Hello bookbinders!
Below is a picture of the book we will be making in our March and April classes. The “Panorama Book with Swiveling Panels” an accordion-type book structure was developed by Hedi Kyle.
This is a book that will have three central pivoting panels. Six 4” x 6” portrait orientation images, three on the front and three on the back, will be displayed on the central pivoting panels.
Ideas for decorating the panels include portrait orientation collages, photographs, sketches, paintings, and mixed media pieces. Suzanne Stalder-Mansur will be our teacher for this book.
If you were at the February meeting you will notice that we are switching up our original March and April plans. We were going to make our book structure in March and then do collage pieces for those books in April. But It makes more sense to reverse the two months’ tasks so we can put the artwork on the accordion before we put it in the case. (And Suzanne can move her travel plans to get better photos of the spring wildflower bloom on the Carrizo Plains.)
While the size of the book was designed for 4 by 6 photos, this does not mean that you have to use photos in this book. The structure will also work with any “portrait” style art work—calligraphy, Zentangle, sketches, paintings, gelli prints, eco prints, cyanoprints, stamped work, mixed media pieces—plus photos or collage. Or use a combination of any of these.
But we thought a good collage session might be helpful to give people ideas on how to fill this book or some of their other books. I am not an expert on collage by any means so Carol Rogala will help out. There are so many ways to create collages, it is sometimes paralyzing to have to choose a style. So below I will suggest some videos that could give you an overview of styles.
Your collage style will dictate the materials you need to bring. But in each case you will need a substrate to glue things onto and of course some adhesive. Glue sticks, Elmers glue, gel medium, of whatever else you have on hand can work. While we’re going to use 4 x 6" pieces in our book, you probably want to work on at least a 5 x 7" substrate so you can give it a final trim. Or to ensure a very cohesive collection of pieces, you could work on one very large pieces of paper and cut out the areas you like best. Your substrate can be part of the art. Think about collaging on top of a failed painting, vintage paper or previously printed paper.
Your basic tools to bring should be:
Cutting mat
Scissors, craft knife
Ruler
Pencil
Adhesives (glue stick, gel medium, Elmers glue) and brushes
Waste paper and cleanup materials
Brayer or bonefolder (for getting bubbles out and better adhesion)
Materials you might want to bring in March
Paper for your substrate
Paper, especially light weight papers (gelli prints, book pages, tissue paper, paper napkins)
Magazine pages (for fussy cutting or transfers)
Other collage fodder you’ve been collecting
Paints—acrylic or watercolor
Inks for mark making
Stencils
Rubber stamps and ink pads
Markers, pencils, crayons, pens
Ephemera
Below are some YouTube collage artists to check out if you’re trying to decide on a style or just find some inspiration.
I like the videos of the artist linked below:
But your algorithms might give you lots of other collage makers.
So let your inner artist come play with us on March 19th from 12:30 to 3:30. At this meeting, I expect to pass out the papers and boards for the April meeting where we will make the actual books.
LuAnne Hansen
SCTA Book Arts Study Group Leader
In order to ensure enough seating, please RSVP using the button above.
The meeting is Free for SCTA Members. If you care to bring a friend (non-member), their first visit is complimentary. Non-member class fees are 10.00 after their first visit.