The Dog Days of Summer...Is Anyone Barking?

Here we are in the dog days of summer...August opened with a national heatwave that was unprecedented...so, to bring some cooling thoughts let's look ahead to Fall and some great opportunities for book arts!  Already posted, book arts centers across the country are offering some great workshops for novice and expert book artists alike!  If you're on the East Coast, check out The Center for Book Arts in New York City, www.centerforbookarts.org and the Asheville Bookworks in Asheville, NC or SC (I always forget which Carolina, but, you know which one I mean) at www.ashevillebookworks.com under the direction of Laurie Corral, a great book artist in her own right.  If you're in the midwest or want to hop a plane, check out the Columbia Center for Book and Paper Arts in Chicago, IL at www.colum.edu/bookandpaper; the Kalamazoo Book Arts Center, Kalamazoo, MI at www.kalbookarts.org and the Minneapolis Center for the Book at www.mnbookarts.org.  Out on the West Coast, check out the San Francisco Center for the Book at www.sfcb.org.  All of them offer fabulous weekend book arts warrior type workshops as well as letterpress and other various media to get those creative ideas flowing.  Also, check out their exhibits as all have adjacent gallery space for viewing and musing.  The Columbia Center for Book and Paper Arts's exhibit just got reviewed in Art Forum and the Center for Book Arts' special summer exhibit culled from its archives will be traveling the country making several stops...check that out, too!  To check out the workshop teachers and their work, go to www.vampandtramp.com, an artist's book dealer specializing in artist's books and broadsides.  Most of the workshop teachers are represented by Vamp and Tramp and you may after viewing their work, just have to buy a work or two...
Some other book arts exhibits to check out are "Bookworks" at New Orleans Museum of Art...check their website for exhibit dates and times; and "Bookopolis", the Asheville Bookworks annual book arts exhibit and extravaganza.  The writer of this blog will have a work in the exhibit.  So, stay cool and enjoy the summer that lasts.  As we move into the winter months with snow, ice and freezing rain, I know I'll be wishing for the dog days of summer!