Studio: international art (9.1897)

Continental Bookbindings

bookbinding. designed by h. tegner

executed by anker kyster. Copenhagen

or in France, lie prints his covers from wood-
blocks, and is thus able to reproduce his designs in
different colours. His bindings, however, have one
defect: the covers are not quite in keeping with the
titles. Van de Velde is, I know, devoting his
whole attention at the present time to rectifying
this matter. His work is executed generally by
the excellent binding firm of Paul Claessens, fils,
of Brussels, who arc also engaged in a similar way
for other artists. Two further specimens of their
work were exhibited here, the designs being by
Coppens. One is a binding in pig-skin for De-
lattre's Contes de Man Village, and the other, in
morocco, for Pierre Loti's Madame Chrysantheme.

Apart from the leather bindings of Merkelbach
of Utrecht, Holland was represented simply by de-
signs for covers, and by commercial work; but
these, slight as they were, gave evidence of the
thorough appreciation of modern decorative me-
thods possessed by the Dutch artists. The
Japanese influence is very evident in much of the
work coming from Holland, notably in the charac-
teristic colourings in yellow and black, and the
simple excellence of the decorative schemes. L.
Cachet of Amsterdam, and Berlage and Dijsselhof
have achieved great results in this direction, and
their work has at the same time a strongly marked
national character, both in their book illustrations
and in their bindings. One of the best of the
42

Dutch books—Jan Veth : Kunsten Samenleving—
published by Scheltema and Halkema, of Amster-
dam, owes its excellent illustrations and its cover to
1 )ijsselhof, who has done special wrappers both for
the stitched and the bound volume. In these, as in
other of the young Dutchman's works, a predilec-
tion for animal subjects is very conspicuous.

Whereas Holland, as I have already mentioned,
was chiefly represented by trade specimens, Den-
mark, on the other hand, gave a display of costly
bindings which, both for quantity and quality, was
entitled to hold its own with that of any other
country. Indeed, the Danish artists have brought
modern bookbinding to its highest perfection,
more so than the English even, Van de Velde of
Brussels alone keeping abreast of them. This is
due to the fact that they have recognised with great
clearness the difference between commercial work
and the edition de luxe. They consider the old-
fashioned tooling a petits fers the only worthy
method of treatment for morocco ; and excellence
of design is always held to be of first importance.
Van de Velde apart, no artists have so thoroughly
succeeded in realising the contrast between " for-
warding " and " finishing," as this numerous com-

bookbinding. designed by h. van de velde

executed by p. claessens fils. Brussels