Bookbinding workshops in Chicago

The Dexterity Press workshop series is held in our new studio space in the Wicker Park neighborhood in Chicago. For now we will be offering binding classes. Keep your eyes peeled for letterpress workshops in the spring. Please see the complete descriptions below.

DEXTERITY PRESS WORKSHOP SERIES Our goal with this series is to design workshops that are accessible to a wide range of skill levels and to teach basic skills that can be prefected in their simplicity. The workshops are designed to be affordable; basic materials will be provided for the construction of mock ups and practice structures. Additional material fees may be required and will always be listed in the workshop description. Students are welcome to bring their own additional materials for projects once the basic concepts are discussed. Dexterity Press will provide basic tools needed for the workshops, however if students wish to bring their own tools a list will be emailed to all workshop participants. Most importantly, we will give you time to pause and remember that a little effort and a lot of care goes a long way. NOVEMBER/DECEMBER WORKSHOPS: Personalized photo album with letterpress cover Sundays 11am - 1pm December 2nd - December 16th 3 sessions / $60.00 Level: All levels welcome Students will learn to make a simple photo album in this class. They will also learn how to select and format a small graphic to be made into a letterpress plate and assist with printing their graphic on the cover of the photo album. Additional fees will apply for students who elect to create their own letterpress plate. All About the Accordion Thursdays 7-9pm November 29th - December 20th 4 sessions / $70.00 Level: Some previous binding experience useful but not necessary. In this class we will make books whose structure is based on the accordion fold. The carousel book combines two accordion folds to create a sibling of the pop up book and the flag book which has too many possibilities to describe here. Pdfs of all the books are available upon request. Please email for further details and descriptions of classes, or to offer suggestions of classes you would like to take. Please forward our email to anyone that you think might be interested in our workshops or our printing services. Dexterity Press is a letterpress print shop located in the Wicker Park neighborhood. We offer a range of letterpress printing services from commercial to limited edition artists books, bookbinding, custom design work and design consultation. We have been formally printing in Chicago since 2001. Jeff Mueller has been working as a letterpress printer since 1996 where he first got his hands inky as a press assistant to John Upchurch of Fireproof Press. Between now and then he has been honing his skills as a master printer, multi-tasker, and business owner. He designs music packaging and limited edition artists books. He has toured internationally with his bands June of 44 and Shipping News. Kerri Sancomb has a BFA in Printmaking from the Kansas City Art Institute (1994) and an MFA in Printmaking and Book Arts from the University of the Arts (2000) where she studied with Hedi Kyle, Peter Kruty and Sara Van Keuren. Her work with a variety of print media including letterpress, screen print, gum bichromate and vandyke brown print. She has published several artists books independently and has work in both public and private collections.

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