Pascoe, Juan

Biographical Information

Juan Pascoe was born in Chicago, Illinois on September 21, 1946. His father was a Mexican diplomat for the United Nations, and his mother was a citizen of the United States. Juan Pascoe received most of his education in the United States, spending vacations at the family home in Mexico. He studied English at Whitman College where he received a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1969. From 1971-1972, he served as a printing apprentice to Harry Duncan at the Cummington Press in West Branch, Iowa.

In 1973, Pascoe moved to Mexico, located and repaired an 1851 Washington handpress (Richard Hoe & Co, Imperial No. 1, No. 1639), and set up shop in his parents' house in Mixcoac, a suburb of Mexico City.

His initial efforts were produced under the imprint Imprenta Rascuache, which means "Shabby Press." In August 1975, he established his press, Taller Martín Pescador, mainly producing books of contemporary poetry that were typeset, printed, and bound by hand. The works published were by both established writers and up-and-coming new writers of Mexico's literary avant-garde. For many of the up-and-coming authors, this was the first opportunity to have their writing published.

In 1976, Pascoe published a Declaración de Principios, articulating the intention and mission of Taller Martín Pescador:

We propose neither the search for the book beautiful , nor the creation of deluxe or bibliophile 's editions, but rather the union of an original imaginative text and the format of the book itself: The creation of an aesthetic organism. We work by hand because only in this way can the printer control every phase of production. Only when there is an intimate relation between the work process, the tools and materials used, can there be coherence in the finished object. It is a matter of trying to recover the old traditions, from Tycho Brahe and William Morris down to Vargas Rea, and of undertaking the creation of the form a new language requires.

Considering this declaration, the collection, which utilizes old traditions to publish new artists, becomes, as Pascoe calls it, an "an aesthetic organism." This declaration gives insight into the process and goals of Juan Pascoe's work.

In 1977, Pascoe helped form the music ensemble Grupo Mono Blanco (White Monkey), a group that performed Mexican folk music. Gaining sponsorship from the Mexican government (1979-1987), the project enabled Pascoe to support the Taller Martín Pescador and to purchase a residence in Tacámbaro, where he moved his press in 1982.

In 1987, he produced the first book reflecting his historical interest in Mexican book arts. This would become a focus for Pascoe and Taller Martín Pescador. Juan Pascoe has since become known for major studies of 16th and 17th century Mexican printers. This collection includes some of those imprints.

The majority of information for this biography comes from a finding aid created by Eileen L. Smith for the University of Arizona.

From the guide to the Juan Pascoe collection, 1971-2008, (The Bancroft Library)