Paper and Threads

We are in the middle of a heat wave, and I prefer being in air conditioning as much as possible.  I am taking Mary Ann Moss's summer fun class called SEWN, in which we are making patterns on paper and then using those painted sheets in various projects. 

This week I made a book for the pattern sheets that I created in Central Park each morning over the July 4th holiday.  I wanted to remember those mornings and wanted to save the paper - intact.  So I had to design a book structure that let me put them in without punching holes in the pages.  I accordion folded paper, every 1/2", making 5 valley folds and glued the left edge of the pattern pages to the right side of the valley - like you do for flag books.  Then I made two covers and stitched the accordion between them using the Coptic stitch/accordion format.  Two more pages of patterns were used for the end papers and a few random small pages were collaged onto the backs of the other pages. This book measures 7.5 x 11".

It felt good to know that I'm really learning how to make and use the various book structures for handmade books.  Here are a few photos.  The covers were made from more sheets of my paste paper.  This paste paper design was created by rolling a pink rubber ball over the surface of the paper.

This week I also made a pamphlet stitched book of watercolor paper using the basic instructions for Teesha Moore's 16 page book.  It uses a single 22 x 30" sheet of watercolor paper and creates an 8 x 10" portrait  book.  I modified the instructions for our second weekly SEWN project - and created octagons of my patterns mixed together with scraps of other papers left over from end papers etc.  I laid out two octagons on the book cover, filled in the surrounding areas with more scraps and stitched it all together on my sewing machine. 

I will use this book for more figure drawing practice - drawing with my paintbrush, so I put a print of my first few figures on the front and inside flap.  Then because I've never done it before, I added beads, as dangles, on the spine.

Readers of this blog may know that my challenge this year was to explore one new bookbinding structure each month.  This is a photo of the books I made since January 1, 2013. 

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I'm posting a few of the drawings I did at the Society of Illustrators on July 9th.  One of our models was Blaine - the same very tall man who I sketched two previous times.  He has extremely long arms, legs, and fingers and can get into the most challenging positions.  I sometimes can't keep his arms on the page - so these are a few of the easier poses.

Five Minute Poses:

Ten Minute Poses

Our woman model wore a Carnival Mask - which she then gave to Blaine for the next pose:

Twenty Minute Pose:

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I am taking Mary Ann Moss' online class SEWN - and last weekend I painted patterns for the class each morning at a lovely outdoor café in Central Park.  I had great fun spontaneously painting - loosely - and with watercolor, gouache,, watercolor crayons, markers, and calligraphy pens.  These were lovely mornings,  the flowers were in full bloom, and I painted a few. 

I feel so fortunate to have lovely flowers and an amazing Park in the middle of this big city.

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I am making Folded Books for July - as part of my year long Bookbinding Challenge. 

My first book, a Folder Journal, was adapted from an article in Cloth Paper Scissors magazine from Jan-Feb 2011 (Heidi Sekovski and Karin Winter).  Here is my sketchbook page, with collage samples of my materials and a small painting of the book cover.  The book is folded from a classic manilla file folder and then constructed by machine sewing, gluing, and stamping, etc. 

I covered the "pages" and "pockets" of the book with an MTA bus and subway map from New York City and colored the manila folder with stamp inks,  I made cards for the pockets with watercolor paper/paint which was laminated to graph paper on the reverse side. 

Here are the front cover, two page spreads, and the back cover. I am adding an index card to each pocket with specific To-Do items for the days. But when I'm ready to retire the journal, I can write or draw on the graph paper on the back of each card.  Note:  The spine is a 1" strip of my dyed fabric, sewn to a two inch wide strip of the map.  I then glued it over the spine.

I also made samples of 7 other types of Folded Books - all taken from Alisa Golden's 2010 Lark book  called Making Handmade Books: 100+ Bindings, Structures, & Forms.  None of the other books in my library has so many different types of folded books, making it a great project for this month.  Note:  This book contains material from her first  two books, with additional material, but it is not immediately apparent from the cover or title page.

Here is a photo of all 7 sample books - laid out on a 14 x 17" piece of cardboard for a size comparison.  

Top Row:  Shorts Book/Ox-Plow Pamphlet, Pants Book/Simple Accordion, Snake Book, Twist Card

Bottom Row: T-Cut Book, Guest Book, and Crown Binding

I think that I will enlarge some of these and make them as cards and quick gifts.  My favorites are the T-cut book and the crown binding.

T-Cut Book: I glued in the Venetian Paper on the front and back of the "doors" that open and on the inner layer.  I can imagine many ways to decorate the doors and the inside to make artist books or cards/letters.

Crown Binding:  This is an amazing structure - once you get the spine folded.  There are actually folded tabs that hold single folios in place.  In the first photo, the triangle tabs are folded down over the folio.  In the second photo, I unfolded the top tab so you could see how the folios are held in place. There are 4 folios in this sample book.   I glued the finished book into a soft blue cover.

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This is a quiet week in New York City - as many people leave the city over the Holiday.  Last Friday my husband and I went to see the current Maurice Sendak exhibit at the Society of Illustrators.  WOW!!  My children grew up with his books, starting with Where the Wild Things Are and the Nutshell Library.  We then bought In The Night Kitchen and Outside over There when they were published.  I thought that I knew his illustrations, but I really never appreciated his drawing skills and draftsmanship until I saw the originals one week ago.  He is a master of pen drawing - crosshatching and lines. 

One of my favorite Sendak characters was Really Rosie and my children, and now grandchildren, love the video with Carole King.  So to commemorate this amazing exhibit in my sketchbook, I copied a sketch of her!

On Wednesday I went to Battery Park for their adult art programs - Nature in Wagner Park in the morning and Figure Drawing in the afternoon.  Thank goodness I had fun painting two flowers - because we were caught in a freak downpour at 2:30 and our outdoor figure drawing session was cancelled.

I'm taking another Mary Ann Moss online class.  My first introduction to her was with her "Remains of the Day (ROD)" class which I adored. 

This past Christmas I took her Ticket to Venice on-line class - and made a unique long stitch book and accompanied her to Venice through photos, postcards, and many videos.  I was in Venice 6 months before Mary Ann and relived my fabulous vacation!

Yesterday her "SEWN" class started - a summer fun class for making lots of patterns on papers which will then be sewn in other projects.  I signed up without knowing the details because I LOVE her classes.  She has a huge following and there was growing excitement about the start date for this class - although anyone can sign up for the class at anytime.  Yesterday several hundred class members made sheets and sheets of patterns - pure play - disengaging our brains and just painting.

I made several sheets of patterns using watercolors and then created one page in my sketchbook just to commemorate the new class.  Can't wait to do the same today, using acrylic inks. 

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