- Today, we see a decrease in the production of books.
The internet is our way to find information,
but that has forced the books that are published
to be the highest quality.
People treasure books, not websites.
In the same way, as mass printing replaced
high end book production,
beautiful books obsessed William Morris.
He spent hours in antiquarian book stores
looking for the best bindings, decoration and quality.
Morris was disgusted by the increasingly poor quality
of modern printing, design and binding.
The rush to produce large quantities of books
destroyed the craft of fine typography,
printing and illustration.
With the scarcity of fine bookmaking,
like most of his other ventures,
Morris saw a need and founded his own press,
The Kelmscott Press, in 1890.
It was here where his genius for pattern
and a desire to return to a medieval world
came together.
Kelmscott's first book was the Glittering Plain.
The lavish borders recalled Morris' wall paper and textiles.
He integrated elaborate initial caps
and romanticized illustrations of medieval life.
The book immediately sold out,
proving the need for high quality limited editions.
Beyond the rich and dense handmade patterns and typography
Morris insisted on the highest quality in all aspects
of production.
He imported ink from Germany and when that
didn't meet his high standards he bagan experimenting
with his own ink.
Handmade paper was produced based on a
complex process from Venice.
And he designed three typefaces,
Golden, Troy and Chaucer.
He based these in Nicolas Jenson's 15th century fonts,
calligraphic forms from illuminated manuscript
and Germanic blackletter fonts.
Morris wrote to a friend, "I began printing books
"with the hope of producing some that would have a
"definite claim to beauty, while at the same time they
"should be easy to read and not dazzle the eye or
"trouble the intellect of the reader by eccentricity of
"form in the letters."
His design philosophy was based on 15th century books.
He said, "I had noticed that they were always beautiful
"by force of the typography. Even without added ornament
"with which many of them are so lavishly supplied,
"it is the essence of my undertaking to produce books
"that would be a pleasure to look upon as pieces of
"printing and arrangement of type."
The greatest of Kelmscott Press's editions
is an illustrated edition of Chaucer.
The Kelmscott Chaucer is considered
one of the finest English books ever created.
It took four years to produce.
Burne-Jones drew the illustrations
and Morris designed the initials and borders.
13 copies were printed on velum
and 48 were bound in white pig skin
with silver clasps.
To protect the delicate materials
and highlight it's value
a special cabinet was designed to hold the book.
Morris worked tirelessly at Kelmscott.
Perfecting ink, paper and binding techniques,
he used the press as a place for young designers
and printers to apprentice.
In the short six years that he operated the press
it changed the world of book making
and saved an industry of book design
that endures today.
Morris died in 1896 at only 62.
His doctor stated the cause of death to be,
"Simply being William Morris, and having done
"more work than most 10 men."
Without Morris' leadership, the Kelmscott Press
closed soon after.
But several other small presses in England
Europe and the United States, influenced by Kelmscott
continued the mission.
The Kelmscott Press saved the art of bookmaking
from a purely machine made process.
It reinforced the art and craft of fine printing,
type design, paper production and binding techniques.
It manifested a desire to maintain
the highest standards of excellence.
It spawned a market for collectible
and antiquarian books.
The Press created a need for fine bookmaking competitions.
The A.I.G.A. 50 books competition began within
two decades after Kelmscott, and it continues today.
Today, every small press, artisanal hand made book maker,
and high end limited edition is a direct result
of William Morris and the Kelmscott Press.