BEGINNING BOOKMAKING.
"Books can be dangerous.
The best ones should be labeled: This could change your life." -Helen Exley
One day I had lunch with a friend. She wanted to show me her book. She had been
using an old discarded book as a way to wipe off the extra paint on her brushes. She
loved what was happening in the book; maybe more than the paintings she was trying to paint.
Her book knocked my socks off. I wanted to make one of my own. That's all I knew.
I had no idea of how to begin or what materials to use. So I went to the Salvation Army and looked at the books. I held the books that interested me. I felt the weight of the whole book, touched the pages and checked out the text. Slowly, book by book, I found the one I wanted to spend time with.
I still had no idea of how to begin so the book sat on my studio table for awhile; waiting for me. In August 2001, my friend Mia and I met in New Mexico for a vacation in Dixon with Al. I brought books for everyone, art supplies and a deep desire to satisfy my book itch.
The kitchen table was home base for book making. For ten days the three of us
happily obeyed the urge to make art in our books. For ten days we fed each other
and fed our hearts with food and play and being together.
Here are some pages from my book for you to see.
