Small Universe

This is my latest coptic stitch book with wooden covers (you can see some others here). I'm working on a series of books that are interpretations of random designs that I find in nature. The cover of this book is based on a pattern of naturally occurring lines in a piece of mica. The name of this book is "Small Universe".

This was the first time I'd worked with milk paint -- lots of layers of colour, then working my way down through them to reveal the design.

Cherry Wood Book

Just finished another Coptic book with wooden covers. This one is made from quarter sawn cherry wood, with a piece of mica inset into the cover.

I used an old time finish on the wood (thanks to Jim Croft, who brewed it up). It's made of beeswax, pine pitch, and raw linseed oil. I just rubbed it in with my fingers, then buffed it with a soft cloth.

When I got the piece of wood, one edge was rough (on the right side in the photo). I decided to leave it that way when I cut the book covers.

Ash, leaf, and twig book

It's been a while since I had a chance to post--hope you are all having a good start to the new year. Christmas was a busy time in my studio this year, so I've been taking some time to hibernate now that things have slowed down a bit. I got a chance to finish a book I've been working on for the past few months -- this coptic book with wooden covers (also pictured above):

It is made from spalted ash, and has fossils set into the front cover. Here is a detail showing the fossilized leaves and twigs, and, on the right hand side, the piece of driftwood I used for the closure:

The design reflects my interest in the Japanese aesthetic principles of Wabi Sabi and Shibui.

I'm planning to make a series of wooden coptic books. For me, they're a way to explore memories I have of growing up in the mountains of the Northwestern U.S. I spent a lot of time roaming around the woods by myself, so trees, rocks, fossils, mica, volcanic rock, and other suchlike things were (and still are) an important part of my life. (I wrote in a vague way about how I started on this book project in some earlier posts).

Noodling around on a holiday weekend

In an earler post, I talked a little bit about a new project I'm working on, which is evolving into a series of small books with wooden covers. I really just want to explore the possibilities for making wooden books without worrying whether the result will be wonderful or horrible. I have a set of qualities that I have in mind as I work:

simplicity
tranquility
naturalness
impermanence
roughness

form that comes from the physical qualities of the materials used



I was thinking about these things today as I wandered around my yard taking photos.

Impermanence seems like an especially appropriate concept.....

as this lovely holiday weekend comes to an end.....

....and the first maple leaf falls to the ground. This time of year always makes me feel a bit melancholy, but in a good way.

Creativity

I dearly love making my leather journals, and will keep doing that, but lately I've been feeling an itch to try something new, as well.

One of the things I enjoy about other people's blogs is seeing how they develop new ideas for their work. When I'm thinking about a new project, thinking isn't really the right word for it. I'm a very visual/tactile sort, so, in a magpie-like manner, I usually just start gathering bits of things that interest me, photos, bits of rock, thread, you name it. Eventually, I pick out some things that seem to belong together, but it's still all very vague. I actually really enjoy that part -- maybe vagueness is my natural state. :)

I decided to try out FreeMind to do a little mind mapping and see if that would be helpful. I downloaded the program (it's free), and after a lot of sweating and mumbling, came up with this:

It's a little hard to read, because I couldn't figure out how to print it in landscape mode, so I had to squeeze it onto the page. Of course, I could have accomplished the same thing in about 10 minutes with a piece of paper and a pencil, but printed up like this, it looks so, I don't know, serious, or official, or something. Like something might really be going on here. Which may not actually be the case. But then again...

For those of you who don't feel like squinting, here is my unabridged list of items/concepts/whathaveyou that might or might not become part of this project:

-Easter Island

-wood

-fossils

-thread

-leather

-roughness

-implicitness

-simplicity

-tranquility

-naturalness

-clay tiles

-handmade paper

-stones

-mica

-volcano

-horses

-skinny

-window

-rope

Make of that what you will. :)

Here is a quote from artist Chris Ofili, that sums up what I love about starting new projects:

"In the process of making art the mind wanders and gives way to instinct, which feeds off areas the intellect doesn’t. The process is one of distillation to the point where it’s just essence, just itself."

Chris Ofili