A54. Dard Hunter

A54. Dard Hunter, Jr. Dard Hunter. Santa Cruz, California: Peter & Donna Thomas, 1989.

73 x 54 mm (2 7/8” x 2 1/8”), 8 pages, 200 copies. 

Binding: Case-bound accordion; pages glued at spine. Some copies bound in blue paper with green clouds, handmade by Peter Thomas, over boards. Linocut by Donna Thomas based on one of Dard Hunter’s watermarks in black on cover. Title in black on spine. End sheets blue-grey. Some copies full-bound in green sheepskin. Linocut by Donna Thomas based on one of Dard Hunter's watermarks in gold on cover. Title in gold on spine. Paper: Various shades of blue, handmade by Peter Thomas. Printing: Letterpress. Typography: Linotype Garamond and hand set Bernhard Modern Roman. Illustration: One paper sample from Dard Hunter's mill tipped in.

“The text is a minute biography of Dard Sr. written by Dard Jr. This book was made to accompany a series of lectures Peter was to give about Dard Hunter and his work. This was the first book made using our new press name, and a very appropriate book to mark that transition, as we consider both Dard Hunter and Dard Jr. as important mentors. Dard Sr. inspired us to explore the history of papermaking and print books on our own handmade paper. Dard Jr. inspired us to always strive for better craftsmanship. I visited Mountain House in Chillicothe to give Dard Hunter, Jr. copies of this book. As he was showing us the handpress he used to print The Life Work of Dard Hunter, he casually mentioned he always proofed each line in the stick, looking with a magnifying glass for nicked serifs and damaged characters. Afterwards I always proofed my type that way. ”