Big River Bookbinding and Letterpress Printing is a studio for the art of the book. We embrace the traditional while exploring the contemporary. We create objects that become family treasures and points of conversation for the owner and their friends.The work is done by hand and all aspects of the construction are planned and considered.
Big River publishes artists’ books and prints that reflect the region and play with our senses.
Andrew Huot, Conservator & Bookbinder
Big River is owned by Andrew Huot, a bookbinder, conservator, and book artist originally from Toronto, Canada. Andrew has an MFA in Book Arts & Printmaking from the University of the Arts in Philadelphia and an undergraduate degree in Printmaking from Portland State University. He exhibits his artwork widely and is held in collections across the country, from the Art Institute of Chicago to Yale University.
He has experience performing conservation treatments on books and paper based items. He was the Conservator and Preservation Specialist at Illinois State University for the last 5 years, and worked at the Folger Shakespeare Library, the Historical Society of Pennsylvania, the Wagner Free Institute of Science, and the University of Oregon. When he’s not in the bindery, he teaches Conservation, Preservation, and Bookbinding for the Graduate School of Library Science at the University of Illinois – Urbana/Champaign. He is a past president of the Guild of Book Workers and a peer reviewed Professional Associate of the American Institute of Conservation.
Andrew’s artists’ books can be seen at www.andrewhuot.com
Corinne Bortner, Bindery & Conservation Assistant
Corinne Bortner is a recent MLIS graduate from the University of North Texas, with an emphasis on archiving and digital imaging technologies. She became interested in bookbinding repair and conservation during a particularly difficult online book preservation course. She participated in a workshop with Andrew and Big River Bindery in the fall of 2020, learning the basics of book repair and conservation.
Corinne stumbled across Big River Bindery while doing homework one late evening with a colicky baby on her lap. Since then, she pestered, hounded, cajoled and very nearly bribed, Andrew Huot to let her work in the bindery. The inaugural employee, Corinne started working full time in August of 2021. Since starting at Big River Bindery, Corinne has worked on a variety of texts, completed several projects, and learned the use of a letterpress. She greatly enjoys her work and loves to show off to friends, family, and unsuspecting passers-by.