Course location Ascona

Course location Ascona

Course location Ascona

We will rethink traditional sewing of a text block by incorporating non-traditional materials as structural elements in a binding. This allows us to build books that move and function beautifully while also taking on the challenges, for example, of having thick or heavy pages, varied dimensionality, or pop-up structures. We will also take a look at a variety of ways to create articulating spines that provide increased flexibility and allow for optimal opening of a book as well as adding a beautiful architectural element to a binding.

In this 6-day course we will learn the French style quarter leather binding. The course covers the classic French binding including the deep French groove, edge finishing, leather headbands, paring leather and the leather joint. At the end of the course, you will have all the necessary technical skills and will hold your very own quarter leather binding in your hand.

We are pleased to offer you the 5th part of the well-loved topic Hedi Kyle’s techniques in our course program! Thanks to the publication of Hedi Kyle's long-awaited reference book (an absolute must on our bookshelves!), the variety of her models is expanding. The program of the course is to create more playful folding objects focused around the book and other three-dimensional forms. The focus is on both, the technical and the creative aspects and how to implement them step by step in your own practice. Hedi Kyle lets her fantasy run free and her spirit is simply contagious!

In this course, we creatively explore the type-related aspects of the original letterpress printing.
Classical sculpting techniques combined with traditional as well as modern materials will lead us to the production of our own movable type, printing plates or even letter sculpture. In the process, we will familiarize ourselves with different alphabets and give free rein to our artistic associations.
At the end of the course, you will have knowledge, techniques, and a selected workpiece that will allow you to literally put your own personal stamp on your book creations.

The stick binding technique offers endless possibilities and non-traditional variations on how to bind a book. With this non-adhesive binding technique, each section is individually sewn onto a rod. At the end of the course, all participants will have created and constructed their own objects. The rods can be of any material that has appropriate rigidity, for example: wood, metal, plexiglas, carbon fiber, etc. As covering material for the boards, paper, cloth, leather, and so forth may be used. The structure is ideal for books with one or more sections.

This workshop will be all about designing, planning and constructing box forms. We will start with basic rectangular forms and move on to pyramidal, hexagonal and other shapes. We will learn how to plan, measure and cut basic geometric shapes using a compass and ruler and make templates for making precise cuts on the board cutter.

This course is also open to people with advanced knowledge, if this is your case please indicate it at the time of enrollment.

The springback binding is a classic binding technique that was traditionally used for accounting and register books. The unique mechanics of the solid spine and levers cause the book to “spring” open with the pages opening flat to the gutter. This allows one to write comfortably in the book without undue stress on the spine. The secrets of this technique were made available to us thanks to Buchbinderei Keller in Wetzikon, CH.