dates and deadlines
Over the last two decades, there have been a number of essays—and, ironically, books—that predict the demise of traditional books in the wake of digital media. Defining the term “book” loosely, as a vehicle for visual or verbal content that is organized into “sections,” this intensive ten‐day workshop will challenge overly simplistic, even fatalistic, ideas about the demise of physical books by stressing instead the ways novel renditions of physical and digital and hybrid “books” carry meaning. The objective is to encourage participants to explore unconventional forms that books may take and to create an artwork/designed object that challenges ideas of what books can be.
is organized by
Leslie Atzmon
Ryan Molloy
and led by
Jon Sueda
Willem Henri Lucas
While the instructors will guide the direction of and lead discussions at the workshop, participants will be asked to contribute their particular knowledge and skill sets and contribute to the topic through presentations of their ideas and their creative work or research.
The workshop is open to students, educators, and professionals from all disciplines.
The Open Book workshop runs from
The cost of the workshop is
The application deadline for the workshop is
Participants can download the application here.
This workshop is an offshoot of the Open Book experimental book exhibition that was held in Eastern Michigan University’s University Gallery from
April 3 to June 15, 2010.
Support for this workshop has been provided by the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) Art Works grant, Eastern Michigan University, Eastern Michigan University College of Arts and Sciences, and Eastern Michigan University's Women in Philanthropy. This workshop is also in partnership with AIGA Detroit and AIGA Toledo.
Willem Henri Lucas studied at the Academy of Visual Arts in Arnhem in the Netherlands and did his post academic studies at the Sandberg Institute, Rietveld Academy in Amsterdam. From 1990 to 2002 he served as Professor and Chair of the Utrecht School of the Arts' Graphic Design department. He works for clients who are mostly based in the field of culture and art. In 1998 Lucas designed holiday postage stamps for the PTT (Dutch Post and Telecom Company). Primarily a book designer (exploring sensibility of printed matter in material as well as content), Lucas is interested in addressing social issues—bringing design back “to the street,” and “humanity” back into design, as well as encouraging future designers to be a valuable part of their communities. His body of work deals with issues of “war” and “love” and “the human condition.” Lucas has won several book design awards in the Netherlands and the US.
Originally from Hawaii, Sueda has practiced design everywhere from Honolulu to Holland. After earning his MFA in Graphic Design from CalArts in 2002, he was invited to North Carolina State University to serve as a designer in residence, followed by an internship in the Netherlands with Studio Dumbar. In 2004, Sueda founded the design studio Stripe, which specializes in print and exhibition design for art and culture. He is also the co-editor of Task Newsletter, and the co-organizer of AtRandom events. In 2007, Sueda relocated to the San Francisco area where he is currently an Assistant Professor in the Undergraduate Graphic Design and Graduate Design Programs at California College of the Arts (CCA), and Design Director at the CCA Wattis Institute for Contemporary Arts. Most recently, he was responsible for the graphic identity and all printed and exhibition graphic design for Untitled (12th Istanbul Biennial) in 2011, he also curated the exhibitions The Way Beyond Art: Wide White Space at CCA Wattis Institute for Contemporary Arts, and Work from California at the 25th International Graphic Design Biennial in Brno, Czech Republic.
Sueda has lectured, taught workshops and has been visiting critic at Art Center College of Design; California Institute of the Arts (CalArts); Cranbrook Academy of Art; North Carolina State University; Otis College of Art and Design; Rutgers University; Southern California Institute of Architecture (SCI ARC); University of Hawaii; University of Bozen-Bolzano, Italy; and École des Beaux-Arts de Rennes, France. His work has been included in the exhibitions East Coast, West Coast (Galerie-Anatome, Paris, 2003); Graphic Design in the White Cube (Moravian Gallery, Brno, 2006); Forms of Inquiry (Architectural Association, London, 2007); Jérôme Saint-Loubert Bié expose 13 affiches (Galerie de Multiples, Paris, 2007); and Doubles Pages (Ecole des Beaux-arts, Rennes, 2008).
Leslie Atzmon is Professor of Graphic Design and Design History at Eastern Michigan University. She has both an M.F.A. in graphic design and a Ph.D. in design history. Atzmon does graphic design, animation, and artist's books, as well as scholarly work in design history. Her principal areas of research interest are turn-of-the-century fantasy imagery, book history, and the history of typography. She has published articles in the journals Design Issues and Visual Communication, and on the Eye magazine online version. Atzmon's most recent project is a collection of visual culture essays entitled Visual Rhetoric and the Eloquence of Design from Parlor Press. Atzmon has presented her work at conferences of the College Art Association, the Design History Society, the Modern Language Association, the American Institute of Graphic Arts, and the International Organization of Design Studies and Design History. Atzmon's animations and artist's books have been featured in a number of exhibitions.
Ryan Molloy is a freelance designer, artist, educator, and inter-disciplinary designer. Prior to teaching at Eastern, he was a visiting lecturer at the University of Texas at Austin's Design Division where he also received his M.F.A. in Design. Molloy has a B.Arch. degree as well, and he has worked as both an architect and a graphic designer. His design work received an Art Directors Club Young Guns 5 award. In 2006 he edited and published a small-run magazine entitled Redaction. Redaction won Best in Show in the juried exhibition Design Re:View 2007, a show sponsored by the Detroit chapter of the American Institute of Graphic Arts. In Fall 2008 his video work was featured in the prestigious OneDotZero film festival. In early 2009 he had a solo exhibition at the Urban Institute of Contemporary Arts in Grand Rapids, MI, and he co-organized the exhibition "Dimension and Typography: A Survey of Letterforms in Space and Time" in Chicago, IL. In addition to exhibiting locally in Ann Arbor and Detroit, his work has also been exhibited at the Austin Museum of Digital Art, in the show "I Love Bytes" at Sheffield's Millennium Galleries in the U.K., and at the Australian Centre for the Moving Image.
The cost of the workshop is $425.00.
The fee includes housing, dinners, and related workshop supplies.
For those interested, the workshop can be taken for 3 hours of college credit. Current Eastern Michigan University tuition and fees, approximately $850.00 residents/$2,100.00 non-residents, will be added to the cost of the workshop for those wanting college credit. Non-EMU students must apply to the university as a guest student in order to get college-level credit.
Some supplies and materials specific to the workshop will be provided for all participants. It is recommended that all participants bring general art making supplies. Participants are also encouraged to bring any other materials and supplies they may find useful in tackling their projects.
Eastern Michigan University's Jean Nobel Parsons Center has sleeping lodge units that include two beds, chairs, dressers, and closets. Guests should plan to bring their own sleeping bags, sheets, blankets, pillows and towels, as well as, personal items like soap and shampoo.
Flights are available to Traverse City from Detroit Metropolitan Airport on Delta Airlines, US Air, and United Airlines.
It takes five hours to drive from Ann Arbor to Lake Ann.
If there are enough participants arriving at Detroit Metro Airport, the organizers will assist in arranging transportation to the Parson's Center.
Dinner will be communal style, cooked by members of the workshop. Lunch and breakfast will be on your own. The Dining Hall is equipped with stove, microwave, refrigerator, dual ovens, dishwasher and icemaker. Nearby Traverse City and Lake Ann provide adequate access to groceries. Please notify the workshop coordinators of any specific dietary restrictions.
The Sleeping Lodge, which sleeps 12, is six units with two beds, closets, dressers and chairs in each unit. Each unit has a separate entrance with a view of the woods. Platform tent sites furnished with cots are also available. Restroom/washroom facilites, with men's and women's showers, are located in the Dining Hall. Participants must provide their own bedding and linens—sheets, pillows, towels, etc.
Application deadline: May 25th, 2013
Acceptance notifications: no later than early June
Down payment due: June 20, 2013
No refund: July 1, 2013
Participant Arrival: August 08-09, 2013
Workshop Dates: August 09-August 18, 2013
The coordinators pair new guest instructors together to bring a unique experience each year. In 2011 the guest instructors were Denise Gonzales Crisp and Christopher Baker. In 2012 the instructors were Danielle Aubert and Edwin Jager. Images from previous workshops can be seen to the right.
"The diversity of art forms provides the openest attitude to me of what art/books could be. The process of thinking opens up possibilities to different solutions."
"Conceptual rigor and, conversely, serious play, were values upheld."
"The team at the workshop was very engaging, questions were asked regularly and new devices were developed in a very constructive manner."
"My favorite part of the workshop was the morning sessions. It was a time to try new things and get out of your normal thinking space."
Application interactive* | non-interactive
Open Book Poster Download (6.6Mb)
*note: essay field does not save in Preview (on a Mac).
Leslie Atzmon, latzmon@emich.edu
Ryan Molloy, mryan7@emich.edu
EMU Extended Programs:
1.800.777.3521