Artist Book – The Beginning

Artist books are wonderful places to explore, confirm, and celebrate one’s art. I usually make a couple of books each year in late summer and early autumn. I find I spend a lot of time on them – about three months from the start to the finish. Some years I made them of brown paper bags, creating a pocket for extra pullouts; some years the pages were made from nature prints I had done; and some years the pages were each an individual collage picturing a theme.

I’ve been thinking about how perfect my tissue paper transfers are for the pages of this years book. So in the past few weeks I decided on a format. I am going to use a simple Japanese side stab binding. The pages will be 11 inches wide (about 28 cm) and 4.25 (about 11 cm) inches high, of BFK Reeves paper which is a favorite of mine. The binding on the left short side will take away about .5 inches of the page. Therefore I have put the most interesting part of the tissue paper composition on the far right edge.

I am thinking of these as visual haiku. The appeal for me is the natural minimalism of the papers and the haiku format. I’m not sure what I will do with the opposing pages; perhaps some words, or fragments of poetry, a nature print or something found in nature. Each of these tissue paper pages will have added mark making of some kind to complete the composition.

I enjoy the process of book making. For me, a simple form is the best, allowing me to focus on the content which I find most engaging. I like to add a semi-transparent paper as the first and last pages. I have done transfers on heavier rice paper and can use that as covers. I have 14 pages started so far, and anticipate at least that many more. As I continue to work on these I will post updates over the coming months. I find there is a meditative quality to making artist books, repetition of the page format, thinking ahead to the over all content and theme, and the tactile quality that is afford when one picks of a handmade book. My books almost always serve as a means for me to celebrate my favorite season – Autumn.

Collage papers, birch panels and painting larger. It is all good.

** This is a repost of my post from June 18th. Blogger had a brief issue with uploaded photos, and mine were among them. I don’t know any other way to fix this. Unfortunately, I will loose all your kind comments, and my responses. But I wanted the pictures to be on the post.***
Art time has been preciously rare. This is a quick post today. If you read this blog on a more or less regular basis, you know my husband had foot surgery a month ago. Life has not been the same since. But yesterday he went back to work, and things are going well. On my side bar are photos of him gluing up a 36 inch by 36 inch birch panel. You can just see his cast/boot in one of the photos. This weekend I hope to get photos of the final steps he takes when finishing these panels. Mary asked how much the panels weigh. The 36 inch by 36 inch panels are 9 pounds. They are very easy to move about, and hang on the wall while I work standing up. I’ll post more about the whole process soon.
When I have been in the studio I have been working on these 36 inch square panels. I just love working large. Finally there is enough room for gesture, and expanse. In the process of creating my paintings, I also create collage papers. I use a variety of paper to put paint on and take paint off of the panels. These images are of some of the papers recently created. I think they are intriguing, and I can visualize them as an artist book perhaps.
I think my work on the panels is looking more encaustic like all the time. I am isolating layers with gloss acrylic medium. That is really adding depth. Then at the end I use a varnish or medium that is not glossy. I don’t like all that reflection, and I don’t think it suits the mood of my work. I am seriously toying with the idea of trying encaustic, although I wish I could use my tried and trusted acrylics with the wax.
During this time when my studio time has been limited, I have been out and about on the internet, discovering new and interesting blogs. I have added several to my side bar – encaustic artists and photographers. There is stunning work out there!