HOW THE KBAC BEGAN

October 15, 2020

On a sunny day in September of 2005, Jeff Abshear invited a group of local artists and writers to gather in the garden at his house to sign the Articles of Incorporation for the creation of the Kalamazoo Book Arts Center. Attending this meeting were artists, designers, papermakers, printers, bookbinders, and poets—an array of creative people working in the disciplines that unite under the umbrella of book arts. Looking back, we had no idea what we were in for, nor how far we could come in 15 years.

At that time Michigan was in an economic downturn and the Great Recession was just around the corner, so it wasn’t the best moment to start a nonprofit organization with little money or equipment. We started with two small spaces in the Park Trades Center: the papermaking studio built by Paul Robbert, an emeritus professor at Western Michigan University, and the studio of our new director, Jeff Abshear, where we stored our first printing press, a beautiful 100-year-old Chandler & Price purchased by Michael Dunn, who soon became the KBAC Board President.

Our idea was quickly embraced by the community and with the generous support of the Irving S. Gilmore Foundation, WMU, local businesses, and many volunteers, we soon began to grow. When we offered our first workshops—a three-part course in papermaking, relief printing, and bookbinding to make a handmade journal—we filled the class and were immediately featured on the front page of the Arts & Entertainment section of the Kalamazoo Gazette with large color photos of students working in our studio. We were off and running! 

Soon we decided to take a big risk and move into the much larger space at the front of the building, our current home. With the help of the Arts Council of Greater Kalamazoo we received a grant to tear up the floor to install drains for the papermaking studio. This was the first time the dirt in this old building had been exposed to the air in over 150 years. Let’s just say it was a bit pungent! Then we began building walls, installing electricity and lights, and moving equipment into place. 

Over the years we have continued to grow in size and community outreach. We expanded the space in 2010 to include our retail store, library, and printmaking studio, and then continued in 2018-19 with improvements to the papermaking and letterpress studios, the acquisition of new equipment and type, and a renovated gallery and entrance area. We have built one of the largest and most comprehensive centers in the Midwest for the practice of book arts, where we offer workshops to the community, teach young students the arts of the book, train high school and university interns, host poets in our Poets in Print reading series, produce handmade paper, prints, broadsides, and limited-edition books, and present the work of visiting artists, some of whom are currently featured online in our 15th Anniversary Exhibition.

This year, like many nonprofit organizations, we have been forced to adjust our programming by offering smaller, socially-distanced youth workshops, online classes, and virtual exhibitions and poetry readings. With less traffic from Art Hop and other public events in the studio we are working instead with our interns on production projects.  

More than ever, we need the support of the community to get us through this difficult time. Please consider shopping for gifts this season at the KBAC online store, sign up for a workshop, or give someone a gift certificate. We also love to work with local organizations on special commissions that make use of our unique equipment and skills. Contact us for ideas. Please donate generously to our Annual Fund Appeal—our goal is to raise $25,000 and we have two matching donors who will help us get there!

We have achieved so much of what we dreamed of in that garden back in 2005. We look forward to working with artists and writers in the studio, offering exciting new programs, and serving the community for another 15+ years. Thank you for your support!

Jeff, Katie and Lorrie

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