Assault of the Eyes

I really need to get around to changing the banner ugliness that assaults my eyes every time I look at my blog. I will do it this weekend. Probably. I hope.

Reading around...

1+1=3 - Mark Prill

Once Upon a Time - Margaret Gosley

No Milk - Abigail Thomas

Books in Transit - Guy Begbie

... is a project initiated by UWE Bristol to celebrate The National Year of Reading 2008 and World Book Day. UWE asked artists to contribute an artwork/page/movie clip/audio clip about reading.You can take a look at the online gallery here. Above are a few of my favourites, please click on the Guy Begbie one in order to see it larger, it's an amazing photograph.

Paper artists round three...

I am constantly on the look out for new paper artists, and those who I have never heard of before. Here are my most recent finds:

Janna Syvanoja

Miriam Londono

Kristen Hassenfeld


Jade Pegler


Atelier Bom Design

Well, it has been quite a while...

I am now a married woman! Things have been a bit busy and I've been away for a few days. We just had a little ceremony and a lovely weekend away in the New Forest. Next year we're having a big party with tea and cakes and all things pretty.

Anyway, I am back and I will try to post every day from now on.

Firstly, I have been seeing pleated bib front blouses like this everywhere and admiring the lovely paper-like folds. I think these two are really pretty.

Reiss

Topshop


Next is Veryround by Louise Campbell;

This is simply a very round chair. Signed limited edition pieces. Consists of 160 circles, and focuses as much on shadowplay as on construction. The chair rocks sideways. It was designed by cutting small paper models by hand, and the intention was for the result to look as fragile as the original models. It does, but it is as strong as can be.

And finally, today I found this amazing 100% recycled paper wallpaper by Mio Culture available at Vivavi, 'an eco-friendly furniture and home design centre.'


That's all for now, back tomorrow!

A few things to tell you about...

Book Things and Word Works - Eagle Gallery, London (23 May – 14 June 2008)
Book Things and Word Works is an exhibition that explores how artists use the form of the book as sculptural object, container and as the source material for text works.
The exhibition includes unique works on paper and cut -out books by Clare Bryan and Julie Cockburn, a sequence of punctuation mark poems by Victoria Bean (made as lithographic lenticular lenses) and a series of mixed media works by Carolyn Thompson, in which she cuts out and weaves together the lines of Shakespeare’s sonnets to form re-written texts.

Dust - Lau Thiam Kok, Plymouth Arts Centre (from 10th June across the city)
DUST is a book of writings by Lau Thiam Kok about the idea of place. 1000 copies of the book are left in random places across the city. They can be taken from place to place or left on a park bench, at a coffee shop or on the bookshelf. Join the online Flickr group to watch and share these found books: www.flickr.com/groups/dustproject

The Liquid Page Symopsium - Tate Britain, London (20th June)
Just what we can make of the book and what it can make of us is the theme of this symposium. Commentators have foreseen radical change in both the form of this enduring cultural object and the way we interact with it. New technology always questions the relevance and significance of traditional forms. The Liquid Page invites academics and artists to explore the ways in which both the book and the act of reading is being reshaped, expanded and coaxed into new directions and hybrid forms.

The Bonefolder Bind-O-Rama 2008

The Bonefolder is an online journal for bookbinders and book artists. Every year they have a challenge and exhibition of bookbinding structures called Bind-O-Rama. This year's event will feature works exhibiting any of the structures described in the past eight issues of Bonefolder (the issues also explain in detail how to do each binding). The deadline for entry is September 1st.

You can also browse through some of the previous entries. Below are some of my favourites.

Marcia Ciro, Watertown, MA, USA

Sheila Cunningham, Dallas, TX, USA

Betsy Kruger, Champaign, IL, USA

Pamela Barrios, Orem, Utah, USA

Train of Thought

Hm... So many things to say, I don't really know where to start.

I was just reading through the striking blog 2 or 3 Things I Know and I was reminded of the work of Jessica Stockholder. I looked her up to marvel at her fabulous installations when I found Led Almost by my Tie, 2007 a collaboration between Stockholder and poet Jeremy Sigler. The book content is a Sigler poem which has been deconstructed and reconstructed by Stockholder and is made using layers of translucent and transparent mylar, plastic and paper pages, letterpress, lithography, digital printing and hand colouring.


Okay, so then I was looking through the Booklyn website when I found this amazing list of limited edition artists publications. Actually, the whole site is packed full of great info and images. I particularly like House of Ghosts by Marshall Webber, Christopher Wilde and Mark Wagner because I love architectural drawings, blueprints, lovely paper and transparent, ephemeral things.

Then I wanted to read some poems by Jeremy Sigler and I came across this interesting list of Artist/Poet collaborations, most of which I haven't seen before. You can flick through the pages to see the images and read the texts.

Now I Know, Jeremy Sigler

there is wind
so still
breeze so flat
turbulence
so dead
now I know
there is a point
between here and
near the still, flat
dead of you
beside the night sea
off the shore of me

Tate Modern Bookshop

Hello and happy Friday!
The other day I popped into the Tate Modern to take a look around the bookshop. I purchased the Tate Artists Timeline (as recommended by my friend and Etsy shop co-owner, Kasia) which is now in print as well as painted on the wall on concourse levels three and five at the museum. I now have it stuck up on my wall. It's a really handy way of getting familiar with all the major movements and artists of the twentieth century. You can also buy it here.

(image from Arthur's Design's Photostream)




I also found a little gem of a book Seven Hundred Penguins which is a collection of Penguin covers. Not only are the covers gorgeous and really bring back some memories, it's also a beautiful, tactile little object.

Blood on Paper - The V&A

Cai Guo-Qiang-'Danger Book: Suicide Fireworks'2008



Sol LeWitt-'Sunrise and Sunset at Praiano'1980

I can't believe I haven't posted about this exhibition at the V&A yet. It's a very interesting look at how some of the best known contemporary artists have worked with the idea of the book. It's on until June 29th and you should definitely go to see it if you can get to London before then.

Also, while you're there, don't miss the Certain Trees: the Constructed Book, Poem and Object: 1964-2008 in room 74. "This display of books, objects and constructions reveals an energetic community of poets and artists in Britain discovering and developing the expressive potential of publication as an art practice." (The V&A website) It's on until August 17th and I haven't been to see it yet, but I will let you know what I think when I have been.

Booklets by Thomas A. Clark and Laurie Clark, Moschatel Press, Nailsworth, 1974-1981

Okay, here's mine...

I think it's probably about time I posted images of my sketchbooks. These are a couple of my older sketchbooks. I used to enjoy using old hardback books, tearing them, cutting them, painting and drawing in them, sticking pieces of work/found items into them, and such. I know that a lot of people find the idea of cutting up old books a bit destructive but I carefully chose books which were printed in large editions with little value. I also feel (I know a lot of my book artist friends feel this way) that by taking an old, buried and ignored book and re-working it, I am giving new life and meaning to an object which would otherwise be forgotten.

I will post pictures of some more recent sketchbooks soon. Please let me know if you would like to share some of your own images.

Happy bank holiday weekend!

DETOUR/Moleskine

I have just spent quite a while looking through the Moleskine City website. If you're interested in being nosy and looking through other people's sketchbooks, this site is for you. You can watch short films of the personal Moleskine notebooks of artists, designers, architects, illustrators and writers. The above video shows the sketchbook of London artist, Todd Kelly.

Sketchbook Series - Amie of Gournals

Today's sketchbook images are from Amie. Take a look at her Etsy shop where you can buy some of her beautiful books made from recycled/reclaimed/salvaged materials. This is what Amie says about her books:

My journal is the place I work through any kind of mood or creative space I'm in. I use any medium I can get my hands on. My favorites? Pens (I always have a plethora of colors in my backpack), glue, paper bits, and watercolors. Sometimes my most interesting pages are just beautiful accidents. I'll use some watercolor, or I'll be drinking something cold while playing in my journal and condensation drips on the page, and things will bleed through to the next page. I just incorporate all that into the next thing I'm inspired to create.

Any one else fancy sharing?

Sketchbook Series - Holly Ormrod

During my Master's degree in Book Arts at the University of the Arts London, I met an amazing artist, and wonderful person who quickly became one of my closest friends. Holly Ormrod is the subject of today's Sketchbook Series. This is what Holly says about her sketchbooks;

For me, my studio space is my sketchbook.
Rather than confining my sketches thoughts and ideas to the rigid format and
systematic order of a bound book, i find the act of collecting and adding to my
creative space far more suited to my organic way of working. Sketchbooks hit the
reflections of our minds at different points and at different places, through my
studio space i can physically juxtapose or group together these ideas or items i
have collected to give them different meaning. For me environment is crucial to
creativity and inspiration.

Take a look at her jealousy-provokingly beautiful website here.

Thank you Holly for letting me show your photos! If you would like to share yours, please comment and I'll be in touch very soon.

What's your day job?

I am just sitting here at my desk yawning as I enter data (I'm doing a temp job for The FA), wondering what other artists/makers do for their day jobs. Leave me a comment! What do you do? (Maybe I just need a bit of comfort.)

Sketchbook Series - Laura Baillie Designs

Laura is the first person to offer up her sketchbook images. Thank you Laura! She has a beautiful Etsy shop crammed full of delicate and delicious jewellery. Also, check out Laura's blog.

This is what she says about her sketchbooks;

"I make them up myself using brown paper bags, newsprint, tissue paper, made paper, wrapping paper, paper tissues, basically anything I can scribble on! I use PVA glue and stick sufaces together."

One of my closest friends and fellow book artist, Holly Ormrod is next on the list. Tomorrow I will be posting images of her 'sketchbook'. Holly sent me this link today which contains some interesting sketchbook related reading.