Engraving Demos and Book Signing New Orleans 10/20/12

Saturday, October 20, between noon and 3pm, the Hermann-Grima Historic House in New Orlean's French Quarter is hosting engraving demonstrations and a book signing for The Complete Engraver by author Nancy Sharon Collins.

Demonstrations of real, hand engraving will be by Yvette Rutledge and Vince Mitchell, and Emily DeLorge.

Its casual, free and kid friendly!

Hermann-Grima Historic House

820 Saint Louis Street

New Orleans, Louisiana

The Complete Engraver Book Tour Goes Viral

Nancy Sharon Collins is taking The Complete Engraver on the road, as a book tour.

Support her efforts to get the word out about stationery engraving.

A fantastic article was just posted on The New York Times website (though its written as if both MOMA and Clinique are active clients of Mrs. Collins—which they are not—correction forthcoming... ).

FREE fonts were developed by Terrance Weinzierl, Monotype Imaging, from antique engraver's lettering styles just for the project. (The photo on top shows Terrance holding an engraved trade card advertising the fonts. It was engraved by Hart Engraving in Milwaukee, and numbered individually in New Orleans on a Heidelberg letterpress).

Hear Ye, Hear Ye, The Complete Engraver Finally in Print!

The Complete Engraver: A Guide to Monograms, Crests, Ciphers, Seals, and the Etiquette and History of Social Stationery published by Princeton Architectural Press in September, 2012 and is now selling at Garden District Books in New Orleans, and at a book seller near you.

FREE, in conjunction with the launch, download two fonts—JMC Engraver and Feldman Engraver—developed for the book by Terrance Weinzierl and Steve Matteson, Monotype Imaging, based on original engraver’s lettering styles.

Research for the book was been presented at the 2012 Type Americana conference in Seattle, and will be at the Typecon conference in Milwaukee (August) and the American Printing History Association conference in Chicago (October).  Here are some sample spreads:

“This is for those who love everything fine.” —Marian Bantjes

“As we praise high-resolution screens, we notice that sharpness is not a virtue in itself. Digital is cold. We can swipe a screen, but we cannot feel it.

This book rediscovers the art of engraving, which makes us appreciate paper as the three-dimensional object that it is. … Digital may rule, but analog is far from dead.” —Erik Spiekermann

“If typography has a poet laureate, Collins may well be it.”—Jessica Helfand

“This billet-doux to the elegant and sensual art of engraving is a must for anyone interested in the lost art of fine printing, design, and graciousness.” —Louise Fili

“I’m hopeful that, with this book, young designers will be inspired to create contemporary applications for engraving in contemporary graphic design.”  —Steff Geissbuhler

Engravers Meet in New Orleans

Sunday, March 18, 2012 on Charming Magazine Street in New Orleans, printmaker James Ehlers gave a workshop about engraving. "James Ehlers has been the Engraving Arts Professor at Emporia State University since 2007. It is the first and only program in the world to offer a BFA in engraving arts. The program focuses on engraving as it relates to sculpture, metals, glass, found objects and printmaking. He remains active in exhibiting work and has been in over a combined 100 national, international, touring and solo exhibitions around the world." —from his blog.

As a contemporary engraver, James is particularly interesting because he teaches print engraving in the print making tradition, along with bright cut engraving (used for reflective work for jewelry, flat wear and etc.,).

After demonstrating the GRS pneumatic engraving system during the 2012 Southern Graphics Council conference in New Orleans, James treated the Louisiana Engravers Society to his "push" (traditional) engraving methods, techniques, and philosophies at Mystic Blue Signs shop.

Along with the newly acquired mini-intaglio press, Yvette Rutledge, Mystic Blue's intrepid proprietor—and herself a master engraver—shared her space, wisdom, hospitality and good will. Also in attendance, and thoroughly engrossed in the workshop, were fledgling engraver Emily DeLorge, and master engraver, Sam Alfano, Michael Deas (famed realist illustrator and creator of well known U.S. postal stamps as well as the Columbia Pictures icon), master printer, Cordell Louvier, and this author (the engraving lady).

The following day James gave another small workshop at Loyola University New Orleans with the GRS system in Bill Kitchens' printmaking studio on the Broadway campus at Loyola. James shared more of his work, and that of his students. In response, Bill shared his own amazing specimens of the intaglio process. James gave a final New Orleans engraving workshop the following day at Tulane University.