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Can bookbinders use a diversity of the structural resources of the craft and can a bindery adapt structure to the needs of particular books? Such an intention is now familiar in book conservation and in the book arts. Both of these fields are creative, but even in these fields the vision is unrealistic and dissipates whenever the qualities of the three bindings that we have discussed are not appreciated.
There must be an understanding of the exemplary mechanisms that have been achieved. The challenge of hand-to-eye readability and the structural integration of storage and usage modes have been met in models such as the wooden board binding. It is also apparent that specific structural features of such a model are deeply integrated together. This integration is revealed as we study the overall action of such binding.
We should also welcome the efficiency imposed on work that finds a use in society. The Italian paper bindings provide evidence of this from the past. They reveal the economy and simplicity that permitted individuals of different skills and ages to work well together. These bindings also reflect the immediacy as production passed quickly from paper mill to printer and out into the streets and markets. These books were provided "on demand".
And then there is the lesson of the sewn boards binding. This example of innovation from tradition may suggest generative approaches as the print medium converges and diverges with electronic communications. Bookbinders preserve and illustrate the relevance of a physical, eye readable form for the transmission of conceptual works. Their role may be crucial as the print medium continues to distinguish its usefulness as a mechanism for the transmission of ideas.
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