UCBA logo by Betsy Mortenson.
Logo animation via Lead Graffiti via Fivrr.
2026 / March, Feb, earlier notes
Past minutes and noted
Current time critical from Rebecca Johnson Melvin.
Aesop's Fables - below will be a list of those who have expressed interest in participating in the 2026 collaboration. The Library of Congress has provided a great online version of the fables and the lessons. Below is the list of those who chose a fable (or expressed interest in participating). Please let us know by the March meeting if you want to participate and what your fable is. (Apologies if I missed anyone. Just let me know.
Pages for UCBA are inside the Lead Graffiti website. You need to know the URL to this page which is leadgraffiti.com/ucba.
UCBA pages - Calendar (this page) • Members • Member news • Aesop Fables (for your page in the 2026 collaborative book •
If you have anything newsy related to the concerns of UCBA, shows you are in, meetings you are involved with, videos you think we should see, talks, exhibitions, or competitions, drop us a line so we can add it to the member news page. Monthly meetings are on the third Wednesday of the month, from 6:30 until around 8:30. It would be nice if you contributed to the snacks. The meetings are typically held at Lead Graffiti’s letterpress studio, 120A Sandy Drive, Newark, DE. Feel free to bring an interested friend and feel free to suggest some interactionnwith book related topics in which you have an interest..
A few things to consider
Social media - If you do something related to UCBA and post it on Instagram, hastag “#upperchesapeakebookarts” which are good ones
Demo all of the tools available through Lead Graffiti - perforator, corner rounder, paper drill, Xyron, lasercutter, lead saw, board shears, nipping / standing press.
January 21, 2026
Attaching the covers to UCBA’s collaborative book,',“Trees,” and discussion of meeting topics for the upcoming year, and announcements.
February 18, 2026
Polly Carter will be bringing 25 or so “pop-up” books from her extensive collection. Other members are encouraged to bring a few of their own.
Thursday, March 5 - Jill Cypher, Ray Nichols, and Rebecca Johnson Melvin will discuss their involvement in the design and publication of “Histories of Newark: 1758 - 2008,” a 300-page hardback book. The talk is at 7 pm at the Newark Senior Center.
Notes about the February meeting.
Hello everyone in the Upper Chesapeake Book Arts group,
We had a really nice February meeting on Wednesday night with Polly Carter sharing selections from her collection of pop-up books. Several others shared pop-ups as well: Gilda brought several how-to books, Ray Nichols and Jill Cypher shared two books by paper engineer David Carter, I shared two recent greeting cards from lovepop.com, Alexi Natchev brought Midnight Play (1994) by Czech author Květa Pacovská, and Anne Hessel brought an old one that was a favorite with her children (didn't catch the title). Anne also reminisced about a favorite from her childhood, a Dutch edition of Puss in Boots.
We corresponded after the meeting and learned that the book Anne loved was the 1959 first edition of De Gelaarsde Kat, which was a pop-up by the very famous Vojtěch Kubašta, another Czech artist. I love the way the pages of a book are laid in front of the pop-up of Puss in Boots, as shown in the AbeBooks link above. I checked the UD library catalog for some of these creators. The Library has one by Pacovská, 3 about Kubašta, and more than 50 by David Carter! Pop-ups are a popular collecting area, and the UD Library has many from a collection assembled by Nat Puffer (over 1,000 titles). You can find these in the library catalog by searching the subject terms "pop-up books" or "toy and moveable books."
Below is the calendar for 2026. Thanks to all who volunteered to lead a meeting with a demo, hands-on project, or visit. Thanks to those who said they could do something next year.
Also, below you will find the names of those who expressed interest in participating in the Lessons from Aesop project. Some have already selected a fable, and that info is recorded here. Please let Rebecca know when you have chosen a fable. It would be helpful to know whether you plan to participate by the next meeting, March 18, so we can work on the details of the collaboration.
Other news before the calendar and collaboration info, which is below:
We will do another brown bag exchange in 2026. Content to be exchanged at the October meeting.
Casey Smith is speaking on William Morris on Friday, March 13, at the Library of Congress, 3 pm. Several people are planning to take the Perryville MARC train down to DC for the day: Carol, Ray, Jill, Teresa, Rebecca, and Doris (maybe). If you are interested, let us know.
Caroline Brown reminded folks that Feb. 23 is the deadline to register for BIG INK - read about it at the link.
Patti Paulus is celebrating the birth of her first granddaughter, Hazel River Paulus (born Feb. 8). Welcome Little River.
At the invitation of the Newark Historical Society, Ray Nichols, Jill Cypher, and Rebecca Johnson Melvin are presenting a program about their design and publication of Histories of Newark: 1758-2008: Seventy-Five Stories about Newark, Delaware, and Its Citizens. This free program will be on March 5, 7:00-8:30 pm, at the Newark Senior Center. Register here: https://www.newarkhistoryde.com/events
March 18, 2026
Meeting focus: Glycerin leaves with Anne Hessel
For artists who are members of the Newark Arts Alliance, the Member Exhibition entries (1 per person and limited to 32” wide) are due at NAA on March 13.
April 15, 2026
Meeting focus: Watercolor texture with Alexi Natchev
May 20, 2026
Meeting focus: Brushmaking with Maggie Creshkoff
June 17, 2026
Meeting focus: demoing some detail options available at Lead Graffiti that might be included with bookmaking workshop with Jill Cypher. Morgana creaser, board shears, Rosbach perforator, Chandler & Price diecutting, laser cutter, paper holepunch, double-wire binding perforator.
July 15, 2026
Meeting focus: Cyanotype photo technique with Courtney Christensen
August 19, 2026
Meeting focus: Artists books visit to Little Free Library, Cochranville, PA. Led by Carol Maurer
September 16, 2026
Meeting focus: Social evening at a Newark brewery
October 21, 2026
Meeting focus: Paper Bag Book exchange
November 18, 2026
Meeting focus: Assemble the Aesop’s Fables collaborative book
December 16, 2026
Meeting focus:
Holiday gathering at Patty Paulus home
Monthly meetings (typically the 3rd Wednesday of the month at Lead Graffiti, 120A Sandy Drive, Newark, from 6:30 until about 8:30).