Category: To Make as Perfectly as Possible, Roubo Translation

For those who haven’t been following our saga of the translation of A.J. Roubo’s “L’Art du Menuisier,” here’s a brief description of what Roubo published and our translation efforts.

“L’Art du Menuisier” was a five-volume work written by Roubo, a professional cabinetmaker, and was published between 1769 and 1774 by De L’Academie Royale des Sciences. The five volumes were bound into three books, according to book collectors I’ve talked to. It was reprinted in 1977 in three oversized books.

The five volumes are as follows:

1. Tools and Architectural Woodwork
2. Carriage Making
3. Furniture Making
4. Marquetry and Finishing
5. Garden Woodwork

Our first translated book, “To Make as Perfectly as Possible: Roubo on Marquetry,” will include more than 100,000 words of translated text from the volume on marquetry and finishing. The translated text will include extensive notes from Don Williams. (Read more about the translation process here.) The book also will include essays by Williams that demonstrate the tools and processes shown in Roubo and how they can be accomplished with materials available today.

We are publishing two versions of this book. A glorious oversized edition worthy of the originals that will cost about $400. You can read all about that edition here. That version will be released in March 2013. We also will publish a trade edition of this book that will be physically smaller and less expensive – about $60 – but it will have all of the same words and illustrations as the oversized edition. We will have more information on the trade edition in 2013.

In 2014, we plan to publish our second book, “To Make as Perfectly as Possible: Roubo on Furniture.” This book will be about twice as many pages as the first book and encompass translated text from the volume on furniture and tools.

Like the book on marquetry, the second book will be published in two versions – a deluxe edition that matches the first deluxe book and a trade edition that matches the first trade book.

We have no plans to translate the sections on architectural woodwork, carriage making and garden woodwork. Feel free to learn French and get busy.

Why are we taking deposits on the deluxe edition of the first book? So we know how many to print. We want to make sure that everyone who wants one will get one. Why do we take a $100 deposit? So we know you are serious. Though woodworkers are generally good customers, we’ve had about a dozen or so welch on us after committing to buy a leather-bound edition.

I hope this clarifies our plans. I know it’s complex, and for that I apologize. But this has been the most complicated publishing project I’ve been involved in during my 22 years in the publishing industry.

— Christopher Schwarz

After four years of work, we are ready to take pre-publication orders and deposits for a special edition of “To Make as Perfectly as Possible: Roubo on Marquetry” by Don Williams, Michele Pagan and Philippe LaFargue.

As mentioned before, there will be two editions of “To Make as Perfectly as Possible: Roubo on Marquetry.” The special edition will be oversized and similar to the 18th-century first edition of “L’Art du Menuisier” (about 11” x 17”) and printed in the United States using the best materials available. It will have a special binding, full-size plates printed in the original color, color photos and a unique page design.

Additionally, all customers who purchase this book before Jan. 1, 2013, will have the opportunity to have their name printed in a “List of Subscribers” at the end of the volume.

There will be only one printing of this special edition. But please note this: Everyone who makes a deposit on this book before Jan. 1, 2013, will receive a copy. Mark that date on your calendar. We will also print some additional copies of this edition to sell in 2013, but once those are gone, this large-size edition will be gone forever.

To place a $100 deposit on this book and guarantee you will receive this special edition, visit our Lost Art Press store. The final price of this edition is still undetermined, though we expect it to cost about $400 and ship in March 2013. You will be contacted when the books are ready for shipment and to collect the balance that is due.

Note that we will take foreign orders on this special edition. Please contact John Hoffman at john@lostartpress.com for information on how to place your deposit.

For those of you who do not want the special edition, we will sell a trade version that is much like all of the books in the Lost Art Press portfolio. It will be about 9” x 13”, Smythe sewn with cloth-covered boards, black-and-white illustrations and black-and-white photos. And, like all of our titles, it will be printed in the United States. This version will have an entirely separate page design compared to the special edition and should cost about $60. It will remain in print for many years (we hope), unlike the special edition.

We will have more details on ordering this trade version of the book in 2013.

— Christopher Schwarz

We were forced to move the time of our Roubo event to 3 p.m. this Friday (instead of 6 p.m.) because of a scheduling conflict that was out of our control.

It’s a long and complex story, and I’m going to skip the details about why this happened. So as a result of this change in timing, there’s some good news and bad news.

The good news: The event will be a lot closer to the Northern Kentucky Convention Center and we now have the space to accommodate a lot more attendees.

The Roubo event will now be from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. at The Grand, which is located in the Oddfellows Hall at Fifth Street and Madison Avenue in Covington.

Directions to The Grand are here. It’s a very short walk from the convention center.

Yes, we know this conflicts with some classes at Woodworking in America, but we hope you can stop by The Grand because we have some great stuff to show you and give you. Yes, give you.

Here’s the stuff we were keeping under wraps:

1. The first 200 people to stop by will receive a special printed keepsake of one of the plates from A.J. Roubo. This was designed by Wesley Tanner, the designer of the forthcoming translation of Roubo titled “To Make as Perfectly as Possible.”

2. And for the first time we will be taking pre-orders (and deposits) for both the limited edition volume of the Roubo book and the standard trade edition. This is the only place and time we will be taking pre-publication orders at this point. We’ll open up pre-publication orders for everyone later on this year.

So add all that to the other cool stuff – seeing the real first-edition Roubo, the tools, marquetry panels made from the book – and it should be worth your time.

No need to register – just show up. We have plenty of space for you at The Grand.

The bad news? There will be no alcohol at the event. My recommendation is to stop by AmerAsia (half a block south of The Grand) and get a beer before or after our event. AmerAsia has the best craft beer list in the city. (And the dragon’s breath wontons are awesome, too.)

I apologize for the change in time and want you to know that it was out of our hands.

— Christopher Schwarz

Lost Art Press is hosting a special event during the Woodworking in America conference where you will be able to see (and touch) the original 18th-century volumes of A.J. Roubo’s “L’Art du Menuisier” and learn some of the publishing details of the forthcoming translation “To Make as Perfectly as Possible.”

The event will be at 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 2, in Covington, Ky. There is no admission charge, but you must register to attend because space is limited. (UPDATE: Registration is closed as the event is full).

One registration per e-mail address, please.

You will be sent a confirmation e-mail, directions to the event and a registration number indicating that you are indeed registered. You will need to print out this e-mail and bring it with you to the event to get in. We’re not trying to be jerks – it’s just a small space and there are fire codes to obey.

We will have Don Williams there, the leader of the team of translators and craftsmen during the last four years. Don will be happy to discuss details of the first volume on finishing and marquetry, plus show off some of the tools he built (such as his polissoir and shoulder knife).

Plus we’ll have Wesley Tanner of Passim Editions there, who is designing the Roubo volumes. He’ll be sharing some of the cool details of the design (ask him about the font. Seriously). Also, he’ll have all of our high-resolution scans of all the plates on hand for you to view while projected on a high-resolution screen.

Also, we’ll be bringing the original editions of Roubo for you to see and (if you are brave and careful) examine yourself. We have complete copies of the first edition that’s bound in calfskin, plus the 1977 reprints.

We’ll also discuss the publishing of “To Make as Perfectly as Possible,” which is in full swing right now. There will be two versions of the book coming out soon – a premium edition and a trade edition. We’ll have many more details to share at the event.

It’s all going to be very casual.

The event is a short walk from the Northern Kentucky Convention Center, where WIA is being held. We hope to have a fine selection of bourbons and craft beers on draft (this should come as no surprise). It will be a cash bar.

— Christopher Schwarz

Editing of “To Make as Perfectly as Possible” is in full swing this week, and our house has been overcome by the process.

The 1977 reprint volumes of “L’Art du Menuisier” have transformed our bedroom into a library. There’s no better way to page through the books (including the 18th-century originals) than on our bed with the boards supported by pillows.

All our extra hard drive space is filled with backups and more backups of digital images. I even looked for a hard drive at Kroger this morning.

To process the photos, manipulate the line scans, edit the text and compare it to the original, I have all our computer screens crammed with the book. Laptop is on my lap and the desktop is on my desk. A. J. Roubo’s shoulder knives are stacked on the dresser. Polissoirs are propping up an extra 4-terabyte drive.

And speaking of Roubo, are you going to be in Cincinnati for Woodworking in America next week? Are you free that Friday night? If the answer to both questions is “yes,” then stay tuned to the blog tomorrow for a special Lost Art Press event we’re planning.

— Christopher Schwarz