Thanksgiving Book

With Thanksgiving coming up this week, I've been thinking about the people and things that I count as blessings. This is a little tumbling book that I may use as part of my Thanksgiving decorations. I painted the paper in a marble pattern (the technique is from Alisa Golden's Painted Paper book), and used a brush and gold calligraphy ink for the wording. I like the monochrome effect, but would like to try it again with more contrast in the colors.

The book is tiny. The pages are 2 inches square. I have some watercolor paper samples that I need to use!

Happy Thanksgiving! What are you thankful for?

Longleaf Pine

At least, I think it is a longleaf pine! I was only able to see it in the distance. The smaller trees nearby looked like longleaf saplings.

Rain came through today and cooled everything off a bit. I couldn't wait to take pencils and paper outside to draw. I'm making an effort to rediscover some art materials that I have neglected for a long time. I love charcoal! It is wonderfully messy and expressive. This was a quick exploratory drawing... and a lot of fun.

I love the way the branches come off the trunk at odd angles. The paper is a rose-colored Ingres I had sitting around. It was fun to work on. The foam backing board that the paper is taped to is an old one that I like to take out in the field. It's full of acrylic paint from previous projects, and makes a very soft surface to work on.

Wanderings...

I suppose I am a wanderer at heart. My parents used to take us on long car trips through the western U.S. when I was young, and I used to wonder what it would be like to live in some of the little western towns, surrounded by cattle and sagebrush. I would look at the houses, at the curtained windows, and wonder what their day was like: what experiences would be normal and routine for them, but foreign to me. Now I can say that I have lived in a small western town, surrounded by cattle and sagebrush. What a grace to experience other worlds, other vistas in this vast, beautiful country we live in.

For now, I am back home. Here we will probably stay, though I still dream of visiting a little cabin in the Sawtooth Mountains of Idaho, or the Smoky Mountains of Tennessee. A change of location brings many other changes: ways of working change; goals change. This move has been no different.

There are so many stories to be told here in Louisiana. I think for a while here I will be focusing on nature sketches and writing, telling some of these stories in words and pictures. It will be interesting to compare my sketches from years ago to the same areas today.

My aunt once told me that my grandmother loved the sight of the cypress trees and Spanish moss coming back into view after being away. I love that sight, too. I know some of my readers are visiting this blog from other places, and do not know this scenery. Stay tuned, and I will be delighted to share some of it with you.

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This is my well-worn painting bag, collecting patches and pins from National Parks and Monuments. I like it because it is waterproof and has little pockets for all sorts of supplies. Inside, I can also fit a few sketchbooks. It was not designed to be an artist's bag, but it is just right for the things I need to carry!

Well Loved Books

My last post reminded me of a couple of other well-loved books from my younger years. In the photo above, you can see the Eliot Porter book I mentioned, Hal Borland and Les Line's A Countryman's Flowers, a book of Robert Frost's poems, and a National Geographic book titled Exploring America's Backcountry. Interestingly, this last book features chapters about both the Sawtooth Mountains of Idaho and the Atchafalaya swamp here in Louisiana. I could not have imagined in my wildest dreams when I was young that I would know both places. I am truly blessed.

There was another National Geographic book that I loved as a kid, Our Fifty States. I had that book almost memorized. Back then, I wanted to see them all. Today, I can say that I have indeed been fortunate enough to see quite a few, but there are still some tantalizing states left for me to see. I still want to visit Alaska and Hawaii, and Maine.

My parents were good to me. They gave me books to love.

Poetry and Art

I have a dear friend in the frozen north who is a wonderful poet. Yesterday, the two of us "discovered" Anne Porter's poetry on the Writer's Almanac website. (Incidentally, today's featured poet over there is Ted Kooser, another one of our favorites!) Porter's poetry is simple and beautiful. It was also interesting to learn that her husband was the painter Fairfield Porter, and her brother-in-law was Eliot Porter.

When I was 11, my parents gave me a copy of Eliot Porter's  In Wildness is the Preservation of the World. To say that this book had an influence on me would be an understatement. I still have my treasured copy, and pull it out from time to time. It is fading, but retains its beauty. I think his photographic vision shaped my love of nature, conservation, and my own artistic viewpoint.

It is interesting how often poetry and art seem to intersect, at least in my wanderings.

Works on Paper and High Humidity

As we near the end of summer, I am astonished at how differently paper acts in a humid climate. Previously crisp folds go limp, and books change shape. After living in lower relative humidity for so long, it is tough to know how to respond. Fall air should be drier, but winter will bring humidity again, and so the cycle will repeat itself.

I recently noticed the same issues are starting to show up in the origami pieces on display at my home, even with air conditioning.

I am hoping that another book or paper artist will chime in and comment with some tips or ideas!

In the meantime, I am weighing whether encasing future works in a layer of acrylic medium would help, by sealing the papers.

60 MPH Drawings

This weekend, I had a chance to practice speed drawing again, since I was not the driver of the car. This is a fun exercise that I started doing while taking road trips, to try to develop my visual memory. I suppose they could also be called 55 MPH drawings, or 75 MPH drawings, depending on where you are!

They are not going to be careful, detailed drawings, which is the point. When I pick up a pencil, I sometimes find myself in engineer-mode, drawing entirely too much detail. For this exercise, I hold the pencil further back. I look at the landscape, and get the drawing down as fast as I can. I have a notebook full of barns that I saw on I-40 years ago. It is very difficult for me to draw architecture this way, but I think it really helped my visual recall to practice. This, in turn, helps when I am trying to draw something like a bird, that can fly away suddenly.

I am now starting another notebook for another interstate. This view is of a railroad track through a marsh.

The tiny notebook is my travel notebook. I have a drawing-in-progress next to it, to show how I use these travel sketches. This additional drawing can then be developed into a painting. I think by reworking it while my visual memory is fresh, I can identify what it was about that landscape that caught my eye. In this case, I was surprised to find that the telephone or electrical wires (not sure which it was) caught my eye... not at all what I expected.

I don't judge these drawings the way I would something that I worked on site, or from a photo. If it has captured the excitement I felt at the moment, I consider it a success. It may or may not not look exactly like the actual landscape. Give it a try the next time you are a passenger!

Mini Books, and Robert Louis Stevenson

Last week, I found a great quote by Robert Louis Stevenson.

"I kept always two books in my pocket, one to read, one to write in."

I think many of us writers are the same way. I love to read. And I am constantly coming up with ideas for my own writing at the worst possible moments- waiting in line at the grocery store, running or working out, driving in a car, doing yardwork. I have learned to keep a tiny book in my pocket to write things down. I can't tell you how many times I've lost a poem or an essay because I forgot to write it down when I was inspired, or I was too busy to pay attention.

If I am driving, I do wait until I get to a red light, or until I've parked, though!!!

I have a few mini books that I use for these "seeds." They are Japanese stab bound books, made from museum board covered with Japanese papers. I use a nice paper inside to write on. They are almost too beautiful to write in, but what good is a blank book that is not used?

They are very small, 2"x2". This is not the smallest size book I've ever made (that may be another post!), but it is the perfect size for a pocket. I need something that tiny, because I don't always have a purse. The blue one standing in the front is my current volume. It is well loved, and has held up for a long time.

Louisiana Impressions

You are invited to see a collection of my small artist's books, called "Louisiana Impressions," at the Watson Branch of the Livingston Parish Public Library from August 1-September 30th. These are small, simple, fun books which I hope will inspire others to try their hand with the book arts. Each book explores an aspect of the environment in Louisiana that caught my eye when I moved back last year. Since flowers, trees, wildlife and climate are my major interests, the books focus on these themes.

The books were made with acrylic inks and paints, watercolor, colored pencils, and artist's papers. They are primarily simple folded books, in keeping with the natural themes.

I have been making small books since I was a little girl, when I would fold pieces of green lined computer paper my dad brought home for me to draw on. It is so exciting to me to be able to continue this as an art form, and encourage others to explore it.

Nature Journals

Almost anything is fodder for the nature journal! This morning, I happened to look out of my window and see a huge orb weaver cut a leaf out of its web. I was close enough to see how unusual it looked, but too far away to see real detail. That is okay. My purpose in keeping a nature journal is not necessarily to create a work of art, but to record observations. I was thrilled to see that my field guide mentioned the behavior that I observed.

This orb weaver's abdomen looked just like a beetle's from above. I wonder why? And this is another important function of a nature journal-- to generate questions. Formulating questions is the basis of science. Sometimes, an answer can be found, but at other times, it will suggest a topic for research. My science background makes its way into my journals all the time!

Even in the dog days of summer, there is always something to observe!

Another wildflower book

This is an unfinished accordion-style book I have been working on. The wildflowers were drawn with a Parallel Pen. As the background was sponged on, and watercolors were added to the flowers, the water-soluble ink I had inside the pen blurred a little. It was an interesting effect, but I think I will try to use a waterproof ink next time.

The parallel pen is a favorite tool of mine. It is easy to bring along when I travel, and I like the way the ink flows evenly from between the blades. I am still pushing its limits, and trying to see just what I can do with it!

A Heart Book

The wildflower books were put on the back burner for a while. I was working on this book.

The form of this book is known by a few different names. I have seen it called flower fold, lotus fold, and origami fold by different artists. I love this book form and use it often, because it is so sculptural. It can be adapted in so many different ways, from architectural-looking books, to flowers, and it just seems to invite creativity. The pages are formed by origami folds, cut into shapes, and glued together. I cut the pages into hearts, and included hearts and forget-me-nots inside, drawn with colored pencil. The outer cover is made from painted rice paper over museum board, and the inner pages are Arches text paper.

It is in memory of a baby boy who came into my life, captured my heart, and was gone, all too soon.

Parallel Pen Flowers

More wildflowers...

The three wildflower book pages are finished. The Parallel pens gave wonderful results, but they did have to be disassembled frequently during the drawing process to be cleaned. The paper is an Ingres paper, which has tiny lines going throughout. It gives a bit of texture. It's also a thin paper which is easily folded into a book.

These are flowers I see driving around town. I love the pink powderpuff Sensitive Briers. When I was little, I used to touch the leaves to try to get them to curl up. The pink flowers are so cheerful-looking!

The wildflower landscape changes from season to season. This will be an early summer book.

I think I will decide tomorrow what form this book will take!

Saturday and Wildflowers!

Ahhh... a Saturday at home! Today, I am painting wildflowers with watercolors and Parallel pens. Coreopsis are all over the roadsides here.

This project is changing as it goes along. My intention was to bind each painting into a lotus-form book, but I am having trouble making myself fold them. I may choose a different book form that doesn't require a fold through the flowers.

Also, I was planning to add calligraphy all over the background, but I am finding that I love the open white space to the side. I have always appreciated the use of negative space in Eastern art.

I will post a picture of the finished project when it is done. I guess what it looks like will be a surprise-- to all of us!

A Bamboo Book

I love bamboo. I have mine in a pot at the moment, since the last time I planted it in the ground, it ran away into neighboring yards!

I decided to make a Japanese paper book that would hold some simple sketches of the plant, and have room for a poem. The poem is not done, yet. I am much faster at binding books than writing poetry.

The book is a simple accordion with hard covers. I like to use the offcuts from my cover edges to make butterflies.

The bamboo was drawn with a brush pen. It does not have the subtlety of paintings done with a traditional brush and sumi ink, but I thought it was fine for a small book like this. The closed book is 2.25 x 5.25 inches.

Welcome!

Welcome to Leaf and Line! In this blog, I hope to share with you my enthusiasm for bookmaking, writing, nature journals, and calligraphy. I am sure that I will also be inspired by you, in turn. I'll be posting some examples of my book art, thoughts on the creative process, and reflections on the wonders of spending time outdoors.