All-Ages Open House Offers Free Artmaking

Saturday, February 4 will serve up printmaking, button making, yoga, and more 

Minnesota Center for Book Arts is excited to welcome the public back for our first in-person “Love Local” Open House event since February 2020. On Saturday, February 4 from 10am12pm, four free activities will get kids, families, and adults in the spirit of self- and community-love: screen printing, button making, letterpress printing, and yoga!

At the screen printing station, visitors can print a two-tone heart on a canvas patch. A second printing activity, set up on our 1960’s-era Vandercook press, will allow folks to layer a love-themed quote set in wood type on top of a patterned background—a fascinating, hands-on peek into the not-so-distant past. Staff and studio fellows will also show you how to use our button-making machine; choose your own imagery and create a unique pinback button to take home! Lastly, an MCBA board member and certified yoga teacher will lead two 45-minute sessions of “Yoga for Book Lovers” in the Performance Hall on the second floor of Open Book. Session 1 begins at 10:15am and Session 2 begins at 11:15am. (All other activities will take place on the main level of Open Book/MCBA.) 

For guests who are unacquainted with book arts, we invite them to visit our “Touch and See” table, full of examples of different book structures, bindings, handmade papers, zines, marbled papers, and prints. To celebrate bringing new folks into the fold, we are also holding a membership sale. Valid only during the two-hour event, new members take $5 off their annual membership. Open from 10am–5pm, the Shop at MCBA will be featuring local makers. Any purchase will enter your name into a drawing for a $50 Shop gift certificate!

Valentine’s Day-themed, registration-only workshops will continue into the afternoon. These include Origami Hearts with Kathleen Sheridan from 1–4pm, Screen Print Cards: Spread the Love with Kirsten Olson from 1–4pm, and Paper Marbling for Pattern Lovers with Michelle Blodgett from 2–4pm.