Call for Papers [PDF version (50K)]

Saving the History of Printing
APHA's 2008 Conference
New York City, October 10-12, 2008

The American Printing History Association (APHA) welcomes proposals for its 33rd annual conference, Saving the History of Printing. The conference will be held in New York City on October 10-12, 2008, with a keynote address by James Mosley at the Grolier Club on Friday October 10 and the main proceedings on Saturday, October 11 at Columbia University. Full conference details will be available at the APHA website, www.printinghistory.org

The conference theme is the preservation of the stuff of printing history, broadly conceived – the material (presses, type, plates, blocks, bookbinding equipment), the documentation (manuals, type specimens, archives), and the practices (the skills and knowledge necessary to operate the equipment, or to make the paper, ink, punches, etc.) – from the earliest days of printing up to the present. We welcome participation by printers, papermakers and other practitioners of the allied crafts, librarians, curators, academics, independent scholars, and collectors.

We particularly encourage papers that address:
-- why and to what purpose a museum collects printing equipment
-- how an institution encourages visitors to engage with printing history
-- how no-longer-commercial skills are perpetuated

Papers
Papers will be 20 minutes in length.

Panels
Proposals are welcome for panels of three to four speakers and a moderator (circa one to one-and-a-half hours).

Guidelines
Proposals should include a title, an abstract, contact information, a short biographical statement, and should list specific equipment needs such as slide and digital projectors. Proposals should not exceed one page. All presenters must have current APHA memberships at the time of registration.

Deadlines
Proposals are due April 1, 2008. Program announcements are expected June 1, 2008.

Update: Due to APHA webserver and communications difficulties, the deadline has been extended to May 1, 2008.
 

Submission
Electronic (preferred) or hard copy submissions will be accepted.
Email proposals (Word document file, PDF or text) to apha2008conference@gmail.com 

Mail proposals to co-chairs: Gerald Cloud & Jane Siegel, Rare Book and Manuscript Library, Columbia University, Butler Library, Sixth Floor, 535 West 114th Street, New York, NY 10027, or fax to 212-854-1365.

Apart from its conference, APHA supports research and scholarship through its journal Printing History, publications, an oral history project, and a fellowship program. The association, founded in 1974, encourages the preservation of printing artifacts and source materials for printing history. Additional information, including a membership form, may be found online at www.printinghistory.org

Download PDF version of this announcement (50K )

More information about APHA Conferences is here.