In preparation for the exhibition of Shakespeare’s First Folio at Boise State University, Stephanie Bacon, professor of graphic design and director of the Idaho Center for the Book, printed a limited edition broadside of one of her favorite Shakespeare sonnets, No. 60. The exhibition opened Aug. 20 and runs through Sept. 21.
A broadside is a sheet of paper printed on only one side, like a poster. Broadsides often are used as fine art, featuring a poem or other literature, and intended to be displayed.
Bacon’s intention was to use the prints, and the metal type from which they were printed, as part of the Historic Printing and Binding Resource Room at the university’s First Folio exhibition. However, a courier from the Folger Shakespeare Library in Washington, D.C., saw the print and shared a photo with his colleagues. The result was an invitation for Bacon to contribute a copy of the print to the Folger’s archives.
“This is an incredible honor for me,” Bacon said. But that wasn’t the end of it.
Stephanie Bacon prepares an exhibit for display.
The librarians at the Folger made her aware of a program at the Bodleian Library at the University of Oxford to collect hand-printed copies of all of Shakespeare’s sonnets, in honor of the 400th anniversary of Shakespeare’s death. The Bodleian subsequently invited Bacon to contribute a copy of her Sonnet 60 broadside to their collection.
“So, in the space of barely a month, I’ve had my work added to the resources of the Folger and the Bodleian,” Bacon said. “I am incredibly humbled and honored.”
BY: KATHLEEN TUCK PUBLISHED 11:04 AM / SEPTEMBER 19, 2016