Not your average library

A perpetual New Year’s resolution is to ensure there’s always something of a joy-replenishing nature to look forward to in the diary. So far, so good, 25 days in to 2013. Last night I had the great pleasure of visiting the St Bride Foundation, which was relaunching in a redecorated and renovated state. It’s a fab facility. There’s a theatre, a bar, many interesting and characterful function rooms that can be hired, a print workshop where you can take a short course in letterpress printing, and much more. Most notably, it’s the home of something we in UK print should be immensely proud of:  the world-renowned St Bride Library, which contains more than 55,000 print-related books and artefacts. The Library’s treasures are countless, and some are yet to be counted. It includes many famous collections, including that of our late and much-missed columnist, Lawrence Wallis, and I like to think Lawrence’s spirit endures in the archives. On display last night was a copy of the Kelmscott Chaucer, printed by William Morris. How about this for a page layout?!  An absolutely stunning design and print production. The really, really good news is that the library is now open again – every Wednesday and also by appointment on request. It’s a Mecca for academics, print enthusiasts, and those researching a specialist print subject, but it’s also a fantastic source of inspiration for anyone involved in designing and producing print. Joy-replenishing indeed, and worth a visit and the industry’s support.