Book Arts Mania: Zines

"Not every act of art creates something special, but it does create something. It is the act of art that is important, not the result." Michael L. Goodman

I taught a small class last year for the Cultural Art Society of West Jordan about folded paper books. After they folded and cut several styles of these books, I showed how the format has been used to make zines. I showed them one I made. I printed thirty copies and left them on Trax train seats and other places I have frequented since then. Someone may have picked them up and kept them. I suppose many of them ended up in the trash bin.

Enveloping the Word: 2024 Christmas Cards

"Not every art of art creates something special, but it does create something. It is the act of art that is important, not the result." Michael L. Goodman

I began decorating my Christmas cards at the latter end of November. I experimented with various designs initially and settled on one or two variations as I progressed. The cards that went to France, England, and Scotland were done first and mailed before December. The next batch went to cousins and friends strewn throughout the United States followed by those who live in Utah outside the Salt Lake Valley. The last two mailings were to those in the valley ending with those in West Jordan. I saved the West Jordan cards till last because they would take the least time to arrive at their destinations. I have two post office clerks who keep my West Jordan letters in-house so they are delivered the day after I post them. I sent out 82 Christmas cards with decorated envelopes this year. These are samples of the cards:

Book Arts Mania: Family History Photo Book

"Not every act of art creates something special, but it does create something. It is the act of art that is important, not the result." Michael L. Goodman 

This is a small [6" X 53/4"] folded-page book with a folded cover which I made several years ago as a demonstration showing various applications of this format. The first two photos "pop up" as the pages are opened. The third folds out so that the back can be read.

John H. Ewing was my 2nd great-grandfather who served in the American Civil War. These are the only photos I have of him. I have shared them with many relatives on genealogy websites.

The Cover

The Title Page

Page One and Two

Page Three and Four 

Pages Five and Six

The Photo Turned Out

Commit Acts of Art: Garden Wreaths

 "Not every act of art creates something special, but it creates something. It is the act of art that is important, not the result." Michael L. Goodman

My acts of art this week have been in the garden. When it is hot and I need a rest, I sit in the shade of the apricot tree and weave wreathes from Oregon grape vines that I trim from the fence. The vines try to escape from the fence and invade the edges of the garden. I pull up on the growth end of a vine, and all the nodes along the vine that have sent out roots pop out of the ground. A firm tug and the vine snaps off at the fence. I peel the leaves from the vines, but I don't remove the wiry root clusters because they add an interesting element to the wreaths. The wreaths start out as wobbly circles, but as more vines are woven in and out around the base, the circles become more regular. My woven heart is a bit lopsided, but it is just fine for my garden. I will hang wreaths on the wall of the garden shed.

"Everything is good for something" Italian Proverb

Book Arts Mania: Another "Hidden-page" Book

 "Not every act of art creates something special, but it creates something. It is the act of art that is important, not the result." Michael L. Goodman

This is another collage book in the "hidden-book format that I made when I taught middle school students book arts. It is slightly larger than the two books I showed in the last post.

The front and back cover.

Pages one and two. Each page is 8 inches by 5 1/4 inches.

Pages three and four, the center spread.

Pages five and six.

The inside hidden page. (16 inches by 21 1/2 inches)

My favorite Grant Wood quote in this little book is: "All the really good ideas I'd ever had came to me while I was milking a cow."

Book Arts Mania: Simple Folded-paper Books

 "Not every act of art creates something special, but it creates something. It is the act of art that is important." Michael L. Goodman

I taught a book arts class for the Cultural Arts Society of West Jordan in May. Eighteen people signed up for the class, but only nine showed up to participate. It was a free class, so there was no financial commitment to attend except for curiosity and a desire to learn something new. It was a Friday evening after all. Those who did come had a good time learning to fold paper into simple books, and I enjoyed teaching again. We had a creative discussion about ways to use the books while we committed acts of art folding "pants" books, hidden-page books, "T-fold" books, and book covers.

I showed a few examples of how I used these "origami" books when teaching middle school art students. This is a simple "pants" fold book using one sheet of paper. It is 4 1/4 inches by 2 3/4 inches with a folded-paper cover.

Title page.

Pages one and two.

I made some collage "hidden" books with images and quotes from various artists I admire. I laminated each book so the students could handle them without weakening the folds and wearing the books out. Even so, someone thought to improve Lautrec's work with a red line on page four. These two books are 5 1/2 inches by 4 inches.

The cover of the Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec book.

Pages one and two.

Pages three and four.

Pages five and six.

The hidden image inside the book. (15 3/4 inches by 10 3/4 inches)

The cover of the Georgia O'Keeffe book.

Pages one and two.

Pages three and four.

Pages five and six.

The hidden image inside the book. (15 3/4 inches by 10 3/4 inches.)

Commit Acts of Art

 "Not every act of art creates something special, but it creates something. It is the act of art that is important." Michael L. Goodman

I found this statement in a post by Sarah Leavitt of the text of the talk she gave to the graduates of the School of Creative Writing at UCB last year. It was recommended by Austin Kleon in his newsletter last Friday. I believe it speaks well to the topic of committing acts of art every day.

Joyful Persistence: “For those of you who’ve taken my classes, you know that I am always encouraging you to waste paper. You will not be the reason that our forests disappear. Take up the whole page with your drawing. Write everything, don't worry about who will like it, stop editing in advance! Write every day! Draw every day! Worry less about each individual word or picture. Identify the things you want to get better at and do them over and over.

The finished pieces that we share – they’re dependent on these messy piles of imperfection. Remember, we are workers, we make things.”