An Electrifying Conference
by Ellen G.K. Rubin
(continued from page 3)
“I am proud of the fact that I never invented weapons to kill.”—Thomas A. Edison
It would be inconceivable for Chuck Fischer, our keynote speaker, to be a killing machine. Mild-mannered, soft-spoken, well dressed, who could mistake him for anything else but the artist he is? With seven pop-up books and 4 apps, Chuck’s work needed no introduction. Yet MBS members needed to know how a boy from the Ozarks got to design fine china for Lenox, wallpaper for Brunschwig & Fil and Schumacher, have his work in the Smithsonian’s Cooper Hewitt Museum, and then go on to conceive and design pop-up books. Chuck lives his mantra, “Everything comes from what came before.”
As a young artist, Chuck was always drawing usually with drafting tools. Leaving Missouri for the University of Kansas, School of Architecture, Chuck pledged a fraternity because it was in a former governor’s mansion. It turned out to be more like Animal House and he transferred to the School of Fine Arts. After graduation, Chuck came to the Big Apple to be an actor. His bio photo clearly showed that career had promise. “Being clean-cut and without an accent,” he landed a speaking part in Woody Allen’s Stardust Memories. That scene landed on the cutting room floor. A friend at a high-end decorating studio asked him to help paint trompe l’oeil valances. Despite not even knowing what trompe l’oeil was, Chuck took on the assignment. It turned out this company decorated for the Kennedy White House. The take home messages from this experience were: Just say, “Yes;” Loosen up; Nothing is ever perfect; Learn when to stop. Chuck earned enough money from this project to travel to Europe. He parlayed what he learned from the great buildings and homes of Europe into a successful decorative designing career.
While shopping around a book proposal, Chuck met Charlie Myers of Rizzoli. Myers appreciated Chuck’s renderings, and saw in Chuck’s studio 3D objects being prepared for a Lenox project. Charlie suggested why don’t you do a pop-up book? Rizzoli published, Great American House and Gardens in 2002. Chuck did 2 more books with David Hawcock as the PE. His Christmas in New York’s first printing sold out in one month! Just when Chuck was looking for a more local paper engineer, I sent him the pop-up invitation designed by Bruce Foster for the 2005 New Paltz, NY exhibit, Ideas in Motion. Chuck liked Bruce’s work, and they teamed up to create some wonderfully imagined books. They also prepared a video for the Smithsonian Libraries showing them collaborating on Angels and how it was made. It surprised Chuck that his Bible book, In the Beginning: The Art of Genesis “tanked.” He analyzed the reasons why: it was in the Religion section in bookstores; was published at the start of the recession; was confined to the Adult Book category. “There is no gift book or pop-up category.” Also, Christians didn’t like the naked images, and the Jewish Museum deemed it “too Christian.” A video was produced to promote In the Beginning. Fischer believes that a video is a great marketing tool despite his sales problems. The Angels how-to video will travel with the Smithsonian Libraries exhibit.
Despite all attempts to end on an up-note, Chuck was compelled to present the problems facing getting pop-up books published today: cost of production, lack of shelf space, the challenges of display, and fewer big box stores. “What are needed are lower price points,” he said, affirming what was mentioned at Friday’s Conference Panel. His experience with apps didn’t make the future any brighter. Traditional publishers, especially his publisher, Little, Brown, “are not ready” for the challenges of putting out an app. To make matters worse, Little, Brown is no longer producing pop-up books. Chuck was able to produce the iPad app for A Christmas Carol by first securing the digital rights from Little, Brown and then using his own money to create the app. He didn’t have to rework his art and now collaborated with a software engineer instead of a paper engineer. He found the venture to be expensive, impeded by iTunes, and hard to discount in a medium that wants everything for free.
Chuck, ending on an up-note, played an exciting TED video of Marco Tempest’s tribute to Nikola Tesla using magic light and a pop-up book. Tesla is credited with refining alternating current for practical use. How fitting for this electric storm of a Conference to end with a pioneer of electricity.
Robert Sabuda and Chuck Fischer
Only two orders of business remain to the Conference, The Silent Auction and the Meggendorfer Prize. The Silent Auction took in $3000 and would be a boon to future conferences. Frank Gagliari thanked the generous donors profusely as well as Dina Scheel who was a tremendous help to Frank. Some of us came away with real gems for our collections.
Finally, I was to uphold the tradition of my presenting the Meggendorfer Prize. The two runners-up were announced first. Ta Da!!
Second runner–up: Yevgeniya Yeretskaya for Snowflakes, Jumping Jack Press, 2010
First runner-up: Anouck Boisrobert, Louis Rigard, Les Associes Reunis for Popville, Roaring Brook Press,
2010 MEGGENDORFER FIRST PRIZE WINNER
Ray Marshall for PAPER BLOSSOMS,
Chronicle Books, 2010 *
How exciting for a classic paper engineer to win the prize. We either dispersed to give our goodbyes or some drew up chairs to listen to a Conference postscript, Uncle Larry, with empty pockets but a PowerPoint presentation of his movable miniatures. We can’t stand for it to end! See you on the East Coast in two years! BE THERE!
2012 Meggendorfer Prize candidates [books published in the last 2 years]
1. Aesop’s Fables Kees Moerbeek
2. Beauty and the Beast Robert Sabuda
3. Chanukah Lights Robert Sabuda
4. A Christmas Carol Bruce Foster
5. D. C. Super Heroes: The Ultimate Pop-up Matthew Reinhart
6. Dragons & Monsters Sabuda/Reinhart
7. Frankenstein: A Pop-up Book Sam Ita
8. Harry Potter: A Pop-up Book Bruce Foster
9. M. C. Escher Pop-ups Courtney Watson McCarthy
10. Paper Blossoms Ray Marshall
11. Popville Boisrobert/Rigaud/Les Associés Reunis
12. Snowflakes: A Pop-up Book Yevgeniya Yeretskaya
13. Wild Oceans: A Pop-up Book with Revolutionary Technology Lucio and Meera Santoro
* Previous Meggendorfer Prize Winners
The Popuplady, Yevgeniya Yeretskaya, Collette Fu
Don Compton demonstrates his new America’s National Parks, A Pop-UP Book, paper engineered by Bruce Foster. There is a Limited Edition as well.
The MBS Board: Monika Brandup, Shawn Sheehy, Ann Montanaro, Abby Ranson, Ellen G. K. Rubin, Frank Gagliardi, back: Larry Seidman, Kyle Olmon
