I belong to a book club of a different sort - in my book club, we make our own books. We get together every couple months to exchange our handwork and catch up with each other. Wine, chocolate and laughter are also swapped. Our exchange is tonite at Casa Santini. Being the five star procrastinator that I am, I made my books today. Above are my pages in progress - large sheets of paper layered on both sides with color - monoprints, doodles, splashes, drips, etc - using paint, markers, glitter pens, watercolor pencils, ink, and whatever else I could get my hands on. The style of book I made involved one paper per book - with a creative folding technique and several carefully placed snips with a scissors and viola - a book magically appears! And here's the magic! Finished off with blanket stitching, vintage buttons and a snippet of gold ribbon - each page is a colorful little treasure waiting to inspire deep, philosophical thoughts (or not!). Thanks for looking at - and sharing - my artwork with your friends and family, Kim
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The cover of "A Dog Named Blue," now available from Blurb publishers. When I first painted Amelia I never imagined that she would be re-christened "Blue" and inspire a book. In her defense, Amelia had a number of other partners in crime - animals who's portraits seemed to fall into a specific color category and prompt color-centric names. In typical ADD fashion, my brain started spinning 100mph. What if I turned those muses' paintings into a picture book for animal loving kids? I shared my idea with three friends in the industry, and they eagerly offered their expertise. I am truly indebted to them. Illustrator and author Matt Faulkner and children's book author and literacy expert Kristen Remenar edited an early version of the draft. They suggested key plot/conceptual changes that made it oodles better. Designer Elizabeth St. Hilaire Nelson worked her magic, pairing the images with perfectly color...
I LOVE this idea! I enjoy making little books, but would never be brave enough to gift or sell them - a book club would be a fun way to share with friends!
ReplyDeleteIt's a great club, Sara! we started after our book making class ended - the teacher suggested we convene in a couple months and do an exchange, and we've been doing it ever since. Now it's a nice incentive to try something new, with the accountability to finish it up! Next swap is September......
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