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Throughout his life, William Gedney made notes and kept notebooks. As early as the 1950s, he began writing thoughts and observations on loose pages and in small store-bought pocket-sized notebooks. Later, this practice evolved into a formalized process of jotting, describing, transcribing, and often retranscribing from the smaller pocket notebooks into larger books, handmade by Gedney. Among other writings, this collection includes: two handmade companion books, similarly formatted and titled, "Transcriptions and Notes 1, 1971 - 1981" and "Transcriptions and Notes 2"; handmade books of technical information on photography; two handmade books devoted to Gedney's notes and research on Myrtle Avenue; a handmade book of research on Indian culture and history; a daily diary kept while in India; and many pocket-sized notebooks full of jottings, quotes, and miscellaneous information. For many years, Gedney taught a course in bookmaking at the Pratt Institute of Art, and this collection includes a series of three handmade books filled with historical information, technical notes, sample materials, and detailed illustrations on handmade books and book binding.

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