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The Friends of Dard Hunter, Inc. was originally founded
in 1981 as a nonprofit organization under the name The Friends
of the Dard Hunter Paper Museum, Inc. The current name was
adopted following the absorption of the Dard Hunter Paper
Museum into the American Museum of Papermaking in 1992, which
is now administered by Georgia Tech. in Atlanta, Georgia under
the new name of the Robert C. Williams American Museum of
Papermaking, featuring the Dard Hunter Collection.
The original Dard Hunter Paper Museum was founded by Dard
Hunter (1881-1966) in 1939. The collection is a result of
his search to learn how paper was made by hand around the
world. An artist and craftsman who celebrated the book arts
in his life's work, Hunter spent many years traveling and
documenting papermaking techniques, returning to his home
in Ohio with a remarkable collection of tools, equipment,
and examples of the craft. Based on his research and travels,
Hunter wrote a number of books about the origin and practice
of papermaking in different cultures. In many of these handprinted,
limited edition books, Hunter used type he cut and cast, and
tipped-in samples of the raw materials and papers described
in the text. His best known book, Papermaking: The History
and Technique of an Ancient Craft (2nd edition, 1947),
is the classic reference on the subject and still available
in print.
The Dard Hunter Paper Museum was initially housed at the
Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge, MA. In
1954, the museum was purchased by the Institute of Paper Chemistry,
located in Appleton, Wisconsin. The Institute moved to Atlanta,
Georgia in 1989, changing his name to the Institute of Paper
Science and Technology and creating a new exhibition space
in 1993 for the museum and the Dard Hunter Collection.
The collection contains a wealth of information about the
craft of hand papermaking practiced by societies all over
the world.
Much of the collection is irreplaceable since Hunter's travels
took place prior to the devastation of World War II. The Dard
Hunter Collection documents the entire history of papermaking
from its origin in China around 105 AD, along with related
materials such as papyrus, amatl, vellum and parchment. The
collection continues through the hand papermaking periods
in both the East and the West, up to and including early paper
machines. It constitutes one of the broadest and most complete
histories of papermaking in the world.
Membership in the Friends is open to everyone, and at this
printing, there are approximately 375 members throughout the
world. In keeping with the original goal of the Friends, an
optional dual membership with the Robert C. Williams Paper Museum and the Friends of Dard Hunter was created
in 1998.
Members have diverse interests centering on paper; i.e.,
paper artists and hand papermakers; book artists, bookbinders;
book, art on paper, archives, and photographic conservators;
paper marblers; booksellers; calligraphers; collectors; curators,
librarians, and archivists; educators; paper merchants, printers;
printmakers; and representatives from the pulp and paper industry.
An annual meeting is held each fall, providing members with
an opportunity to attend lectures on a variety of paper-related
topics, including the Dard Hunter Collection and its founder.
It is also a time to exchange information and share ideas
and experiences with other paper enthusiasts.
Publications by the Friends include our newsletter, The
Bull & Branch and the annual Membership Directory.
In 1991, we celebrated our tenth anniversary with the publication
of our first Journal, profiling Dard Hunter. In 1992, Postprints
was first published, consisting of papers presented at the
annual meeting. The first of our special publications Beater
Builders of North America, 1989 was issued following the
1988 annual meeting. In 1992, Science for Papermakers I,
was published and followed by Science for Papermakers II
and III in 1993-94.
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