Eva Seminara

Legatoria Moderna

Bookbinder

©Eva Seminara

A life among books

Legatoria Moderna was founded in 1966 by three women
Eva Seminara has run the workshop since 1999
She loves to train students from several universities

Eva Seminara has spent her whole life among books. When she was younger, she worked in a small publishing house in Udine, north-eastern Italy, which specialised in publications about the Friuli Venezia Giulia region, its history and territory. But when she was 38 years old the publishing house went under and she had to reinvent herself completely. She loved books, so in 1999 she decided to take over Legatoria Moderna, a bookbinding workshop that had existed since 1966. She began this journey with an older colleague who already had bookbinding skills; from her Eva learned about the restoration of books and artistic bookbinding. During the eight years before her colleague retired, Eva learned how to bind books, using excellent quality raw materials such as paper, leather, wood and canvas. Today she focuses on the restoration of ancient books and custom items. She also runs custom workshops for those looking to discover the art of bookbinding, by appointment only.

Interview

©Eva Seminara

©Eva Seminara

When did you first think about bookbinding?: When I was working in the publishing house I spent my days among books. I often thought that they could have been more beautiful with a different cover. I know that the most important thing is the book’s content, but the eye also needs to be satisfied…
Is bookbinding a threatened craft?: Yes, for sure. There are so many problems to deal with every day. Sometimes I feel like I’m an endangered animal, like a giant panda. There are just two bookbinders in my town, and there are another two in the province of Udine. Few people know how to do this work.
What do you love most about your profession?: The relationship with the customer. One of them often needs my services and he calls me his 'books fairy'. Another customer brought me a piece of genuine crocodile leather and asked me to bind a mini book of 5cm x 5cm! Working for them is a constant challenge.
You train apprentices, but do you still have a teacher?: Yes, I often go to Cristina Balbiano d’Aramengo. She’s a craftswoman who teaches bookbinding techniques in her school. From her, I learned modern hand bookbinding methods and some other, more out of the ordinary, techniques!

Eva Seminara is a master artisan: she began her career in 1999 and she started teaching in 2015