By Jeffrey Price
Fellow Collectors James Goode, Lew Jaffe and collector/dealer Tom
Boss opened a gate to the
wonderland of bookplates. How could I have not been aware of such a vast and
rewarding field? Why weren't names like E. D. French, Spenceley, and C.
S. Junge familiar to me? The fact that this entire genre of prints was 'under-the-radar' was so fascinating to me that I immediately dove in to
learning all I could and acquiring some prints. It certainly was challenging to
figure out what areas I wanted to focus on when so many genres were appealing.
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| Engraved by A.N. Macdonald for Enrico Caruso |
I soon discovered that there were
at least three distinctly different types of prints in the ex libris world. The
British had created armorial plates featuring family crests and insignias for hundreds
of years. In Europe the majority of modern ex libris prints were actually
editions of 'free graphics' and surrealistic etchings, always inscribed with a
patron's name and interestingly often too large to ever be glued into a book.
Americans raised the art of ex
libris to new heights with some of history's finest engravers and designers
creating miniature works of consummate beauty and craftsmanship. These American
Masters soon became the focus of my collecting, and I began to acquire prints,
proofs, and vintage books by these artists.
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| Engraved by E.D. French , designed by Howard Pyle for The Yale Club |
I thought a lot about the words ex libris' and 'bookplate.' Certainly, many of these
prints could have been glued into books to identify ownership, but these prints
were so much more than name-plates. Each print reflected the personality of the
patron, the craft of the artist, and the history of the time in which it was
created. I believe many of these prints were presented by their owners as gifts
to friends and collectors. My collection of plates, however, was not in books;
each print was treasured separately and many were destined to be on my walls in
fine picture frames. I decided the name 'Personal Prints' was the most
appropriate title for a collection of these prints. My hope is that name sticks
and becomes part of the general vocabulary describing bookplates. These prints
deserve more dignity and a greater presence in the world of art and I believe
new nomenclature is a good place to start!
After speaking to James
Goode, Lew Jaffe and Tom Boss I discovered there were many appealing paths to
explore in the Bookplate World. I began acquiring prints by famous artists or
works commissioned by notable patrons. How exciting it was to discover that I
could own a small print by Aubrey Beardsley, Winslow Homer and Maxfield
Parrish, artists I had admired all my life! That enjoyment was multiplied by
the fact that my art gallery features a world-class picture-framing workshop,
and I was able to design frames for these works.
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| Designed by Maxfield Parrish for Theodore Weicker |
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| Designed by Aubrey Beardsley for John Henry Ashworth |
I learned that the usual way
collectors organized their bookplates was to put them in albums or boxes in
much the same way that stamps or baseball cards are stored. A lifetime of
picture frame designing experience enabled me to create a gallery display of
bookplates that was historical as well as down-right gorgeous. The possibilities for creative design are endless and a well-designed
frame will only enhance and never overpower its contents. Fortunately, many
small personal prints have huge impact that balances a complex frame design. It
was inevitable that I would collect far quicker than I could sell these prints,
and the fact was that I wanted to keep much of what I acquired for my own
collection anyway, so I decided rather than a typical gallery exhibit I would
create a space in my gallery known as 'The Artists' Bookplate Museum.' Of
course, unlike most museums, many of the works on the walls had price-tags
along with their historical captions!
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| Designed by E.B. Bird and engraved by E.D. French |
One fortunate acquisition was
a tattered 1911 edition of Freud's 'Interpretation of Dreams' with Charlie
Chaplin's marvelous bookplate affixed to the inside of the front cover. The
cover had separated from the book long ago, and that gave me the opportunity to
frame the cover without committing the sin of destroying a historic book. I
designed a frame with a hand-marbled-paper mat to surround the lovely view of
Chaplin gazing at London with his trademark cane and shoes below and a
theatrical mask above. Turning the frame over revealed the front of the
book-cover with Freud's name and the title of his famous work. As a bonus, I
commissioned Lynda Libby, a fine bookbinder from Washington State, to rebind
the original book. Hanging in my gallery, I have no doubt that this little gem
honoring Chaplin and Freud will be a great temptation to a future collector,
especially considering that they can have Chaplin's personal copy of Freud's
important book on their bookshelf while they enjoy a unique artwork on the
wall.
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| Designed by Rob Wagner for Charlie Chaplin |
Another unique presentation was
created for a spectacular hand-colored example of the Ohio print for the Manila
Library by Hopson which was embellished with a beautiful remarque. This print
was accompanied by the original booklet describing the commission and the
symbolism of the various design elements. The booklet was beautiful as well as
informative, so I designed a frame with a pocket on the outside of the
glass to hold the information, which could be raised from the pocket by pulling
on a Mylar tab. I was thrilled that the print and the booklet could both be
elegantly displayed and fully studied. This one was only on my gallery's walls
for a few weeks before one of my clients - a woman who had never collected a
bookplate before - became enthralled with this treasure and bought it on the
spot.
I’ve continued to explore
ways to combine the publication of a print with its creative process. I’ve
designed frames that display an original printing plate by Carl Junge or Sarah
Euginia Blake together with an example of their final print.
I have developed a frame design using rare earth magnets that allow a
small booklet to be shown off in a frame together with an associated print in
such a way that the booklet can be easily removed from the frame for study. W.
F. Hopson’s ‘Rowfantia’ proof and booklet was perfect for this cutting-edge
frame.
At its best, a framed
bookplate should continue to tell the story of the artwork, combining the
history of the era, the desires of the patron, and the artistic skill of the
printmaker.
Jeffrey Price
Artists’ Bookplate Museum
at Artists’ Market
163 Main Street
Norwalk CT 06851
203-846-2550
