King Library Press Lecture Explores Books of Tudor England

LEXINGTON, Ky. (Nov. 5, 2015) — The University of Kentucky King Library Press will present a lecture on the physical structure of books of Tudor England at 7 p.m. Friday, Nov. 6., in the Great Hall of Margaret I. King Library on UK’s campus. "The Books of Tudor England" talk will be presented by UK alumnus and fine press printer Alex Brooks, and is free and open to the public.

A first-generation college graduate, Brooks received his master's degree in creative writing from UK. During his time at the university, he was awarded a Fulbright to study book conservation at West Dean College in West Sussex, England.

Today, Brooks owns a letterpress shop and a book conservation business and serves as director of a local advocacy non-profit organization. He is a recipient of a National Endowment for the Humanities grant to study the changing styles of books in England during the Tudor period (approximately 1485-1603). As a part of the UK lecture, Brooks will discuss his research findings on the changing physical structure of Tudor era books, as well the cultural, societal and technological influences reflected in the historic book bindings.

Following Friday's lecture, Brooks will also present a workship on Tudor era book binding. The weekend workshop is closed as it is at full capacity.

The King Library Press, part of the UK Special Collections Research Center at UK Libraries, is devoted to the tradition of fine printing and produces books and broadsides. Recent publications available from the King Library Press include a portfolio of five poems by Kentucky Poet Laureate Jane Gentry Vance, Necia Harkless's "Heart to Heart" and Abraham Lincoln's "Second Inaugural Address."

MEDIA CONTACT: Whitney Hale, 859-257-8716; whitney.hale@uky.edu