Fine Press Limited Edition publisher.
We make extraordinary, beautifully handmade, illustrated books.
In ancient Greece areté was the notion of excellence of any kind. It was bound up with the act of living to one’s full potential and it is the root of the English word art.
Our aim is to make books to our full potential.
Areté Editions was started in 2020 when publisher, film maker and writer Marcelo Anciano met letterpress printer Phil Abel.
Marcelo: ‘I had suggested to the artist Gary Gianni that we work on another book together, just for us, and find a story that he felt he could doodle with and that I could design. He chose a short story by Neil Gaiman. After the project became a book, I asked Neil if we could publish it and he was graciously enthusiastic.
‘I was originally going to do the book with an established publisher, and also I was going to produce, for myself and Gary, twenty-six lettered copies that I wanted to have handmade. I found Phil’s Hand & Eye Editions online and when he saw the project he suggested we typeset the whole edition in hot metal, make relief plates for the illustrations and print it all letterpress.
‘Areté Editions was born.’
Our Website: https://www.arete-editions.com/