A116. Cannery Row

A116. Cannery Row

Thomas, Peter and Donna
Author: Steinbeck, John

82.5 x 51 mm (3 ¼” x 2”), 14-page accordion, 100 copies.

Binding: Simple accordion; covers are galvanized iron. Covers and pages are circular. Title on label on cover. Book is sealed inside a tin can packed with shredded paper. Title and publication information are printed on a paper label on the can. All paper used for the binding handmade by Peter Thomas. Paper: Duplex sheet; white on front with green net-like paper pulp pattern on reverse. Handmade by Peter Thomas. Printing: Text is letterpress. Illustrations are digital. Typography: Handset Centaur. Illustration: Reproductions of eight watercolor paintings by Donna Thomas. Notes: Label contains warning: “Please be careful not to injure yourself on the tin while removing this book.”

“This book follows the same line of thinking about sharing portions of larger texts as found in Pandora’s Box [A86]. The text is the opening paragraph of Cannery Row by John Steinbeck. It was the text that led us to place the book in a sealed tin can. We had hoped to find a sardine can, with the little key to open it, but could not find a source. During the search we found a local business, Dave’s Albacore, had an old canning machine they had salvaged from Cannery Row. They were willing to can the book for us, saying ‘drop it off on a Friday and we will can the books first thing Monday morning, and hopefully that way they won’t smell too much like fish.’ To see the book inside, the can must be opened with a can opener, presenting the owner with a dilemma: do they want their artwork to be ‘original’ and leave the can sealed, or do they open the can to see the book inside.

With the concept set we began designing all other elements of the book to also reference the Cannery Row Steinbeck described in his text. The book was made round to fit the can, an accordion bound between two galvanized iron covers (recalling the tin and iron canneries mentioned in the text). The metal had to be treated so it would not rust or effect the archival qualities of the paper. The packing inside the can was made from Peter's shredded handmade paper. Wanting the crisp printing found in a fine press book, we printed the text from hand set metal type, and wanting full color illustrations we digitally printed the images. This required overcoming a specific technical challenge, as photocopy machines have no method for registration. The solution was to first print the images on a sheet of Peter's handmade paper, then trim each sheet square to the images before letterpress printing. The paper was a duplex sheet, white on the front side and decorated with a net-like pattern (using paper pulp) on the back. In preparation for making the eight watercolor paintings for the illustrations of Cannery Row Donna first went to the Steinbeck museum to look at old photos then went to Cannery Row and made the paintings.

This was the first of our books to be featured in a major museum show, at the Whitney, in Minnesota.”

Santa Cruz, California: Peter & Donna Thomas

2003

English