Bookmaking, printing and publishing

Over the summer, I had the good fortune of visiting three book arts, bookmaking and book printing/publishing events in Vancouver for the first time.

The first was the CBBAG Lower Mainland's 2015 Book Arts Fair which was held on June 20 at the Main Branch of the Vancouver Public Gallery. Visitors were able to "see, touch and buy  bookbinding, letterpress, altered books, artist’s journal, calligraphy, paper arts and mixed arts ", with up to up to 18 book artists and book arts suppliers will be displaying and their works.

Photo from the website: https://vanbookarts.wordpress.com

On October 17, I attended the Vancouver Art/Book Fair put on by Project Space and held at the Vancouver Art Gallery Annex. Two rooms with close to 70 exhibitors: book artists, book and zine publishers, etc.

Image from the website: http://2015.vancouverartbookfair.com/#program

On October 31, the Alcuin Society held its annual Wayzgoose event with more than 25 exhibitors, including book artists and publishers, wood engravers, paper marblers (traditional and japanese).

Image from the website: http://alcuinsociety.com/the-wayzgoose-is-coming-2/

I came away with an exquisite sheet of hand-marbled paper. I was drawn to its organic, flesh-coloured shapes and the residual fluid flowlines of the second pass.

Detail of a hand-marbled (double-dipped) sheet of paper by Phyllis Greenwood. 

More recommended books

The following are great books I've read or am in the process of reading:

LensWork Online

I'm honoured that my wood nymph folio set is being featured in the Readers' Gallery of the LensWork Online site, alongside works and portfolios by other very talented photographers. LensWork is a print magazine and online environment filled with resources and musings prepared by Brooks Jensen, the editor/publisher and art photographer. I have been following the iPad version of the LensWork magazine, as well as Brooks' regular podcasts (over 900 of them!) and the Kokoro online publication of his personal art photography work. His musings are succinct and most inspiring, sprinkled with an oriental sensibility with which I find great resonance.

You can view the PDF that was posted on LensWork Online.

To find out more about LensWork and Brooks Jensen's art photography:

LensWork: http://www.lenswork.com

Brooks Jensen's personal art photography website: www.brooksjensenarts.com

Tonality and selective colour

All my life, I have been photographing in colour, often using black, orange, reds and yellows. I guess I enjoy the drama of colours against a dark background.

However, for a while now, I have been developing a greater appreciation of monochrome, not necessarily black and white, but warm tones such as sepia, reminiscent of the pictorialist style. I've discovered that the range and contrasts in tonality open a whole new way of looking at things. However, I do like colour and would never be able to completely eliminate it from my work. What I like even more is the idea that I can introduce colour in a monochrome piece by selecting a specific area of the image I wish to highlight in its original colour. This adds the necessary punch or splash of colour to a warm toned image and draws the eye immediately to that area of the photo.

I explored various applications such as Snapseed and Tonality which provided some degree of success with warm tone filters and selective colouring.

However, the best way I have found to do this to my personal liking is with Photoshop, by adding B&W (with a warm tone profile) and Selective Colour adjustment layers to the original colour photograph.

Colour photo in Photoshop with B&W and Hue/Saturation adjustment layers

Various filters in Tonality

Books on books

Below are some of the finest books I've read over the years about book making and artists' books.

wood nymph process images

A few images showing design/assembly of components of the wood nymph folio set. 

small easel-stand

flutter book printouts on roll paper and images on thicker paper 

handmade caddisfly larva case bookmark

wood nymph folio book set

wood nymph is about an artist and a wood nymph. It evokes struggle, transformation and rebirth through a deep longing for change, tempered by a strong determination to preserve an existing order. It illustrates a bond between nature and human.

The folio book set comprises handmade components that engage the reader in quietly discovering the spirit of the woodland through sight and touch.

All components are enclosed in a 5" x 5" x 1” paper case with four folding flaps and a sliding belly band.

A four-page colophon, assembled flutter book style (Japanese sempuyo), contains the artist's preface and details on the paper, printing, editioning and copyright.

A second flutter booklet features a freestyle twenty-two-page poem; a handmade caddisfly larva case, constructed of leaf, twig and other materials, serves as a bookmark.

The reader can display and view on a small easel stand a series of nine photographic archival pigment ink prints on paper, assembled in a folder. In addition, a translucent beeswax-infused photographic print on Japanese unryu washi paper waits to capture ambient light.

Sample pages:

Colophon, pp 1-2

Poem, pp 6-7

This is an open edition; each set is signed and numbered by the artist.

The book and photo print as experiential objects

I've just completed a handmade folio edition of wood nymph.

I'm interested in the physicality of books and photographs and in moving them off the wall, shelf and screen into one's hands.

For me, the handcrafted artist book is a 'living' object, offered by the artist-writer to the reader in order to be felt, touched and viewed. It can be an experience whereby one discovers new layers of meaning while engaging physically with the content, the format and the components.

The same applies to a photographic print, often trapped behind a mat and glass, contained within a frame and nailed to a wall—out of reach of the viewer. I have explored various ways of making my photographic prints more tactile and visual, by printing on Japanese washi paper, infusing them with wax, or creating mixed media encaustic images. These translucent pieces capture light and can be viewed suspended, hung away from the wall. They can be touched since they are not confined to frames or trapped behind glass. The pieces can also move with air currents and change as the ambient light does.

The issue, however, especially if one is not really into gallery showings, is what to do with the inventory of prints one produces, other than give them away to friends?

For me, one answer is to create small photographic prints (e.g., 5" x 5"), with or without encaustic. These less expensive images can be part of an artist's book, shared with and touched by friends and colleagues (e.g., ATC style). One can provide a small simple easel to display these miniature pieces.

My recent wood nymph folio case is one example of such a multi sensory experiential piece.

Mushi no Hoshi - Space Insect

Felt very privileged on March 21 to attend Darakudakan's butoh performance of Mushi no Hoshi with J at the Vancouver Playhouse. It was very dramatic and professionally presented. This was their only stop in North America. Even in Tokyo, where they live and work, it's difficult to take in one of their shows since they are few and far between.

The title, Mushi no hoshi, was translated as "Space Insects",  but I've seen it translated for their Paris performance as "Planet of Insects," which may be more accurate. The 30-year-old dance troupe gave it their all, with no intermission and several encores spurred on by a very enthusiastic crowd.

...With 22 surreal, shape-shifting dancers, other-worldly costumes and body-paint, and a spectacular set, Dairakudakan exemplifies the transformative power of butoh through its imaginative blend of theatre and dance. Mushi no Hoshi – Space Insect was choreographed by artistic director, Akaji Maro... ~ Vancouver International Dance Festival

Poster featuring Akaji Maro

More photos from their 2014 performance at La Maison de la culture du Japon in Paris.