UB's Hamady Collection to be Exhibited at Grolier Club in NYC

BUFFALO, N.Y. -- Works by legendary bookmaker and printer Walter S. Hamady from the holdings of the University at Buffalo Poetry and Rare Books Collection will be exhibited at the Grolier Club in New York City, the oldest and largest society for book lovers in the United States.

The Grolier Club's "Walter Hamady & The Perishable Press Ltd.: A Retrospective Exhibition (1964-2002)" will run Feb. 19 to April 26 and is curated by Robert Bertholf, curator of the Poetry and Rare Books Collection at UB. The exhibit will feature several books handmade by Hamady, including titles by poets Paul Blackburn, Lawrence Ferlinghetti and Robert Creeley, who is UB Samuel P. Capen Professor of Poetry and the Humanities and SUNY Distinguished Professor in the UB Department of English.

Noted for its fine handmade paper, distinguished typography and unique colophons, Hamady's Perishable Press challenged traditional notions of the book. Over the years, his press has produced a body of work highly sought after by collectors -- books prized for their meticulous and complex physical structures, quirkiness and inventive collaborations between typesetter, binder and illustrator.

"Hamady's books are as much works of art as they are unique printed texts," explains Bertholf. "They represent the very best in handmade papermaking and printing."

Hamady established his Perishable Press Ltd. in 1964 at his home in Mount Horeb, Wis., where he still continues the process of papermaking, printing and binding of books. UB's Hamady holdings consist of more than 130 books acquired by the university's Poetry and Rare Books Collection, which is renowned for its James Joyce, Robert Graves and William Carlos Williams collections.