Wednesday, July 9, 2014

Unpacking books

I was unpacking some of my artist's books yesterday, and I realized how few of them I have shared on the blog. I will try to photograph them, and post them here.

There is something about making a book that fires up connections in my mind. Once I start, ideas start gushing out like a flood. I have to keep my art journal nearby, because the ideas keep coming, and as I work on one book, more ideas pop up. I don't think I will ever finish making all of the books that I've sketched out in that journal. Making books must somehow tap into the deepest waters of creativity. Maybe it is the art, maybe it is the technical aspects of measuring and sewing, maybe it's the writing possibilities, or maybe it is all of this together. I don't know. It has become a passion.


Friday, June 20, 2014

Nebraska!

Well. More change... change can be stressful, but it can also be exciting. We are now in Nebraska, and I have the chance to explore a new environment. One ecosystem I am not familiar with is the prairie, and now I am in Nebraska. This is exciting.

My art will change again, as it always does after a major move. It will settle down with a new palette, and a new way of looking at things. I expect this process to take a couple of months. I am already figuring out that it is windier here, and I need to learn to deal with that. The skies are clearer and sunnier, for the most part, which also has an effect. White paper in full sun is blinding, as I learned in Idaho. Fortunately, there are trees here, and shade can be sought out. They just aren't as abundant as in Louisiana.

I will continue to blog here about my artwork, but will be starting a new blog about nature in Nebraska. Thank you for reading this, and stay tuned!


Tuesday, March 4, 2014

Origami folder

I'm working on a Cosmos Ball origami project, from Meenakshi Mukerji's book, Marvelous Modular Origami. This project requires folding thirty small units of paper to make a beautiful ball. I have previously made the Poinsettia Ball from this book, and enjoy seeing it on top of my bookshelf. It is beautiful.

I needed a way to corral all those little pieces of paper, so I decided to make a folder. I found a heavy decorative paper in my stash, collaged on some end-piece offcuts of wrapping paper that I am using for the origami, and used washi tape as a way to decoratively secure it all. After that, I added a bit of cheerful calligraphy. Here is what I came up with!


You can see that I just folded the paper in half, and then folded the sides in a bit. Then I folded up a pocket on the bottom. The sides were then secured with the tape.







I really like this folder! I can use it to bring my origami with me if I have to go somewhere I know I will have to wait.  Thirty pieces of paper is a lot to fold. I can't do it all in one sitting. And I really want to try the 90 unit dodecahedron she has in the book... that's quite a lot of folding! Folding is relaxing for me, and I like to take my time and enjoy it.

The little offcuts are from a wrapping paper that I found the other day. It's a roll of Hallmark paper, and the back is printed in a 1" grid. Many of the models I have been making use rectangles instead of squares. This is a big time saver.

I hope to post a few more projects in the coming days. Hope this week is a beautiful one for you!