Artist in Residence

Raising our Flags at the Sunland-Tujunga Library!

November 2, 2019 By Debra Disman

Continuing my 2019-20 Artist Residency at the Sunland-Tujunga Library, supported by the City of Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs, I led a Bookmaking program, for teens, the winning, fun, wild and versatile Flag Book!

In addition to teens, families attended as well, and learned to fold an accordion spine, attach covers to it, and add the flag pages to create a pattern that created all kinds of options for text and visuals.

Color choices are one of the first ways the young makers express themselves.

Students from the nearby Verdugo Hills High School shared that the artmaking was a welcome break from academic pressures.

Great use of magazine text and letters.

Celebrating “STEAM VHHS” (STEAM is an educational approach to learning that uses Science, Technology, Engineering, the Arts and Mathematics as access points for guiding student inquiry, dialogue, and critical thinking, VHHS is Verdugo Hills High School).

So glad the Arts are in there! All of these disciplines must work together if we are to move ahead in this World!

Hanging in Hawthorne

July 13, 2019 By Debra Disman

I was honored to conduct a bookmaking program for children and families at the
Hawthorne Library

We made flag books.
Numerous families joined us, and a grand time was had by all…

What will this maker say, with their work, letters, design?

Mothers, grandmothers, friends, and daughters.

Lovely lady line-up!

Sons and Brothers

Families and friends worked together.

Proud maker.

Mother and Daughter.

The devotion and commitment of these families of makers, in their family, friendships and making was just stunning.

Making Books, Making Community at the Brentwood Art Center!

June 16, 2019 By Debra Disman

Teaching community workshop in June on Flag Books and Found Text at the Brentwood Art Center was pure joy!

“Fun with Flag (pages)” was had by all.

Adults and children alike created marvelous flag book creations and had a blast in the process!

Participants learned to fold an accordion spine, add covers, and attach the flag pages on alternating sides of the spine to create a pattern that changed as the book was opened.

After the flag book was “built” (books and buildings have a lot in common…but that is a subject for another post…)

the real (well, that depends on your definition) fun began…filling, embellishing and developing the book!

Participants used images and text from magazines,

expressing their interests, thoughts, and ideas…

choosing what they wanted to express

with the materials at hand.

Some chose to draw by hand.

Some laid forth their content using repeated elements, like a graphic designer.

Others asked questions.

And some put it all together thematically.

All in all, a most remarkable experience.
Bravo!

Marbling Unfurled: Making Marbled Scrolls at the Granada Hills Library

May 24, 2019 By Debra Disman

It has been exciting to lead programs at the Granada Hills Branch Library of the LAPL, as part of my Artist Residency there: “We Write the Book“, supported by the Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs.

In honor of Asian/Pacific American Heritage Month, I led a workshop for all on how to marble paper, create scrolls and put these two forms together into one of the oldest book structures extant.

Scrollwork made by an adult artist at a UCLA-Fowler Museum program and generously gifted to me, and which I often use as a sample/model to inspire students.

We begin by floating specially formulated inks on the surface of a tub of water. The ink colors can be gently moved around to create designs. Papers are then carefully lowered onto the surface of the “inked” water, and pick up the designs, like a monoprint!

The marbled papers are lifted out of the tub, placed on and under and blotted with paper towels, which absorb excess water and help with the drying process.

The results can be delicate pastel,

or stronger colors and patterns, depending on the colors and handling of the inks.

While their marbled papers were drying, participants chose bright tagboard papers for their scrolls and added wooden dowels at the vertical top and bottom of the pieces. They then added their marbled papers and a myriad of other materials!

We used both glue sticks and tacky glue, depending on the weight of the materials added.

The results were resplendent, with the softer strength marbled papers contrasting with gold ribbon and more.

Intergenerational attendance enriched the experience, as participants of all ages engaged their creativity and learned new skills in the process.

Whole families joined us, even with very young attendees! Hopefully, these young parents of two got a break.

Attendees young and old loved adding two and three-dimensional stickers,

washi tape, ribbon and string,

putting them all together in imaginative and innovative ways to create singular scrollworks.

This says it all. The Library belongs to Everyone!

Getting Lit: Making Matchbox Books at the Granada Hills Public Library

March 22, 2019 By Debra Disman

In honor of Women’s History Month, I led a workshop on how to create mini “matchbox books”. Open to the whole community, participants included families, seniors, children, adults and youth. Participants used actual matchboxes as the container or “cover of their books, and folded accordion pages to place inside them. I had appropriately-sized images of the work of five amazing women artists, who the makers learned about, and used in and on their pieces.

Faith Ringgold of New York City, Yayoi Kusama of Japan, Liza Lou of Los Angeles, Frida Kahlo of Mexico, and Georgia O’Keeffe of New Mexico were featured, nd participants incorporated images of their work and the artists themselves into their projects, hopefully learning about them and being inspired in the process

Families work together.

Honored members of the Friends of the Library joined us.

Mother and daughter work side by side.

I couldn’t agree more!

Purple and pink…perennial favorites.

Kusama’s polka dots rule….

Kahlo graces the cover…

Our fearless, peerless teen librarian, Kristin Peers, joins the fun!

It is such an honor to serve this community as Artist in Residence, and get to know the families and individuals who frequent the Branch, as well as its awesome Staff.

Gratitudes!

Seeing Double Vision: Double Flower Bookmaking

February 13, 2019 By Debra Disman

In honor of Chinese New Year, community members participated in creating “Double Flower” books (also known as “Exploding Books”).

Both adults and children learned to fold and “pop-out” the basic structure. They then made several and glued them together to create a long or short book of repeated folded forms that flatten into a single square. Finally, they had a blast adding covers and a tie if they wished, and embellishing their creations with all manner of materials.

Sisters with their folded up books: books closed..