Rare book collector lends Vigía collection to ��Vlog��ý Little Rock for Cuban art exhibit

Ajani Oyindamola — Wed, 22 Feb 2017 16:58:02 +0000

In 1998, Bill Fisher visited the, also known as the MARCO, with his brother and grandmother during a trip to Mexico. At the art museum’s gift shop, Fisher spotted something that took his breath away. “I found these incredibly beautiful books about which I knew nothing,” said Fisher, a San Antonio-based tax lawyer and rare book collector. “I clearly recall a magazine of poems and stories for children, made in the shape of a house with a chimney, cellophane windows, and other charming details. The books have such a sense of joy and whimsy that I bought them all on sight. Then I asked to speak to the buyer to learn more.” He discovered that the works were created by the Cuban publishing cooperative, under the artistic direction of Rolando Estévez and Alfredo Zaldívar. Founded in 1985, artisans in Matanzas, Cuba, created handmade books using collaged, repurposed materials. According to an, Ediciones Vigía originally served as a meeting place for artists and writers to discuss their work. They began creating artistic fliers to advertise their meetings. This eventually grew into an independent publishing house that creates handmade interactive works of book art that are internationally renown. “Ediciones Vigía creates community in Cuba,” Fisher said. “It’s a cooperative where people come together to create and publish these books, providing lots of job opportunities. Then there is the community of authors and artists who contribute works to those books. Then there is the fan network of Vigía — librarians, collectors, and readers who love the books and the context from which they come.” Fisher lent 71 of his prized Vigía books for a Cuban art exhibit at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. “Binding Communities: Cuba’s Ediciones Vigía and the Art of the Book and Entrepreneurism,” will be displayed in ��Vlog��ý Little Rock’s Ottenheimer Library from March 14 to April 19. The exhibit’s opening reception on Tuesday, March 14, will feature a talk by Fisher, where he will discuss some of his favorite pieces in the exhibit and his nearly 20-year search for Vigía books. The event, which is free and open to the public, will begin at 4:30 p.m. in Ottenheimer Library Room 535. Since that fateful day nearly 20 years ago, Fisher has collected more than 500 Vigía books. Through his search, he has met scholars, librarians, and other collectors who appreciate the artistry of the Vigía books. “When I show people the Vigía books, their eyes light up,” Fisher said. “They can spend all evening asking questions and handling them. It’s exceedingly engaging.” He met Dr. Erin Finzer, chair of the ��Vlog��ý Little Rock Department of World Languages, in 2012, when they were both making presentations on the Vigía books at a conference at the University of Missouri. Fisher’s favorite books in the exhibit are “Testamento del pez” (The Fish’s Testament), written by Cuban Poet Gastón Baquero, which is in the shape of a cigar box, and the first publication of the script for the famous Cuban movie “Fresa y chocolate” (Strawberry and Chocolate), which he sought for years before plucking it from the shelves of a bookstore in Mexico City.

Bill Fisher’s book “Testamento del pez” (The Fish’s Testament) written by Cuban Poet Gastón Baquero, Photo by Carly Machen/��Vlog��ý Little Rock Communications.

��Vlog��ý Little Rock to host Cuban artists’ book exhibit

Ajani Oyindamola — Wed, 22 Feb 2017 15:19:17 +0000

The University of Arkansas at Little Rock will host an international exhibit of handcrafted books created by Cuban artists. The March 14 to April 19 multimedia exhibit, “Binding Communities: Cuba’s Ediciones Vigía and the Art of the Book and Entrepreneurism,” will be displayed in ��Vlog��ý Little Rock’s Ottenheimer Library. The exhibit will feature 71 artists’ books created by the Cuban publishing house,, from 1985 to 2016. Founded in 1985 by Rolando Estévez and Alfredo Zaldívar, Ediciones Vigía artisans in Matanzas, Cuba, created handmade books using collaged, repurposed materials. According to an, Ediciones Vigía originally served as a meeting place for artists and writers to discuss their work. They began creating artistic fliers to advertise their meetings. This eventually grew into an independent publishing house that creates handmade interactive works of book art that are internationally renown. Ediciones Vigía came of age during the economic depression in Cuba that followed the 1989 collapse of the Soviet Union. “Throughout the 1990s, an extreme shortage of paper and materials — not to mention food, petroleum, medicine, and other basic resources — exacerbated the difficulties of publishing in Cuba,” said Dr. Erin Finzer, chair of the ��Vlog��ý Little Rock Department of World Languages. The publishing house responded to the shortage of paper by seeking out diverse, talented young authors to publish in limited edition artists’ books. “Community members from Matanzas would gather to piece together these books out of found materials and butcher paper, which was relatively inexpensive and more readily available than bleached white paper,” Finzer said. “These precious books quickly earned an artistic cachet that led established authors to want their texts to be interpreted by Ediciones Vigía.”

One of 71 artists’ books created by the Cuban publishing house, Ediciones Vigía, on display at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock Ottenheimer Library March 14 to April 19. Photo by Carly Machin/��Vlog��ý Little Rock Communications.

The exhibit will open with a reception and talk with Bill Fisher, a San Antonio-based lawyer and rare book collector whose Ediciones Vigía collection will be featured in the exhibit. The reception, which is free and open to the public, will begin at 4:30 p.m. Tuesday, March 14, in Ottenheimer Library Room 535. The exhibit will also include a March 17 lecture by Steven Miller, a book artist and University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa professor who has to create book editions. Additionally, Miller will lead a bookmaking workshop during the weekend of March 18-19 in the ��Vlog��ý Little Rock Applied Design Studio at University Plaza 300. Other events include a March 29 bookmaking workshop by book artist David Clemons and Finzer; student presentations and a closer examination of select Vigia books on April 6; an April 12 screening of Ediciones Vigía: Poetíca visual/Visual Poetics and a scholar-led tour of the exhibit by Finzer; and a closing reception and lecture by Vigía scholar and filmmaker, Dr. Juanamaría Cordones Cook, on April 14. All events are free and open to the public. Class sizes for the bookmaking workshops are limited. Those interested in attending the workshops should RSVP to Mia Hall, chair of the ��Vlog��ý Little Rock Department of Art and Design, at mphall@ualr.edu or Finzer at esfinzer@ualr.edu. A complete list of programming for the exhibit includes:

��Opening reception and talk with rare book collector Bill Fisher. 4:30 p.m. Tuesday, March 14. Ottenheimer Library Room 535.
��Lecture/Artist Talk by book artist Steven Miller. 5 p.m., Friday, March 17. ��Vlog��ý Little Rock Fine Arts Building Room 161.
��“Get Under The Covers. Let’s Make Books!” Bookmaking workshop with book artist Steven Miller. 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, March 18, and Sunday March 19. Applied Design Studio, University Plaza 300. Participation is limited. Please RSVP to Mia Hall at mphall@ualr.edu.
��Bookmaking workshop and lecture: “The Committed Art of the Book” by book artist David Clemons and Dr. Erin Finzer. 4:30 p.m. Wednesday, March 29. Applied Design Studio, University Plaza 300. Participation is limited. Please RSVP to Mia Hall at mphall@ualr.edu.
��Up Close and Personal: Student Presentations of Select Vigía Books. 3 p.m. Thursday, April 6. Ottenheimer Library Room 535.
��Screening of Ediciones Vigía: Poetíca visual/Visual Poetics with scholar-led tour of exhibit by Dr. Erin Finzer. 5 p.m. Wednesday, April 12. Ottenheimer Library Room 535.
Closing reception and lecture by Vigía scholar and filmmaker Dr. Juanamaría Cordones Cook. 4:30 p.m. Monday, April 17. Ottenheimer Library, Room 535.

- University News Archive - ����Vlog��ý Little Rock

Rare book collector lends Vigía collection to ����Vlog��ý Little Rock for Cuban art exhibit

����Vlog��ý Little Rock to host Cuban artists’ book exhibit

- University News Archive - ��Vlog��ý Little Rock

Rare book collector lends Vigía collection to ��Vlog��ý Little Rock for Cuban art exhibit

��Vlog��ý Little Rock to host Cuban artists’ book exhibit