THE STRAWBERRY PRESS
Proprietors: Paul W. Nash and Alison Felstead
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THE STRAWBERRY PRESS |
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Proprietors: Paul W. Nash and Alison Felstead | ||
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Paul W. Nash worked for thirteen years at the Bodleian Library in Oxford, where one of his duties was the compilation of a list of private press books held by the library. This inspired him to found his own press in 1989, in collaboration with Helen Pipe. The first book was printed on a photocopier, and the second on a miniature Albion press at the Bodleian. But in the summer of 1990 a second-hand Model Number Four and two battered founts of type were bought and installed in the attic. Since then, some fifty small books have been published and the Press has moved from Oxfordshire to London, and back to Oxfordshire. The type stock of the Press has been augmented with a range of sizes of Centaur and Arrighi, Bembo, Garamond, Caslon, Perpetua, Kennerley, Octavian, Verona and various titling founts. The aims of the press have remained the same, however, being principally the pursuit of pleasure through typographical experiment and the publication of small works of fiction, poetry, bibliography and humour, often illustrated with wood-engravings.
The following books are currently available. All were hand-set, printed and bound, and most are numbered in the press.
Poetry and prose collected and illustrated by 'Taylor McCall' (Mick Taylor and Sheena McCall), with 76 hand-coloured drawings by the artists.
Set in 18 point Modern. 20 copies printed on Amalfi hand-made paper, bound in quarter vellum with Compton marbled paper-covered boards, in a slip case, at £225.00. [104] pp. Small folio. This book was originally printed in 1970 by the Compton Press in an edition of 300 copies. About half the edition was subsequently lost, but twenty sets of sheets were recently discovered, hand-coloured by Sheena McCall, and bound by John Sewell to a new design incorporating Compton marbled paper. This is one of very few livres d'artiste to be born of the spirit of the 1960s, and includes poetry by Donovan, Poe, Wordsworth, Burns, Browning, Goldsmith, Homer, Yeats and others, with numerous illustrations redolent of the period.
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Poetry by Joel Biroco, with a two-colour linocut by the author.
Set in 18 point Centaur. 76 copies printed in deep brown and black on Saunders mould-made paper, sewn into gold Maziarczyk pastepaper wrappers, at £15.00. Four copies have been printed on hand-made Gampi Vellum and bound in full deep brown morocco, in a clamshell box with a separate proof of the frontispiece, at £300.00. [19] pp. Imperial octavo. ISBN 1 872333 42 7.
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Amorous poetry by Sir Perce Nightingale, with six wood-engravings by Paul W. Nash.
Set in 14 point Arrighi. 50 copies printed in blue and black on Basingwerk Parchment paper, in silver-blue Maziarczyk pastepaper wrappers, at £12.00. Four special copies have been printed on hand-made Gampi Vellum with the initials printed in gold, and bound in full blue morocco, in a clamshell box, at £260.00. [19] pp. Small octavo. ISBN 1 872333 43 5.
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Fifteen love poems by Catullus, in Latin with English interpretations by 'Adfraxinus', with a two-colour linocut frontispiece and other decorations by Paul W. Nash.
Set in 16 point Bembo. 30 copies printed in red and black on Arches mould-made paper, bound in quarter vellum with Maziarczyk pastepaper-covered boards, at £90.00. Four special copies, out of print. [44] pp. Royal octavo. ISBN 1 872333 33 8.
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A series of title-pages and other specimens printed in various styles to celebrate the fiftieth birthday of the Private Libraries Association. Designed and illustrated by Paul W. Nash.
Set in various types. 40 copies printed on various mould-made papers. Loose in a card portfolio, at £20.00. [22] leaves in various sizes. Small folio. Each specimen is an attempt to imitate the style of a different historical or contemporary private press.
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An essay by Wyndham Lewis, with six colour reproductions of drawings by the artist.
Set in 16 point Centaur. 150 copies printed in red and black on Zerkall mould-made paper, binding and price to be announced. Ten copies will be printed on hand-made paper and specially bound. Approximately [50] pp. Imperial octavo. This essay by Lewis was written in the early 1940s for the Corvinus Press, but the edition was destroyed by bombing during the war and never published as its author intended (although part of the text has appeared in Enemy News and as a pamphlet). Due for publication in November 2007.
Sherlock Holmes investigates the apparent death of a beautiful socialite. Due for publication in 2008.
Prayers for those who do not believe in any god, presented in the manner of a fifteenth-century missal. Some copies will be printed on vellum. Due for publication in 2009.
To order books, or for more details, contact Paul W. Nash at The Strawberry Press, 8 Fairfield Drive, Witney, Oxfordshire OX28 5LB, England (telephone +44 (0)1993 774130, e-mail paul.w.nash@virgin.net).
This page is copyright © Paul Nash 2007.