Alès: Audrey Molina has bookbinding on edge… a real passion

Audrey Molina au cœur de son atelier de restauration. Midi Libre – Alexis Béthune

Récemment installée à Saint-Hilaire-de-Brethmas, comme relieuse d’art, Audrey Molina crée des reliures et restaure papiers et cuirs d’ouvrages anciens.

It is in a rustic part of the town of Saint-Hilaire-de-Brethmas that Audrey Molina has set up her book creation and restoration workshop. An art that she masters thanks to the science acquired with the experience of time, and the patience required. An art that can be learned: “I have always loved reading and always defended books with their smell and the sensation of turning the pages. I have always wanted to make an artistic craft, doing something with my hands, preserving heritage…" From this observation, she began to think about it. is interested in bookbinding, and she followed training in Uzès in a workshop until obtaining her CAP, followed by additional training, focused on restoration and conservation, in National Overseas Archives in Aix-en-Provence.

Techniques and know-how

For old books, she adds: "Everything depends on the condition of the work, and the wishes of the customers. If we start from level zero, we expose the body of work while preserving it as best as possible. Then we do the whole paper repair thing, filling in gaps and repairing tears. We do this work with the techniques and tools of yesteryear." A true work of a miniaturist, in the old-fashioned way, which does not use contemporary technologies, including Audrey Molina is particularly proud. To which is added the cleaning of old papers "either by soaking them in water, depending on the quality of the inks, or by cleaning them, page by page, with a cloth microfibers, an acid-free eraser or a sock eraser to remove dirt." A meticulous job that requires around fifty steps to be carried out with patience and determination. Our bookbinder is a lover of the old, and she admits that by visiting the exhibitions of the National Library of France, she remains amazed by the quality of this centuries-old know-how.

Contact: 06 64 30 34 55 and lecrindesmots@gmail.com