Discover the Book Arts Workshop, a vibrant and unique part of the Dartmouth campus offering students, faculty, and community members the opportunity to explore the arts of bookbinding, printing, and typography.
The Book Arts Workshop is currently open to community members, staff, faculty and students. Face coverings are welcome, but not required.
About
Explore and learn about the world of books through historical and contemporary mediums, including letterpress printing, digital design, and hand-bookbinding!
From creating sturdy journals or pop-up books to printing images from low-relief objects, you’ll have access to the Workshop’s bindery, presses, and wide selection of metal and wood typefaces to bring your project to life. We offer faculty and curricular support as well.
Browse and book yourself into classes and events currently on offer. Take a studio tour or stop by during our open-studio hours.
We welcome all abilities and skill levels and your Workshop sessions include full use of equipment and materials.
Want to stay in the loop about Open Studio sessions, classes, and special events? Join Dartmouth Book Arts Listserv to receive weekly reminders.
Please note, in light of increasing material and resourcing costs for Dartmouth’s ever-growing curricular and community engagement, some of our programs and events will require a materials/administrative fee. Read about our fees and registration, cancellation, & refund policies.
We’ll continue to offer special drop-in events free of charge to the Dartmouth community. You’ll see those sessions marked as such on our events booking page.
Faculty & Curricular Support
As a valued part of the Dartmouth experience, the Book Arts Workshop is available to faculty for curricular support, collaboration, and co-teaching. Over the years we’ve hosted classes from many departments; including English, Studio Art, Russian, Computer Science, and Environmental Studies, to tailor instruction around projects of varying length: from one session to the entire term.
If you’d like to use the workshop for an upcoming class, please contact Sarah M. Smith who can assist you in designing the exercise, confirming schedules, and obtaining any necessary supplies. This set of questions will help with planning for your project. If a full class visit isn’t possible, we always welcome the use of the workshop by individual students to complete coursework during open studio hours.
Scenes from the Book Arts Workshop
A lot happens here! You can register and attend a free class on printing or bookbinding; attend a talk or workshop with a visiting designer or book artist; visit with a class from the curriculum or work on a project just for fun! Book Arts projects have included everything from posters and journals, to pop-up books, thank you cards, wallpaper, and coasters. Browse our gallery, and if you’ve got a Book Art’s project you’d like us to feature, email Sarah at sarah.m.smith@dartmouth.edu.
Poster printing with seniors during Senior Week
Printing letterpress posters with seniors during Senior Week
We love to get our 1850's iron hand press that's in the hall at Baker going! People stopping by can print their own poster, whether it's when we set up for Winter Carnival, Senior Week—or whenever we want to cause a scene and help folks have fun learning about printing!
Tiny accordion books about cells
"Cells: The Building Blocks of Life" by Summer Christensen '21
This edition of tiny accordion books was letterpress printed and illustrated with hand-carved rubber stamps. Summer created these books as her final project for the English course, "History of the Book", taught by Alex Halasz.
Animation class letterpress printing on film
Printing on film with FILM: Handmade Cinema students
Jodie Mack's students from the Film course, Handmade Cinema printed with metal type right onto the film using one of our platen presses and special ink. The footage was part of a film that was shown in the HOP at then end of the term.
Tunnel book making workshop
Students making their own tunnel books in a free workshop
We offer a number of free workshops throughout the term on different bookbinding structures and printing techniques. These students created 3D layered diorama-like scenes called tunnel books. Stop in to one of our Open Studio sessions to check out some cool book models and maybe even schedule a workshop for your friends!
Letterpress printed posters for Latinx Art & Activism course
Letterpress posters from Latinx Art and Activism course taught by Tatiana Reinoza
The Latinx Art and Activism students printed posters using wood and metal type. Some of the posters also incorporated polymer relief plates made from imagery by José Guadalupe Posada. The students also were visited by Clementé Orozco during his visit with the Book Arts Workshop.
Printer Amos Kennedy printing and talking with First Year Seminar Film class.
Printer Amos Kennedy visited and collaborated with us for a week
We've been lucky to have Amos Kennedy visit us twice! With assistance from an Experiential Learning Course Grant from DCAL, Amos came to work with a First Year Seminar course in the FILM department, taught by Michael Evans. While he was here Amos printed with other classes such as: Music's Sounds Art Practice, taught by Ash Fure; Government's Ethics and Public Policy, taught by Julie Rose; and English's Electronic Literature, taught by Aden Evens. We printed SO many posters and had a great time hearing about Amos' experiences.
Book Arts Events
Directions
The Book Arts Workshop Studios are located in Baker Library, Rooms 21-25 (west entrance, lower level, around the corner from the Orozco murals). The Bindery Studio is in Baker Room 21 and the Letterpress Studio is in Baker Room 23. Room 25 (also known as the "Ampersand Room") is a resource room with books on books, computer, printers and a door to the Book Arts Workshop Program Manager's office.
You'll find a Baker Ground Level link on our Floor Guides page.
