UK Libraries' King Library Press will hold its annual Wayzgoose (Open House) on Thursday, Sept. 21 on the Veranda between the Special Collections Research Center and the Fine Arts Library.
All UK and Lexington community members are invited to stop by between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. to view live demonstrations of the Press’s hand-operated printing presses, see the incredible handmade book art produced by the Press, and enjoy some free snacks.
Founded in 1956, the King Library Press is one of the oldest and most prolific of the collegiate presses. The Press has produced dozens of books, broadsides, and keepsakes over its near seven-decade history, earning a reputation as a premier teaching and bibliographic press renowned for the quality and craftsmanship of its products.
The Press provides numerous ways for students, faculty, staff, and community members to get involved in the book arts.
Seminars and workshops held every semester bring some of the most distinguished printers, type designers, typographers, and book artists from around the world to UK’s campus, providing an opportunity to gain hands-on experience with noted experts in the field.
This fall's Book Arts Weekend will feature a lecture from Philadelphia-based artist Rebecca Gilbert on Friday, Oct. 27 and a workshop with Gilbert and Kentucky artist Joanne Price on Saturday, Oct. 28.
The Press offers apprenticeships and volunteer opportunities to students across all majors at the undergraduate and graduate level and to all faculty, staff, and community members regardless of prior experience. Apprentices and volunteers can work with the Press for as little as a semester or as long as several years.
Working with the Press is a unique and unparalleled opportunity to learn a centuries-old art from world-renowned experts with decades of experience across all aspects of printing and typography. Apprentices and volunteers learn skills in type distribution, printing, book binding, and decorative paper design, and can also earn course credit.
The Press also enables apprentices to design and create their own handmade objects.
Isabelle Pethtel '22 started volunteering at the Press during her sophomore year. As a senior, she carried out a year-long independent study, working with the Press to produce her own children’s book, King of the Coop. Pethtel wrote the story, engraved linocut prints, printed the book on a Chandler & Price press, then watercolored the illustrations and bound the book by hand.
Pethtel was recognized with the Dean's Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Scholarship for her work.
To learn more about the King Library Press, visit us in the Basement of the Special Collections Research Center on a Tuesday or Thursday from morning to early afternoon, or contact King Library Press Director Dr. Paul Evans Holbrook at peholbr@post.harvard.edu to schedule a class visit or a tour.
