1) How useful were the pre-course readings?

2: Very helpful on a once-through. Two or three readings would have been even better. 3: Very useful. 4: Very helpful. 5: Very - it is absolutely necessary to be familiar with Gascoigne. 6: Gascoigne is pretty good, but is more a reference book, not one to read through. 7: Excellent, and I read the book quite carefully (a library copy). Now I shall buy it. 8: Very. 10: Very, especially Gascoigne. Mayor is hefty, but eminently skimmable.

2) Were the course syllabus and other materials distributed in class useful (or will they be so in the future, after you return home)?

1: Especially the time line and reading list. 2: Very much so. 3: Yes. 4: Yes, and I will continue to use them when I return to my institution. 5: Yes, I plan to file and consult as needed. The time line and reading list were especially helpful. 6: Time line chart will be useful. 7: Most certainly. 8-10: Yes.

3) Was the intellectual level of the course content appropriate?

1: The course content was excellent - the time available to study each example was not sufficient during the session, so having additional periods of independent study to review the folder materials is extremely important. 2: Very much so. 3-4: Yes. 5: Just right. 6-9: Yes. 10: Certainly.

4)Did the actual course content correspond to its RBS brochure description and Expanded Course Descriptions (ECDs)? Did the course in general meet your expectations?

1: Yes. 2: Precisely. 3: Yes. 4: Yes. The examples we were given to look at were excellent and very well organized. 5-9: Yes. 10: Exactly.

5) What did you like best about the course?

1: The wealth of examples of the processes we discussed made this course especially successful! 2: The wealth of resources. 3: That every day we could see so many original materials and examples of the processes that were under discussion. The practical labs were very helpful. 4: The labs - doing our own engraving, etching, and printing gives one a sense of achievement, as well as provides a learning process. 5: Small group, individual attention, quantity of examples. Ability to actually do different types of printmaking. Informal setting and snacks provided were nice. RBS - all very helpful. 6: 1) The opportunity to examine examples of the great variety of prints. 2) Lab sessions and projects that really brought home what etching, engraving, etc, are. 7: The fact that we had physical objects in our hands at all times made the course very engaging. The labs, too, were excellent for learning the techniques used in illustration. 8: Opportunity to handle many different types of prints, using excellent tools and taught by a knowledgeable person. 9: The discovery and explanation of the various and multitudinous book illustration processes. 10: Making illustrations was both fun and educational, also a necessary break from the onslaught of images. I found the earlier processes (say up to 1850) most interesting and enjoyable, although I realize the later processes are important to know, too.

6) How could the course have been improved?

1: Within the confines of a week it is difficult to have sufficient time to study the graphic arts materials and library resources. Some extra study time would be helpful. 2: Having more room to spread out would have been nice. I can't imagine how 16 students ever were accommodated. So much material, so little time. An extra week would have been great! 3: The course is excellent. Perhaps having a small test half-way through of materials covered to that point, and then the one at the end. There is much to remember. 4: There was an awful lot of material to be covered. Perhaps it would be better to split the coverage into two sessions so that one could study and digest the material less hectically, eg, one session concentrating on engravings and etchings of all kinds and the other concentrating on lithographs, aquatints, etc. 5: Field trips to local print dealers, or a visit to Special Collections. See some videos in class. 6: I would have profited from an end-of-course session on how to identify a print, step by step. Decision chart (if example is A, then go to ...) would be useful. Perhaps smaller linoblock cuts could be used so not quite so much evening time is required. 7: I don't think of anything off hand. 8: Less emphasis on the physical making of prints by the students. Simply etching, dry-pointing, engraving, or carving initials would have taught the processes. However, it was enjoyable. 9: Link Gascoigne numbers with the "Illustration Processes Covered in the Course" handout (ie, place Gascoigne numbers after each process used). 10: My own personal weaknesses in identification proved to be 1) aquatint, 2) à la poupée coloring, 3) aquatint photogravure, so perhaps more focus here would be helpful.

7) Comment on the quality/enjoyability of the various RBS activities in which you took part outside of class, eg Sunday night dinner and videos, evening lectures, Bookseller Night, Study Night, &c.

1: Bookseller Night and related discussions of resources for finding historical sample materials were especially appreciated. 2: I missed the Sunday night dinner and videos, but have heard comments all week about them. 3: The various RBS activities outside of class were a good balance. At the beginning of the week it did not seem that there would be time for all the videos as well as examining materials seen during class. Study Night gave every opportunity to investigate areas and materials introduced during class. The lectures were interesting and thought-provoking. I enjoyed hearing the update on the developments at RBS, especially the recent acquisitions. 4: I think that the activities are just fine for the short period we are here. The lectures are always very good - I don't fall asleep. 5: Lectures were good, informative. 6: Due to my (and wife's) schedule, could not participate. 7: The dinner was nice, though not worth $12. NP's lecture was particularly interesting, especially for those of us outside the world of conservatorship. 8: Enjoyed Sunday night dinner and Bookseller Night. 9: All was very good and colored more by one's own temperament than by the quality of each activity. No activity, on the face of it, was unnecessary. 10: All fine, the usual.

8) Any final thoughts? Did you get your money's worth?

1: If it is possible, find examples of processes to review before the course begins - then you can have historical samples to refer to at a later date to help refresh your memory. 2: Definitely worth the money. Read Gascoigne as many times as possible before the course. Be prepared for an interesting and stimulating week. As an assistant, Natalie Regensburg did a great job for us. 3: I would highly recommend, to anyone, the value of RBS courses. I have attended one course before this one and found that it has influenced and changed my appreciation of books to a depth I did not realize until I was back at work and could digest my notes. The repercussions from the material covered and the excellence of the teaching is felt long after taking the courses here. The teaching at RBS is the best I have ever experienced. Yes, I did get my money's worth. 4: It is worth every penny. The instructor is very knowledgeable. You will learn a lot. 5: Well worth the price; I plan to return. 6: I took the course for fun: to learn something new. I more than got my money's worth! 7: The course is of tremendous value to me as a student of c18 culture and the culture of reading. It has also alerted me to the connection between framing prints and therefore the art world via printing houses, a matter to which I shall devote some scholarship. I absolutely got my money's worth. Thank you for an outstanding week. 10: Of several RBS courses, all excellent, this has been the best. Don't miss it.

Number of respondents: 10

There were ten students: three were conservator/bookbinder/preservation librarians (30%), two were antiquarian booksellers (20%), and one each was an archivist/manuscript librarian, an archivist/manuscript librarian with some rare book duties, a general librarian with some rare book duties, a rare book librarian, and a teacher/professor/graduate student (10% each).