Oxford Fine Press Book Fair 2025

At roughly two-year intervals the Provincial Booksellers Fairs Association (PBFA) in the UK organises the Oxford Fine Press Book Fair with the assistance of the Fine Press Book Association’s UK team. The Fair runs over a Saturday and Sunday with around 100 stands for presses, dealers, suppliers, and related organisations.

The 2025 Fair will be held on 3 and 4 May in the Examination Schools in central Oxford. It is being managed for the PBFA by Henry Gott and Siân Wainwright. This year there will be a good mix of new and returning exhibitors, a list of whom follows.

Once again there will be Judges’ Choice Awards, with a panel of three judges making their personal selections of new books on display that they regard as worthy of special attention. This year there will also be a Lewis Carroll Illustration Competition, inspired by the Lewis Carroll Exhibition at Christ Church Oxford. Short-listed designs will be on view, and the winners of this and the Judges’ Choice awards will be announced on the Sunday afternoon.

On Saturday afternoon there will be a printing demonstration by artist and printmaker Rosie Fairfax-Cholmeley.

On Sunday afternoon there will be three wide-ranging lectures, given by Carolyn Trant on 20 th century British women artists and book arts, by Elizabeth James on 150 years of book arts at the V&A, and John Purcell – Is Paper the Greatest Invention of All Time?

2025 Exhibitors

Catalogued exhibitors at the 2025 Fair are:

FINE PRESSES
Altazimuth Press & Tom Paine Press
Ambeck Design
AMBruno
Andy Moore Calligraphy
Annegret Frauenlob
Apple and Wave Press
Aula Lucis
Awen Press
Blue Print Press
Bonnefant Press
Books Illustrated Ltd
Caroline Penn
Chevington Press
Chisato Tamabayashi
Christine McCauley/MsPress
Claire Illouz
Cordes Press
Corvus Works
Design for Today
Dept. of Small Works
Double Butted
Duet Books
Elies Plana
Ellen Martin-Friel
Fleece Press
Florin Press
Fox Ash Press
Friederike von Hellermann
Glastonbury Press and Bindery
Grapho Editions
Hand & Eye Editions/Arete Editions
Hirundo Press
Impress Publishing
Incline Press
Intima Press Editions
Jacqueline Thomas
Jane Cradock-Watson
Jim Butler
Leslie Gerry Editions
Linda Landers Fine Press Books
Mainstone Press
Mandy Brannan
Minotaur Press
Mixolydian Editions
Muttons & Nuts
Nancy Loeber
Nomad Letterpress
Nowhereman Press
Old School Press
Old Stile Press
p’s and q’s Press
Paekakariki Press
Parvenu Press
Petrarch Press
Red Plate Press
Ruth Martin
Salvage Press
Serena Smith
Solmentes Press
St James Park Press
Stella Press
Susan Allix
Swamp Press
Thin Ice Press
Titan and Weald
Tracey Bush/Fathom Five Books
Tudor Black Press
Valeria Brancaforte
Verso Press/Sue McLaren
Woodcraft Press

SOCIETIES, ASSOCIATED TRADES, AND SUPPLIERS
Designer Bookbinders
Fine Press Book Association
Harmatan & Oakridge
J Hewit & Sons Ltd
John Purcell Paper
Ludlow Bookbinders Ltd
Victoria Hall Hand Decorated Papers

BOOKSELLERS
Ashton Rare Books
Blackwell’s rare Books
Claude Cox Old & Rare Books
De Bry Rare Books
Joe McCann Books
Julian Smith
Lux Mentis
Maggs Bros Ltd
S P Tuohy
Small Circus Rare Books
Sophy Schneideman Rare Books
Veronica Watts
Zetetic Books

Judges’ Choice Awards

In 2023 the three eminent judges were Graham Moss, Pat Snidvongs, and Nancy Campbell. The prize-winners were:
David Armes who was selected for the body of his work as a whole at his Red Plate Press;
Claire Illouz who was selected for her Theodor’s Corridors; and
Friederike von Hellermann who was selected for her Bilingual Animal Alphabet.