Debra Disman

Artist

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ARTIST'S BOOKS

Friday Bookmakers Inspiration! We Stand (Sit?!) Together, Making Books! (2)

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I have been honored to work with a wonderful group of “older adults” at the Craft Contemporary Museum in Los Angeles, offering a series of workshops teaching bookmaking techniques, and providing a forum for creativity, imagination, sharing and story.

The series, “Crafting Our Stories By Hand” has had to be postponed due covid19.

Therefore, I have started an email newsletter to keep our community going, offering tips, images and sharing the work these makers are doing at home while “sheltering in place”.

Sharing these newsletters as a blog post makes their contents available for any and all. It inspiring to see what these makers have done and are doing during these crazy times.

Dear Bookmakers,

I am happy to bring you images, tips, inspiration and learning for your bookmaking journey.

I hope you are all well, staying safe, and creating!

Today I will share with you:

  • Exciting new works and beautiful works begun in our class by Joan Fujita, by Sandra Ow-Wing, and Martha Watson. Very cool. 
  • Introduction to one of my mentors, Jeannine Stein, writer, bookmaker and teacher! Two wonderful books that could enhance your creativity and sheltering in place during this trying time:

    Re-Bound: Creating Handmade Books from Recycled and Repurposed Materials

    Adventures in Bookbinding: Handcrafting Mixed-Media Books

     
     
  • I have put our first bookmakers newsletter into the form of a blog post. If you missed it, please click here.
I have attached images of Joan’s, Sandra’s, and Martha’s beautiful and unique books below, but you can also see them here:
Joan’s layered and textural Single Signature books, working beautifully with textiles:
Sandra’s unique accordion fold book with pockets:
 
 
Sandra’s amazing side bound book inspired by the artist John Baldasarri’s “dots on faces” work:

 

Emotional and evocative Flag Book by Martha:

Well that is it for this week dear Craft Contemporary Bookmakers!

If you are able, and so inclined, email us all back and share something book-related, or plaything you wish, of interest,

Stay safe, stay strong, stay well

STAY CREATIVE!

In peace and hope and truth and beauty,
debra

 

Friday Bookmakers Inspiration! We Stand (Sit?!) Together, Making Books! (1)

By

I have been honored to work with a wonderful group of “older adults” at the Craft Contemporary Museum in Los Angeles, offering a series of workshops teaching bookmaking techniques, and providing a forum for creativity, imagination, sharing and story.

The series, “Crafting Our Stories By Hand” has had to be postponed due covid19.

Therefore, I have started an email newsletter to keep our community going, offering tips, images and sharing the work these makers are doing at home while “sheltering in place”.

Sharing these newsletters as a blog post makes their contents available for any and all. It inspiring to see what these makers have done and are doing during these crazy times.

Enjoy!

Dear Bookmakers,

I am happy to bring you images, tips, inspiration and learning for your bookmaking journey.

I hope you are all well, staying safe, and creating!

Today I will share with you:

  • A simple “pocketed” accordion book structure, into which you can keep recipes, poems, notes to yourself, keepsakes, photos,
  • Inspiration for creating “altered books”, for yourself or fun with the whole family, 
  • Images shared by some of our students of amazing books they have created at home!

Joan also sent some beautiful images of exquisite books she has completed at home, and I hope she gives me permission to share them!

To create a simple accordion fold book with pockets, simply add another fold!


Fold the accordion as you did in class in creating your accordion fold books, then unfold, and fold the pocket up from the bottom.

You will have to really sharpen those folds to make the accordion open and close easily. Then just add your covers, and you are ready to fill your pockets!

Take a look at these “altered books” I photographed while visiting the Long Beach Museum of Art!

 

School children added paint, drawing, writing and collage to existing books, to create their own stories! Great project to do on your own, or suggest to the families and children in your lives! Use an old, discarded or out of date textbook, or replaceable paperback you have already read. Fun!

Finally, please enjoy these wonderful books created by three of our illustrious bookmakers:

Well that is it for this week dear Craft Contemporary Bookmakers!

If you are able, and so inclined, email us all back and share something book-related, or plaything you wish, of interest,

Stay safe, stay strong, stay well

STAY CREATIVE!

In peace and hope and truth and beauty,
debra

Poetry Flag Bookmaking at the Granada Hills Library!

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This Leap Year, celebrate Poetry Month at the Granada Hills Library by making the fun and fabulous flag book structure, and adding poetry to its pages.
Complete your book with your own rhymes, poems or lyrics,  dive into the words of your favorite poets, and discover new ones on the shelves of the Library.
Welcome the warmth of Spring with this joyous activity!

Keep Precious Memories Stored in a Journal Session 2

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Join us to create your own journal using single signature binding techniques.

Learn how to create a book with a spine, covers and pages in which to to store your precious memories, doodle, dream, draw and write!

“Artist-in-Residence Debra Disman will teach patrons how to use sewing techniques to bind together their own journal. This program is possible in part by a grant from the City of Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs.”

This program series is part of my artist residency through the Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs in bookmaking!

Keep Precious Memories Stored in a Journal Session 1

By

Join us to create your own journal using single signature binding techniques.

Learn how to create a book with a spine, covers and pages in which to to store your precious memories, doodle, dream, draw and write!

“Artist-in-Residence Debra Disman will teach patrons how to use sewing techniques to bind together their own journal. This program is possible in part by a grant from the City of Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs.”

This program series is part of my artist residency through the Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs in bookmaking!

The Art of the Book: Crafting Our Stories by Hand Exhibition and Culminating Event

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Join Us at Craft Contemporary (Formerly know as the Craft and Folk Art Museum)
Saturday, March 28 | 2 – 4 PM | Free

Artist Debra Disman and participants of our older adults’ workshop will host an outdoor exhibition reception, featuring the artists’ books they created over the course of the series, and facilitate a bookmaking activity for attendees. This program is generously sponsored by Aroha Philanthropies.