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CRAB QUILL PRESS

Crab Quill Press is devoted to aesthetically charged graphic media. The press engages in two discrete activities: (1) the production of limited-edition and unique artist books that are letterpress printed in house and bound by hand; and (2) the design of trade books, exhibition catalogues, posters, and other graphic media that are printed out-of-house on digital, web, and offset presses.

Crab Quill artist books celebrate the book as a kinetic structure and system designed to deliver sequenced information in a form that attends to tactile and visual pleasure. In their production, Crab Quill books engage the history of image making and binding technologies, as well as the history of the book. The books range from individual artist productions to extensive collaborations between calligraphers, graphic artists, authors, and translators. The publications are printed primarily on handmade papers using a Ray Trayle etching press and a Vandercook proofing press, are hand-bound, feature wood covers, and are presented in custom Solander boxes or slip cases. While most publications are editioned, other volumes remain unique and generally include original drawings, paintings, and writings.

Books published by Crab Quill Press have found their way into a variety of public and private collections including the Chu-Griffis Collection, Connecticut College, New London, Connecticut; the Freer Gallery, Smithsonian Institution, Washington DC; The Hallie Ford Museum of Fine Art, Willamette University, Salem, Oregon; the Portland Art Museum, Portland, Oregon; Smith College, Northampton, Massachusetts; and Stanford University, Stanford, California.

Crab Quill Press is independently owned and operated.