Artist
In July I started a new Artist Residency in Bookmaking, “We Write the Book” at the West Valley Regional Branch Library of the Los Angeles Public Library, through the Los Angeles City Department of Cultural Affairs.
The Residency is comprised of a series of bookmaking workshops presented at the Library, planned in close coordination with Library Staff.
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
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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.
Fifth Workshop, February 10, 2018: “Simple Sewn Booklets” AKA: Single Signature Books
Signatures are gatherings of folded pages, which when stitched together, can become the text block (area where text is added). In this process, we sewed together a single signature using the very useful pamphlet stitch.
We attached the covers to the signature, so that the stitched spine was exposed.
Participants could design and embellish their covers before gluing them directly to the signatures, or attach the covers, then develop them. Some “covered the covers”,, learning folding and cutting techniques and creating covered corners.
They made creative use of cord, lace, decorative papers…beads and more,
including repurposed jeans, specifically, the denim pockets!
The components of the book were prepared for participants to use, covers and signatures cut into squares, sewing holes punched. Yest still, the makers used every moment of the 2.5 hour workshop to create and develop their books.
Human ingenuity, devotion and love of the handmade never cease to amaze me…I am blessed to witness this regularly in my practice.
Gratitudes…
