I often design projects specifically for a workshop. I enjoy the whole process – concept, sketches, rough models and finally, making the finished samples. I explore the project in different sizes and proportions, and the possibility of hinging multiple structures together or combining units in unusual ways.

Generally, the class projects come about from playing around with materials, or from a self-imposed assignment to create a new class. My goal is to design open-ended projects with lots of possibilities. But the bottom line is that the project was basically designed for a class.

TELESCOPE BOOK class samples are visible on the Scor-it Board on the left and a tiny telescope, part of my miniature book titled 'Galileo - A Telescopic View', is displayed on the right. I made all the projects in the background quickly and accurately with my Scor-it Board.

Sometimes, often months or years later, a class project will inspire a full-blown book structure with text. Such is the case with TELESCOPE BOOK. I’d been teaching this class for some time, and one day – BINGO – I knew the telescope class project was perfect for a book structure I wanted to create.

The class project was the inspiration for a miniature book titled ‘Galileo, a Telescopic View’, in an edition of 100. The telescope is one of four components of the book structure and it’s a variation of the class project – it has four sections as opposed to three, and I’ve added a folding easel to the back so it can stand up.

Artists Jenn Pang (left) and Patricia McGovern with completed TELESCOPE BOOKS, ready for embellishment

I taught  my 3-hour TELESCOPE BOOK CLASS last Sunday as part of the Seattle Center for Book Arts series titled ‘Books that Pop, Move, and Go BOOM!’.

SCBA Mission Statement:

Our mission is to provide educational, technical, and creative resources for individuals in the pursuit of book arts. Our vision is to foster appreciation, understanding, and acceptance of the book as a contemporary art form and medium for self-expression. Our ultimate aim is to establish a facility specifically designed and equipped for bookmaking and all related art forms.

(Heads-up: Karen Vance Chickadel will teach FLAG BOOK on March 1, and Chandler O’Leary will teach JACOB’S LADDER on March 8 as part of the series).

Artists Patricia and Jenn using Scor-it boads to construct sleeves for their Telescope Books

Art Instructor Amanda Wood (left) and High School Senior Sarah Anderson with her Flexagon Card models. In this photo the cards are closed.

I’ve been teaching paper and book arts classes for sixteen years, mostly to adults, and it’s always a special privilege when I receive an invitation to teach younger artists.

On the morning of February 10th, with Lyle Lovett tunes emanating from the CD player in my PT Cruiser, I left Seattle and drove 16 miles to Meadowdale High School in Lynnwood, Washington. As I walked through the door to the main entrance to the school at 7:15 am, I was greeted with a wonderful display of art work – beautiful prints on paper and tiled plaques, created by students in classes taught by Art Instructors Amanda Wood and D’arcie Beytebiere. Seeing this vibrant artwork made me happy and even more excited to meet my students. I logged in, received my visitor’s pass, and proceeded to Amanda Wood’s classroom.

This photo shows the same Flexagon cards opened.

Art Instructor Amanda Wood had received a Book Arts Grant to have me teach four classes – ‘Flexagon Cards’ and ‘Envelope Book’ to students and adults at Meadowdale High School, and ‘Fold’n Cut Books’ to two classes at Meadowdale Middle School (You can see some of the samples I made for these classes below).

Meadowdale HS artists work on Flexagon Cards in Amanda's elective art class titled 'Art Books 9-12' as Michael adjusts overhead projector in preparation for next step (photo courtesy Amanda Wood)

High school students, teachers and parents observe basic techniques at the beginning of 'Envelope Books', taught as part of Amanda's once-a-week after school Art Club class (photo courtesy Amanda Wood)

I met Amanda for the first time when I walked into her classroom to set up, and reconnected with D’arcie, who teaches right next door (we met in the mid-90’s at a workshop I taught at Coupeville Art Center). As I walked around the two art rooms, I got inspired by ceramic sculptures that light up and lots of sculptural bookworks made by Meadowdale High School students – yet another visual (and tactile!) treat!

Michael operates Alex Tindall's flexagon heart card while Julia Higbee reads the next step in her Flexagon Cards handout (photo courtesy Amanda Wood)

Meadowdale Middle School artists made several 'Fold 'n Cut Books' in the cozy art room while snow fell outside (photo courtesy Amanda Wood)

Thank you, Amanda, for having me teach at the Meadowdale schools (and for being so totally organized!). It was exciting to experience your passion for book arts and to see that making hand-made books plays such a big part in your teaching curriculum!

Michael's samples for 'Flexagon Cards' Class

Michael's samples for 'Fold 'n Cut Books' Class

One of Michael's samples for 'Envelope Books' class

Nan Robkin, Lynne Kelly, Sandra Kroupa, Lillian Dabne, Liz Sheets (back row, l-r), Diane Baker and Michael Jacobs (front row, l-r), pose with books donated to Special Collections at the University of Washington

Belltown Bookie Diane Baker suggested a while back that we donate handmade books to the University of Washington to honor head librarian Sandra Kroupa’s 40th anniversary in Special Collections. Among her many duties, Sandra teaches courses on the book in the Ph.D. program in Textual Studies and guest lectures in a variety of related classes. Click ‘Not Simply a Gathering: A Conversation with Sandra Kroupa, University of Washington Book Arts and Rare Books Curator’ by Alison Mandaville, for an engaging interview, and view photos of selected books from the collection.

To date, eight book artists responded to Diane’s request, and the photo above shows six of us when we presented our books to Sandra on February 2nd. The photos below were taken at the presentation, and the text describes each book. I will add additional photos (and text) as they are made available to me.

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Sandra and Artist Lillian Dabney with QUEEN BESS

Type of Binding Accordian style variation

Size 4″ w x 10″ h

Text and Illustrations Computer generated photographs, coupled with calligraphic lettering

Description I was inspired by the Black Heritage postage stamp of Bessie Coleman who was the FIRST African America pilot, and she happened to be female as well. The story of how she became a pilot through sheer audaciousness, passion and tenacity I thought should be presented to as many people as possible. When the theme of the 2004 Guild of Book Workers members exhibition was ‘flight’ I saw my opportunity and created this book for their juried exhibition. Surprisingly it was accepted and Bessie Coleman’s story traveled around the country in the exhibition for a year. My wish came true!

Lillian Dabne Comments During my preparation and layout process, I attended a WOMENS EQUALITY DAY for federal employees. The theme was FOLLOW YOUR DREAM, and the presentation was a historical representation of the life of Bessie Coleman. I wonder if the signs could have been more blatant. I felt a force guiding me to a task. Could that force have been Queen Bess herself? I surely think it was.

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Sandra and artist Liz Sheets with CLOWN ALLEY

Type of Binding Tunnel Book (illustrated) & case bound (text)

Size tunnel: 7 1/2″ w x 6 1/2″ h x 2″ d – text: 7″ w x 5 1/2″ h

Text and Illustrations Text: formatted in Photoshop & printed on an Epson cx4800. Tunnel book: original illustrations, ink, watercolor, & colored pencil. Scanned, & color corrected in Photoshop. Printed on Rives BFK, on an Epson cx4800.

Story The text is the story of a little boy who wins a ticket to the circus, and decides to go even though he’s afraid of clowns. When he enters the circus tent, he discovers his adventures at the circus are only beginning.

Artist Elizabeth Beronich Sheets Comments I made the tunnel book first, when I lived in Minnesota, and worked at the Guthrie Theatre. I took it to work and showed it to a few people, including Isabel Monk, an actress & children’s book author who worked there periodically. She suggested I write a story about the tunnel book. She said she wanted to know what happened inside Clown Alley. Well, so did I. So I started writing and the story took me. It wrote itself, & I went along for the ride.

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Sandra and artist Michael Jacobs with GALILEO - A TELESCOPIC VIEW

Type of Binding 4-section articulated telescope structure with easel, accordion-fold book, portfolio case and sleeve

Size 2 15/16” h x 2 7/8” w x 1/2” d when closed. Edition of 100.

Text computer generated

Story Biography and timeline on Galileo’s life, including his discovery in 1611 that the earth and planets revolve around the sun, his trial before the Inquisition, and his subsequent banishment for life to his villa in Arcetri, Italy.

Artist Michael Jacobs Comments I was a junior at a Catholic high school when I first learned about Galileo’s monumental discovery that the earth, was, in fact, not the center of the Universe, a claim first made by Plato and held unequivocably by the Catholic Church for 2000 years.

I remember being appalled that Galileo, a staunch Catholic and world-renowned scientist, was brought before the infamous Inquisition in 1633, convicted of heresy, and forced, under pain of torture and death, to recant his heliocentric theory.

I also remember the year 1992 (350 years after Galileo’s death) when Pope John Paul II, though admitting errors had been made in the case of Galileo, declared the case officially closed but did not admit that the Church was wrong to convict Galileo on a charge of heresy because of his belief that the earth rotates around the sun.

I felt compelled to tell this story, and chose to create ‘Galileo – A Telescopic View’ as a miniature book in an edition of 100.

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Sandra and Nan Robkin with SANDRA'S BOOK: WORDS TO LIVE BY

Type of Binding / Text Triangle book based on Cheryl Moote’s design in Books With Girth. I scanned the color pages from original direct-to-paper samples I had made, and clipped them via Corel Draw 12 into triangles, placing these on the basic book template. I made a collage for the back of the pages. I also made the text pages in the same way, but adding a text box to the triangles. Then the book, basically an origami puzzle book, was cut and folded, and the extra triangles and text pages were sewn in. The sewing is basically a 4-station long stitch.

Size 2.25″ x 2.25″ x .5″ when closed and tied

Story There is no story – just aphorisms I picked at random from a stash I keep for making text for book structures that would otherwise be blank….

Sandra and artist Diane Baker with SLEEP FREEZE

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Artist Shirley Cox

Title Coffee Filter Clown Book

Type of Binding Embroidery on spine, and gluing thin paper strips to hold coffee filters together

Size #4 triangular coffee filters, about 7″ across and 6″ from top to bottom.

Text and Illustrations Illustrations were created first with light pencil drawings of clowns on the coffee filters, then colored with colored pencil, and accented with fine point black Sharpie. Because the book was made into a “fan” construction, each illustration had to be drawn with half the clown image on one side of one filter, and the other half on the adjoining side of the next filter. The coffee filter paper, especially since it had been used once, was soft and very receptive to the colored pencil.

Story the book was inspired by my first visit to a Cirque du Soleil show, Corteo, and the clowns, acrobats and costumes in the show. I fit the clowns in odd postures into the triangular shapes of the coffee filters to suggest the contortions and actions of the clowns in the show. The fanning of the book expressed the skillful acrobatics and movement in the show.

Artist Shirley Cox Comments I wanted to use only recycled or found material, and to use supplies I had on hand without purchasing anything new. The coffee filters were used once to make coffee, so they had a nice warm color and were soft and receptive to the colored pencil. It was rewarding and fun to turn something that might have been thrown out into a fun book. The book opens up into a fan, which is fun. The coffee filter paper is fragile so the book may not last very long, which is OK.

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Artist Meredith Arnold donated the following three books:

1. Title Butterfly Book

Type of Binding perfect bound/refillable binding

Size 4″ x 6″

Illustrations polymer clay image transfers (copier print transfer of butterfly and Meredith’s freehand transfer method used to create the rest of the book cover).

Story Blank book

Artist Meredith Arnold Comments refillable bound book developed by Meredith Arnold where book block can be entirely replaced and a new one snapped into the cover. This book was published in ‘Polymer Clay New Ways with New Materials’ by Georgia Sargeant, 2002, and is on the cover of that book.

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2. Title Collage Coptic Bound Book

Type of Binding single needle Coptic

Size 4″ x 6″

Illustrations paper cloth collage cover

Story blank book

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3. Title Miniature Polymer Book

Type of Binding perfect bound

Size 2″ x 3″

Illustration Meredith’s Freehand Transfer method to decorate the cover

Story blank book

Artist Meredith Arnold Comments Published in ‘Polymer Clay New Ways with New Materials’ by Georgia Sargeant, 2002.

In the photo above, I’m holding an articulated great white shark made from 16 gauge galvanized wire with painted tin fins. The head and tail sections are hinged, and move freely back and forth to suggest a swimming motion.

In the photo below, I’m holding a jointed wooden man, sitting in a chair, with copper hands and painted tin feet, with his partially completed head in my right hand.

What do a big shark and a headless man have in common? Come back to my blog in a few weeks to view the whimsical interactive sculpture I will create from these odd components.