Bookwalter, Denise: Sylvan Secrets Sylvan Secrets is a deep dive into the imposed order of naming and cataloging of the natural world and a glimpse into what we can discover within that enforced order. Inspired by Hough’s Encyclopaedia of American Woods by Romeyn Hough the pages depict the microscopic innards of trees drawn from the actual wood specimens of the original book. Hough’s book is a catalog of wood veneers collected by Hough himself over nearly forty years. Produced in fourteen volumes generally divided by geographic locations. The species are represented by three wood veneer cross sections, scientific names, and common names. Each volume contains twenty-five different species. Volume five, the volume of North Florida trees, is the main inspiration for the book.

The three toroidal books are relief printed in gold with images drawn from microscopic photographs of the wood veneers, presenting a unique perspective of the preserved species. Hough’s specimens are a snapshot of the forests of America during the turn of the century and ask us what the collection continues to teach us about our contemporary forestry practices. Naming, ordering, and cataloging are human constructs that allow us to comprehend a world beyond ourselves. Looking deeper into Hough’s specimens reveals new layers of information as they continue to teach us about the hidden secrets embedded in the book's pages.

The book was relief and letterpress printed on Arches Cover and Somerset Book. The sections are enclosed in a wraparound case with a wooden clasp closure. en., woodcut and letterpress, 3 toroidal books with wrap around enclosure, 36p, 6.75 x 6 inch, Ed. of 20, num., sign., Tallahassee, 2023, Small Craft Advisory Press Request of availability backnext