Free The Books… and a call to submit prints!

At the start of 2024, Illinois became one of the few states to officially implement a ban on book banning. One advocate for the freedom to read and enjoy all the benefits of libraries is state senator Laura Murphy. Her comments about the sanctity of libraries in the shadow of threats is the subject of this month’s poster.

Call out! Hive Center for the Book Arts is putting together a show of prints inspired by both the Free the Books campaign and the rise of book bans. Now is the time to submit your work for the show that will be at the Evanston Public Library in March! The deadline is February 26th.

Our first contribution this month is from Marcy Orwig, who focuses on the art of shorthand and included this on her print. You can find her work at Water Cooler Press.

This art print is inspired by the opening line of Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Fall of the House of Usher.” I based my work on a shorthand translation of the classic tale from a 1923 issue of The Gregg Writer. Shorthand, in this case the Gregg system, was used by secretaries throughout the Twentieth Century to take dictation from “the boss.” To keep their shorthand skills sharp, secretaries would subscribe to magazines, like The Gregg Writer. Reading has been, and continues to be, important to business—so I created this art print specifically for Banned Books Week 2023, especially since Poe has been a banned author. All sales will be donated to the American Library Association in appreciation of the work they do to support readers.

I’m a huge fan of Lynne Avadenka, who maintains her own studio practice, and since 2013 has served as director of Signal-Return in Detroit. Her wonderful print is below.

I was inspired to make something for Free the Books. I got a box full of leftover pieces from Virgin Wood Type and didn't know what to do with them, lined them up and then...they looked like spines of books. The print is titled ‘New Old Story’.

Book bans are being instituted across the country at an alarming rate. As purveyors of print and avid supporters of both free speech and our public library system, this is an issue we take to heart and now, to the press!