Artists' Gallery
The Society's membership includes bookplate artists, collectors and others interested in the idea of the bookplate or ex libris. The Artists' gallery provides information on those members who are artists and who are willing to undertake commissions to design a bookplate.
Brigitta Summers, Summer Hill, NSW
Artist statement
I am an artist and printmaker based in Sydney, a recent graduate from the National Art School, East Sydney. I work across a variety of mediums but prefer linocuts for bookplates. I was introduced to bookplates by my mother, also a member of the Society, who inherited a collection of bookplates from her grandmother, Margaret Oppen née Arnott. I have completed a number of bookplates for friends and family. When I am making a bookplate I try to find a motif that reflects an interest or personality trait of the person for whom it is intended. I like to work across a range of styles and to experiment with shapes of bookplate.
In September 2020, Brigitta conducted a Linocut Bookplate Design Workshop under the auspices of the NSW Guild of Craft Bookbinders.
Email: brigitta@oppen.net.au
Jessica Le, Summer Hill, NSW
Jessica Le is an illustrator who takes the wondrous fantasy of storybook worlds and reimagines them with both whimsy and elegance. Her illustrations evoke feelings from nostalgic excitement of one's own childhood realms to the mellow peace of finding beauty in the everyday. However, all of these emotions are underpinned by how her skills in linework and colour transport the audience into worlds that can simultaneously be convincing in their realism and heartwarming in their lushness. Her preferred technique is digital ink or hand-drawn with ink and printed digitally.
email: jess@fleurandfable.com.au
www.jessledesign.com
www.instagram.com/jessleart
Rhyll Plant, Castlemaine, VIC
Incising and printing intricate designs from slices of dense wood, lino, copper or quality stamp rubber has long been a pleasure for scientific illustrator Rhyll Plant. While indulging in a master’s degree at La Trobe University, Bendigo, Rhyll learnt the techniques of printmaking, leading to a love of the traditional medium of wood engraving. This process became the perfect vehicle for patiently guiding old hand tools such as gravers and spitstickers while depicting her preferred subjects from the natural world. Rhyll was also taught typography in a pre-computer ‘finished art’ course and finds the skills very useful when designing and crafting Ex Libris bookplates. Rhyll says: ‘I make these intimate gems of graphic design for both commissions and friends and my own library, with the ultimate delight placing one in the 2013 Museum Victoria publication The Art of Science, which includes two pages featuring my own contemporary wood engravings.'
And a bit about the wood: The commercial woodblocks of 19th century wood engravers were expected to endure consistent printing over many thousands of copies. Today we don’t have that need, allowing experimentation with various timbers. End-grain English boxwood allows for the incising of fine detail of image and text, and while I use slices of this wood cut from an irregular shaped branch, I also enjoy the variety of texture, size and shape of end-grain slices of dense Huon pine. I also enjoy trips to Tasmania to source this wood.
email: rhyllplant@gmail.com
Mary Keep, Marrickville, NSW
I studied Fashion and Textile Design at Sydney College of the Arts, where I first became aware of bookplates and some years later moved into book and magazine design. My first bookplates were linocuts designed for friends. When designing a bookplate I like to have a discussion with or knowledge of the owner. Then I design it using images and symbols that tell something about the owner and their interests.
Preferred technique(s)
(a) Linocut, hand printed
(b) Hand-drawn and computer printed (computer aided design)
email: mary.keep@gmail.com
Other information
Mary was the subject of Designer profile, no. 1, which can be found in Newsletter no. 1 , June 2006. The profile contains biographical information and shows images of two of Mary's early linocut bookplates.
Mary was the inaugural Secretary of the Society and was the very successful designer of the Newsletter since its inception till 2024.
Kathryn E Lovejoy, Ferny HIlls, QLD
I first became interested in bookplates in 2010, designing for a bookshop in Brisbane. The unique desires surrounding personal bookplates has led me to create beyond what I thought possible. These ex libris are hand drawn using inks, water colours and acrylics, then digitally printed on acid-free 90gsm paper using archival pigment inks. Colour matching to the original hand-painted bookplate is superbly refined.
Please feel free to contact me for any questions. I am available for commissioned work.
Preferred technique
Hand-drawn using ink, water colours and acrylics, then digitally printed.
email: kathryn@suki-art.com
mobile: 0424 063 527
website: https://kathrynelovejoy.com
Clayton Tremlett, Castlemaine, VIC
Clayton’s work examines Australian history and culture, following sustained periods of research. He is renowned for his linocut portraiture; however, he also works with etching and screen prints to produce wallpapers, artist’s books, installations, unique state and editioned prints. He has been exhibiting since 1993 receiving awards from the Warrnambool and Murwillumbah galleries, and in 1995 he was acquired by the Silk Cut Acquisitive Award for Linocut prints. He has travelled extensively throughout Australia (including Arnhem Land), England, Scotland, France, Spain, Vietnam and Cambodia.
Clayton is accepting commissions for bookplates.
Website: claytontremlett.com.au
Insta: clayton.tremlett
Phone: 0422 945 010
Email: claytontremlett@gmail.com
