Stephanie Kimbro Dolin
These three books on display show my collecting interests in fine press, design binding, and my own aspirations as a printer and bookmaker.
My fine press collection includes Golden Cockerel, Vale, Eragny, Gregynog, Trianon, Grabhorn, Colt, Whittington, Nonesuch, and contemporary fine press, such as Peter Koch and Russell Maret. My design bindings include those by Richard Minksy, Erin Fletcher, and Sam Feinstein.
I also collect French, English, and American erotica that runs from the 18th - 21st century. In particular, I collect books where the printing or binding of the book itself shows evidence of clandestine or banned publishing. What was socially acceptable in which countries, when, why, and what changes? In terms of the representation of women in books of this genre, there is a noticeable shift from the gentil erotica of fine press books to post-1950s treatment. As a collector, I noticed that women’s voices were missing from the genre as well as a lack of high quality writing and illustration that was present with fine press books of the past. With First Bite Press, I strive to create books that combine the quality of Golden Era content and printing while adding a woman’s perspective and updating sensual themes of romance and erotica for our modern time.
Miranda Culp and Jef Delman.
The Canon of Aphrodisia [in four volumes].
Illustrations by Laurelin Gilmore. Binding by Amy Borezo.
Limited to 125 copies of which 25 are Deluxe Editions.
California: First Bite Press, 2023.
This is the first fine press, limited edition book printed at First Bite Press. The inspiration for the binding came from an 18th century set of petite volumes of French children’s tales housed in a box designed like a dresser with feet and a telescoping window where the petite volumes were visible. The goal of the press is to hand print high-quality erotic literature with original illustrations and to update a typically dismissed literary genre by adding a more modern and feminine perspective.
John Buckland Wright, Francis Beaumont, Gwyn Jones.
Salmacis and Hermaphroditus. A Poem.
London: Golden Cockerel Press, 1951.
Transcribed and introduced by Gwyn Jones.
Number 25 of 30 bound in full blue morocco with an extra engraving at the end. 11 colour wood engravings by John Buckland Wright. Original full blue morocco by Sangorski & Sutcliffe with gilt water lily decoration by Buckland Wright on cover, gilt lettering on the spine, fore and lower edges untrimmed.
I collect Golden Cockerel Press books from 1925 to 1954. I am fond of the illustrations by John Buckland Wright as seen in Salmacis and Hermaphroditus because of his combination of colors to create sensual illustrations of the human form in water. Buckland Wright’s collaboration with Chistopher Sandford at the Press led to beautiful erotic books that were designed in a calculated way to please subscribers and sell books. I find their professional collaboration and the balance between the artistic and practical side of bookmaking useful to my own work.
Longus.
Les Amours Pastorales de Daphnis et Chloe.
Ashendene Press, 1933.
Fine binding and fine custom box by Angela James, 2002.
I have begun a collection of modern fine bindings. Angela James’ design combines textures and patterns in leather onlays and colorful handmade endsheets. It’s a beautiful marriage of gorgeous fine press printing with a modern design binding that’s a playful and colorful interpretation of the classic story. Understanding bookbinding—what’s possible structurally and in terms of the materials and cost—helps me with the book design process for First Bite Press as well as in my own collecting.