Espoo Bookbinder’s Association (Espoon Kirjansitojat ry EKS)

There were both Finnish- and Swedish-language courses on bookbinding in Espoo city’s community college master bookbinder Rudolf Sommer was the main teacher for the Finnish-language courses, and teacher Sven Seger was the factor for the Swedish-language courses.

The materials were mainly acquired by the teachers. The machines and equipment were either acquired by the college or donated by the teachers. The students also acquire both their tools and some of the material themselves.

Students and teachers wanted to facilitate material purchases as joint purchases. The problem was that the supplier companies did not easily sell the material to private individuals. From 1996 to 1998, the idea of ​​establishing a registered association of its own began to form.

The teachers began to seriously think about founding an association. Many course participants also took part in the discussions. Since the courses were in both Finnish and Swedish, it was tentatively decided that the association would become bilingual, Espoon kirjansitojat ry,  Esbo Bokbindare rf.  

Espoo in the name is now a bit misleading as the association is national, not only for people from Espoo.

In 2024, it was found that Swedish translations were difficult to do, when there weren’t really any Swedish-speakers involved in the association’s activities and yet everyone understood Finnish. So it was decided to change the association to only monolingual, Finnish.

It was decided to hold the founding meeting on October 24, 1998. 19 people participated in the meeting. When the association was founded, it was reportedly the first association of bookbinding enthusiasts. At that time, only professionals had professional sections in the form of associations. Nowadays, there are no more professional associations, and many professionals are members in Espoon kirjansitojat ry. 

The association immediately began to work briskly. An effort was made to organize plenty of activities in accordance with the rules. 

The association did not have its own premises or even all the necessary machines and equipment. Thus, from the beginning, we were in close cooperation with the community College of the City of Espoo. Especially since at that time all the members of the association were course participants or teachers at the college, that cooperation was solid.

Cooperation was already considered when the association’s rules were drawn up, so strongly that if the association were to cease its activities for one reason or another, its assets would be inherited by the Espoo City community College.

The purpose of the association is to develop the bookbinding knowledge and skills of its members, to promote the cohesion and cooperation of its members, to cherish bookbinding traditions, to promote the development of bookbinding culture, and to maintain relations with civic and community colleges. Members get the opportunity to compare the pros and cons of working methods. Comparing different aspects of beauty is also useful. Many of the same goals that Nordic Bookbinding Society also has. 

The association realizes its goals, for example by organizing discussion and information and study events, nowadays often on Teams, for its members, as well as visits and study visits 1-2 times a year. These have been for example to Finnish bookbinders and authors, to the National Archives and to the world heritage site Verla. In addition, we have visited for example St. Petersburg, Tartu and twice Royal Library in Stockholm.

4 days in Tartu

and second time in Royal Library in Stockholm

The association also publishes a member bulletin 3-4 times a year. On the website you can find current affairs, tips, links, etc. https://espoonkirjansitojat.net/

The association also has open doors for members once a week during classes for the purchase of materials and the use of machines.

In the spring, after classes are over, free workshops are also held 2-4 times to practice routine work.

The association also has a library where you can find manuals and magazines.

Organizing exhibitions and competitions is part of the activity. We organize members’  competitions and exhibitions, for example in the premises of the Finnish Literary Society and several times in Espoo’s cultural centre. The latest is a traveling exhibition.

The number of members grew steadily over the years. At its peak, the number of members was around 130. Nowadays, as bookbinders age, the number of members has dropped to less than a hundred. 

Anyone interested in bookbinding can become a member of the association with the approval of the board and by paying a membership fee. The association has always accepted all members.

Text by Pii Topio,  chairman of Espoon kirjansitojat ry