Kim and Rosie Batcheller Collection

Collection

Identifier: MsC1266

Staff Only
No requestable containers

Scope and Contents

This micro-collection covers materials relating to the Sonota Bindery in Texas, run by Jan and Jarmila Sonota.

Dates

Creation: 1991 - 2013

Conditions Governing Access

This collection is open for research.

Conditions Governing Use

Copyright status for collection materials may be unknown. Transmission or reproduction of materials protected by U.S. Copyright Law (Title 17, U.S.C.) beyond that allowed by fair use requires the written permission of the copyright owner. Works not in the public domain cannot be commercially exploited without permission of the copyright owners. Responsibility and potential liability based on copyright infringement for any use rests exclusively and solely with the user. Users must properly acknowledge University of Iowa Libraries Special Collections & Archives as the source of the material. For further information, visit https://www.lib.uiowa.edu/sc/services/rights/.

Biographical / Historical

Jan Bohuslav Sobota was born in Czechoslovakia and began his career in bookbinding and conservation in his home country. He introduced sculptural bindings and organized exhibitions, influenced by Philip Smith's "New Directions in Bookbinding." In the early 1980s, Sobota moved to Switzerland and then to Cleveland, Ohio, in 1984, where he worked at the conservation lab of Case Western Reserve University. Later, he continued his work at Southern Methodist University in Texas. Sobota was known for his exceptional craftsmanship in both conservation and original bindings. He was posthumously awarded the Guild of Book Workers Lifetime Achievement Award in 2012.

Jarmila Jelena Sobotová, also born in Czechoslovakia, earned a Master's degree in psychology from Charles University in Prague. She began studying bookbinding with Jan Sobota in 1985. Together, they established a bindery in Dallas, Texas, known for its creativity and meticulous craftsmanship. The Sobotas were active in organizing exhibitions and workshops in the book arts community.

Their contributions to the book arts were recognized globally, with their works featured in exhibitions at the Metropolitan Museum of Art and Southern Methodist University's Triennial DeGolyer. Their bindery in Dallas, Texas, became a hub for teaching bookbinding and restoration.