Hebraica Now! The Book Arts, 1991-1993

Abstract

There have been several positive developments in the areas of Hebrew typography, fine and private printing, and artists' books from 1991 to 1993. The paper discusses recent typefaces by the Jerusalem designer Zvi Narkiss; the typographic experiments of Ariel Wardi, former head of the Printing Department of Hadassah College of Technology in Jerusalem, as well as a new Hebrew display letter, "Hillel," designed by Scott-Martin Kosofsky for the Harvard Hillel Sabbath Songbook. The works of two private presses are examined: that of the Santa Monica private printer Jacob Samuel in a book illustrated by Micha Ulmann, and that of Jerusalem's designer-bookbinder, Yehuda Miklaf. Two significant artists' books have appeared recently: Maftir Yonah, a limited hand-printed edition with calligraphy by David Moss and etchings by Mordechai Beck, printed at the Jerusalem Print Workshop, and The Six Days of Creation, a work in monoprint, with calligraphy and drawing by Malla Carl. Another milestone is the 1992 Hebrew translation by Israel's veteran printing expert, Gideon Stern, of the printer's manual, Bruckmann's Handbuch der Drucktechnik as Sefer ha-defus. It includes the history and essentials of Hebrew typography and serves as an invaluable reference work for the new generation of Hebrew printers.