April 22, 1997

Contact: Craig D¹Ooge (202) 707-9189

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Center for Book and AIGA Sponsor Book Design Lectures

A lecture series about the changing role of the book designer in the electronic age is being held at the Library of Congress this spring under the auspices of the Center for the Book and the Washington D.C. chapter of the American Institute of Graphic Arts (AIGA). "The series is a result of a new partnership between AIGA and the Center for the Book," said center director John Y. Cole. "Our joint project emphasizes the importance of book design and of the alphabet itself in promoting reading and literacy."

On April 16, at the first lecture, book designer and publisher William Drenttel of New York City, president emeritus of AIGA and chairman of both the AIGA's Literacy Initiative and its 50 Books/50 Covers Book Show, explored how designers are breaking new ground as authors, editors, and publishers."

The next two lectures are on April 29 and May 15, 1997 in the Mumford Room on the sixth floor of the Library's James Madison Building. For information about the lecture series, call the AIGA hotline at (202) 347-3881.

"The Book as Art" will be addressed on Tuesday, April 29, 1997, by book designer, writer, and photographer Barbara Hodgson, who will focus on her background and progression from designer to designer-writer. Ms. Hodgson is the author of the illustrated novel The Tattooed Map (Chronicle Books). She and Nick Bantock are co-founders and partners of Byzantium Books, a book packaging company dedicated to challenging the form of the book.

Ellen Lupton, author, designer, and Curator of Contemporary Design at the Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum in New York, will speak on Thursday, May 15, 1997. Her topic is "Designer as Author." Drawing examples from her own accomplishments and from the history of design, she will examine the ways in which she combines her own writing, designing, and publishing. Ms. Lupton has written several books and organized a series of major exhibitions at the Cooper-Hewitt, including "Mechanical Brides: Women and Machines from Home to Office," and "Mixing Messages: Graphic Design in Contemporary Culture."

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PR 97-79
4/22/97
ISSN 0731-3527