Center for Book Arts

Center for Book Arts Founded in 1974, Center for Book Arts is the oldest non-profit dedicated to uplifting the art of the

Wolfgang Schmidt’s futura 17 consists of 576 faces in a grid. The high contrast image allows the faces to shift between ...
09/02/2026

Wolfgang Schmidt’s futura 17 consists of 576 faces in a grid. The high contrast image allows the faces to shift between recognizable individual and geometric patterns fluidly. Faces break down into shapes and ambiguous shadows, and each face begins to function as its own typographical unit within the larger grid structure. Schmidt successfully blurs the line between image and type through the strict arrangement of correlated portraits, furthering Mayer's project of exploring the limits and borders of typography and print.

If you’d like to learn more about the futura series, the exhibition catalog for after futura: 26 Broadsides Printed by Hansjörg Mayer is available for purchase at our bookshop and the link below.

https://buff.ly/SCR7hOt

A new "after futura" edition, where 14 contemporary artists create RISO-printed broadsides inspired by the original series, will launch in late September! Please stay tuned for more information on how to collect yours.

A question we often hear: do I need to already be a book artist to apply? Not at all! The Workspace Residency promotes e...
09/01/2026

A question we often hear: do I need to already be a book artist to apply?

Not at all! The Workspace Residency promotes experimentation in book arts, and artists from all disciplinary backgrounds are encouraged to apply. Our goal each year is a balanced cohort of experienced book artists and artists working in other disciplines with a clear interest in exploring the field. We also encourage applications from artists of culturally diverse backgrounds.

Applications are reviewed blind by an independent panel of arts professionals. Successful applications demonstrate a committed artistic practice through work samples, statement, exhibition history, or other public artistic engagement.

Applications for 2027 close September 30. For full details and the application itself, please use this link: https://buff.ly/LS1CeKE

Looking to further your letterpress skills? Taught by instructor Rhonda Khalifeh, this in-person workshop for students w...
09/01/2026

Looking to further your letterpress skills? Taught by instructor Rhonda Khalifeh, this in-person workshop for students who have taken Letterpress I (or have equivalent experience), covers more advanced letterpress techniques.

In a structured and supportive learning environment, students will further refine their printing skills and dive deeper into design considerations through the practice of multicolor printing, choosing a typeface that supports your text, and exercising quality control for multiple prints. Class discussions will cover troubleshooting issues with pressure and inking on letterpress and properties of paper.

Class size is limited to ensure an optimal student-to-teacher ratio. Register now before the remaining spots fill up!

📃 Thursdays, October 1st - October 29th, from 6PM to 9PM ET
📃 In-Person
📃 $525 + $25 Materials fee


In this virtual workshop for all experience levels, Instructor Shirin Salehi will introduce the participants to non-legi...
08/31/2026

In this virtual workshop for all experience levels, Instructor Shirin Salehi will introduce the participants to non-legible books through an extensive one-month discussion on legibility and hiddenness in artwork in book form.

Starting with an introduction to illegibility through examples of Asemic Writing, the instructor will propose works intentionally deciphered, unreadable, and inaccessible, through a selection of case studies of Artist’s books and artworks to raise questions on what lies beneath the hidden language.

The course is designed to deepen reflection and poetical reasoning, open to artists, poets, thinkers, and all creative individuals interested in participating in critique and theoretical discussions related to book arts.

(First image is work by artist Mirtha Dermisache)

📖 Tuesdays, September 29th to October 20th, from 10AM to 12PM ET
📖 Virtual
📖 $190

Bob Cobbing’s futura 19 consists of twelve panels arranged in a 4 x 3 grid, with each panel containing roughly 20 words ...
08/30/2026

Bob Cobbing’s futura 19 consists of twelve panels arranged in a 4 x 3 grid, with each panel containing roughly 20 words arranged in interior columns. The panels are organized by the common vowels shared between words, with the broadside acting as a phonetic vowel map. For example, there is the -ound panel (downfallen, ring round, resounding, loudlaughter, beclouded) or the short -i panel (bismillah, thick, sick, mink, witchery). Here, language prioritizes its phonetic and spatial organization to convey meaning rather than simply relying on the meaning of each individual word.

If you’d like to learn more about the futura series, the exhibition catalog for after futura: 26 Broadsides Printed by Hansjörg Mayer is available for purchase at our bookshop and via the link below.

https://buff.ly/SCR7hOt

A new "after futura" edition, where 14 contemporary artists create RISO-printed broadsides inspired by the original series, will launch in late September! Please stay tuned for more information on how to collect yours.

Join us for this one-day hands-on workshop where students explore the art of gel plate printing. As unique as it is easy...
08/29/2026

Join us for this one-day hands-on workshop where students explore the art of gel plate printing. As unique as it is easy, Gel plate printing requires artists to roll paint onto a soft plate and press objects or stencils to create textures and images that are revealed once the paper is pulled back.

In just a few hours, students will cover foundational techniques, using general printing ink with calligraphy paper, as well as acrylic ink on wet paper. Students will also experiment with a photo transfer technique, creating unique patterns on the plate using natural leaves, origami, lace, ribbon, and various scratch tools.

No experience is needed; sign up while spots remain!!

👨‍🎨 Saturday, September 26th, from 1pm to 5pm
👨‍🎨 In-person
👨‍🎨 $140 + $35 Materials

08/29/2026

This , we’re looking back at Two Poems by Rachel Hadas, published by Center for Book Arts in 2000.
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This pamphlet-bound chapbook brings together poetry, typography, and bookmaking. The poems were set in Perpetua Monotype by M & H Type and printed letterpress on Arches paper in an edition of 100. The grey printed wrappers feature illustrations from a 1732 edition of Ovid’s Metamorphoses. From the sumptuous paper texture, to the intricate blind impression on the pages, every detail of this work demonstrates the craftsmanship that transforms poems into a book object.
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More than two decades later, Two Poems speaks to CBA’s longstanding approach to publishing: treating the book not simply as a container for writing, but as a space where poetry, design, materials, and collaborative making come together.

Join us for the SECOND installment of a four-part series on Fiber Arts as Book Arts, featuring CBA instructor Iviva Olen...
08/27/2026

Join us for the SECOND installment of a four-part series on Fiber Arts as Book Arts, featuring CBA instructor Iviva Olenick. Our second workshop, "Kitchen Printing" begins later in September, where students will learn how to use food scraps and local plants to make inks for printing on paper and fabric.

Skills will include learning how to extract pigment from plants; watching demos of and trying several printing methods, including a potato print, using other cut vegetables as stamps, and making stencils with heavyweight paper and other household materials.

Save your food scraps and get your hands dirty before time runs out! Visit the link in our bio to secure your spot.

🍽️ Thursday, September 24th, 6:30PM to 8:30PM ET
🍽️ Virtual
🍽️ Pay-what-you-can ($40 suggested)


What is poetry? How do words inspire us? Answer these questions and more in Maria G. Pisano's one day workshop: "Poetry ...
08/26/2026

What is poetry? How do words inspire us? Answer these questions and more in Maria G. Pisano's one day workshop: "Poetry and the Page: Visualizing the World"

Students will begin with choosing one’s own text or a favorite passage and proceed to extract words that can be formed into poetic form. Discussion will center on various forms of poetry, how to pull out meaningful text and compose one’s own poem.

📝 Saturday, September 19th, from 11AM to 5PM ET
📝 In-person
📝 $210 + $30 materials


The Comics Journal published a great article about our last exhibition! Read it here: https://buff.ly/rJCLljF
08/25/2026

The Comics Journal published a great article about our last exhibition! Read it here: https://buff.ly/rJCLljF

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28 W 27th Street, 3rd Fl
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10001

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Wednesday 11am - 6pm
Thursday 11am - 6pm
Friday 11am - 4pm
Saturday 11am - 4pm

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