Materials

Flag Books for Flag Day at the Manhattan Beach Library!

June 16, 2025 By Debra Disman

It was a great pleasure to lead a Flag Bookmaking program on Flag Day at the Manhattan Beach Library!

Due to a fabulous donation of designer wallpaper samples,

I was able to offer a mix of exotic materials to the participants to work with!
And they employed them…

in all kinds of different ways, making use of their colors, textures, patterns and imagery

to enhance and enrich their books!

Different makers used the same pattern…

in different ways!

A wide variety of pre-cut “flag pages” were available and used creatively.

Maker Stacy Wong shared her completed Flag Book, which she further developed after the program!

A truly colorfully creative time was had by ALL!

Studio Notes: Texture Tactility Tactile Textile

April 18, 2022 By Debra Disman

Today I am sharing some explorations into “tactile textiles,”, a term coined, as understand it, by Anni Albers, tactile textile artist/weaver!

Such works and materials become spaces, places, rooms, lands, terrain, forests…tactile explorations into the unknown, guided by, among other things, the sense of touch, a tactile sensibility.

Detail of “Forest Through The Trees”, book board, hemp cord, wood, canvas, acrylic paint, used typewriter ribbon, ribbon

Test piece/sample, paper, jute cord

Detail of “It’s Not Black or White”, book board, mulberry paper, used typewriter ribbon

Detail of “FruitFull” (in process), textile samples, hemp cord

Stacked pieces of “to the trade” folded textile samples

Stacked pieces of repurposed and folded denim cut from jeans

Fairy Tales…Make Your Own Books

August 24, 2019 By Debra Disman

It was a gift to be able to work with students every day for five weeks this past summer, and introduce them to the book arts as well as other media. As a teaching artist, we often only see students once a week, so to be able to watch them learn and grow on a daily basis was a thrill!

Surrounded by scads of art supplies, tools and materials, 5-6 year old students in our “Fairy Tales” and “Make Your own Books” classes had an ideal situation for creating!

This outstandingly creative young student in “Make Your Own Books” certainly did just that, using her flag book to try out all kinds of drawing and painting media while exploring color, shape, line and texture.

Each flag page held a different combination of media, including acrylic and watercolor paints, pastels, crayons and markers.

Students created books large and small, including tiny ones that would fit in a (albeit rather large) matchbox!

Mixed media reigned supreme, such as combining letter stickers with markers and paint pens.

Oops! Markers on the project, not on your fingers!

Making and embellishing file folder portfolios was our first project. Some students created so many books they made a second portfolio to hold them!

A brilliantly bookish and imaginatively magical time was had by all!
Goodbye summer program, until next year!

In Resonant Residence (6)

February 14, 2018 By Debra Disman

In Resonant Residence (6)

I formally began Studio Residency at the Camera Obscura Art Lab

in Santa Monica Wednesday January 10th. I share the sunlit space, located within the beautiful Mid-century building overlooking Palisades Park, Santa Monica Beach and the blue Pacific with textile artist and fellow Studio Artist-in-Residence Huong Nguyen.
“About the Art Lab and Camera Obscura

Step inside the Camera Obscura Art Lab and you’ll find a welcoming space with fantastic views of Santa Monica Bay and the Pier. The Camera is located in a midcentury time capsule in Palisades Park between Broadway and Santa Monica Blvd on what was once the site of the Pacific Electric Railway’s North Beach Station. Designed by noted architect Weldon J. Fulton (who’s work can be found around town including the classic Camera Obscura sign and font, the Montana and Fairview branch libraries, and the former Zucky’s building on Wilshire Blvd), the building’s exterior features walls clad in chunky Palos Verdes stone, glass walls, sloping roofs, and projecting canopies and rafter beams. It was donated to the City of Santa Monica by Marcellus Joslyn in 1955.”

The huge studio windows look out on palms, walkways and a huge assortment of passers by, strollers, park wanderers and beach combers. The Studio is a magical place to work.

Fourth Workshop, February 3, 2018:
Making the Fireworks Book, A whimsical pop-up book project, designed by UK Book Artist, Paul Johnson, who derived it from an Eastern European paper engineer, who was inspired by…you get the picture. We are links in the chain. A long chain, potentially, that folds up and then “explodes’ open…like fireworks…

Fireworks Book Workshop!

Folding

Adding pop-ups to the pop-up folds…

Cutting…

and pasting…

Adding the “wings” (pop-ups folding out, and in…

Color and pattern…

“s-t-o-p???”…No- keep going!

Putting it all together.

In Resonant Residence (4)

February 1, 2018 By Debra Disman

In Resonant Residence (4)

I formally began Studio Residency at the Camera Obscura Art Lab

“About the Art Lab and Camera Obscura

Step inside the Camera Obscura Art Lab and you’ll find a welcoming space with fantastic views of Santa Monica Bay and the Pier. The Camera is located in a midcentury time capsule in Palisades Park between Broadway and Santa Monica Blvd on what was once the site of the Pacific Electric Railway’s North Beach Station. Designed by noted architect Weldon J. Fulton (who’s work can be found around town including the classic Camera Obscura sign and font, the Montana and Fairview branch libraries, and the former Zucky’s building on Wilshire Blvd), the building’s exterior features walls clad in chunky Palos Verdes stone, glass walls, sloping roofs, and projecting canopies and rafter beams. It was donated to the City of Santa Monica by Marcellus Joslyn in 1955.”

The huge studio windows look out on palms, walkways and a huge assortment of passers by, strollers, park wanderers and beach combers. The Studio is a magical place to work.