Re: Introduction -- and expressing some concern

[Art Rubino <Art_Rubino@xxxxxxx>]

Hullo Jennifer:

If I recall correctly, there has been a graduate level degree program in rare
books & booksellig, I believe, at the University of London. I am sure that
they have an email address. You might try them for info. If you have trouble
getting through let me know, I will try to dig up the brochure I saw last
year. This could take a while.

Re your participation in this forum, why not give it a chance? Nothing
ventured ...........etc.

Art

----------
From:   The Book Arts: binding, typography, collecting on behalf of Jennifer
Schansberg
Sent:   Friday, May 30, 1997 15:23
To:     BOOK_ARTS-L@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject:        Introduction -- and expressing some concern

          Hi all.

          I just signed up to this list.  I seem to have caught the
          end (or middle) of the "why didn't anyone answer my
          question?" person vs. Mary Crest response.  I have to say,
          it made me step back a moment.

          I joined this list for a two main reasons.  First, I was so
          excited to see that there was this kind of thing out there.
          I have recently been seriously thinking that I would like to
          do something with books in my next life.  I had been
          thinking that was going to be rare book school (I already
          have a degree in museum studies -- this seemed the logical
          choice) to be a special collections librarian.  But after a
          trip to Atlanta and a conference event at the ISTPWOIUESFLX
          (? - the pulp and paper technology institute place) and the
          American Museum of Papermaking, Rolling Stone Press, and the
          Atlanta International Museum of Art and Design where we made
          our own paper, received a handprinted lithograph, printed a
          "title page", and bound together our own little book-- I
          thought something like this would be WAY cooler!  But I had
          never heard of such a thing being an actual degree program
          anywhere and I really don't know much about how to get there
          anyway.  So, the second reason I joined this list is because
          I thought I might be able to ask some questions and find out
          more.

          But after seeing at least part of this thread, I feel not so
          sure about that.  I wonder, since I am not a professional,
          that if I ask questions that might sound too uninformed and
          stupid to the professionals on this list, would I receive a
          nasty response?  The reason I would ask questions is simply
          BECAUSE I am uninformed and I am looking for either the
          information itself or the ways to get it.  I had wanted to
          ask where one finds Book Arts programs in universities
          (especially in Europe) after doing a really exhaustive
          search on the web and coming up with little besides every
          single message in the Book_Arts-L archive, but thought
          against it because I might be chastised for not knowing any
          better.  (I guess I did just sort of sneak that question in
          though, heh heh.)  Well, I DON'T know any better.  That's
          why I would ask.  That's why the beautiful paper/poetry
          person asked, I'm sure.  He/She didn't know any better
          either.

          I would hate to think that I couldn't ask a silly, stupid
          (to the professional) question under the guise of
          information gathering.  Of course, now that you all know who
          I am, perhaps you'll be forgiving when I DO ask that kind of
          question.

          I don't mean this to be prejudiced toward one person or the
          other where this thread is concerned.  I know it may sound
          that way and there may be a deeper story here that I don't
          know about.  I just want to make sure that I can enjoy this
          list as much as those of you who are deeply and thoroughly
          involved in the book arts as a profession/hobby.  I am just
          REALLY excited that I found this place and I want to be able
          to make the most of it.

          Ta,

          Jennifer

          Jennifer_Schansberg@xxxxxxx