projects for all levels of bookbinders. You’ll see everything from sewn and ticketed blank books and traditional western codex book forms, to scrapbooks and albums, Asian stab-sewn bindings, unusual structures, and aesthetics/embellishments. What better time to dive into this venerable and unique hobby than now?

The Center for Book Arts is one of the few contemporary arts organizations dedicated to the art of the book. Founded in 1974 in Manhattan, it was the first not-for-profit organization of its kind in the nation, and has since become a model for others around the world. The Center promotes active explorations of both contemporary and traditional artistic practices related to the book as an art object. It facilitates communication between the book arts community and the larger spheres of contemporary visual and literary arts. They achieve their mission through exhibitions, classes, public programming, literary presentations, opportunities for artists and writers, publications, and collecting.