Tag Archives: craft

Good idea for plein air painters or those who want to start

This blog has a great idea on how to make a watercolor or gouache pallet out of an altoids tin and old milk caps. It's seriously very cool. I was thinking and I think I've seen out there a blog with instructions on how to dome something similar with sculpy or fimo clay. The milk caps are the fastest I've seen thus far though. How easy is it to simply hot glue those in? I've also seen one where the guy used tin snips and created dividers with sheets of metal.

Book Review Monday: The Century of Artist’s Books: Johanna Drucker

I've written about this book before it's a gem of a book about Artist's Books. It's one of my all time favorite books on artist's books and art books in general. On my copy the cover is a nondescript green with red lettering. Nothing about it's outside seems particularly interesting but it's what inside that counts. It is an art history book. I make no attempt to hide that. Some of the text is dry but it's a very detailed and informative account of artist's books.
The pages are filled with loads of images, sadly all are black and white, but that doesn't detract from the ideas that the books possess.

AS this was one of the first books I read on artist's books I was amazed and drawn into the concept that one could go about creating a book that was their own art, not just a book that contained their art. The concept floored me. It was one of those moments in an artist's life that is a defining moment, something critical to move them from their artistic rut.

This isn't a book that is going to TELL you how to make something or give you a diagram nor a description of precisely how the artist created their book but it will give you a description of the book and an idea of how it was made.

I give this book 5/5 binder needles and 2 paint covered thumbs up.

This is a book for inspiration in addition be being another great reference on artist's book.
See more of it here.

Book Review Monday: Book Binding for Book Artists: Keith Smith and Fred Johnson

 This is Keith Smith's first book on book binding and a great one. All the styles he lists in this book require no specialized tools or equipment and can be made by anyone with patience and determination to create books. While this book was not my first on binding it is one to which I return to for clarification when I have a question. These styles of binding are those that once you learn them you'll be able to make them again and again without referring to the book or diagram.

The entire first section is devoted to paper and tools. It's an excellent introduction to basic bookbinding tools. In this section Smith gives the most detailed and best description and instructions on pasting I've ever read. The instruction starts with simple pamphlet sewn books and moves its way up to more complex styles.

This is an introductory book but it is an excellent reference book for those of us who have been binding for years. It's not the easiest starter book out there, but if like me, you tend toward liking clear excellent diagrams and detailed descriptions this is a good book to start with. I would also recommend it if you are simply looking for a good reference on binding or are looking for a great introduction to pasting your own book cloth.

I give this book 5/5 binder needles and 2 paint covered thumbs up.

You can find most of Keith Smith's books on binding at his website www.KeithSmithBooks.com

Hump Day #13 Sharpie and Gesso

Hdprompt_4

The prompt is open ended and deals only with the material, subject and content are up to you, but the material is dictated.

The next material that I want to write about is actually a combination of materials but it’s a very cool combination that will give you a ghosting effect. The 2 materials are plain old Sharpie brand markers and plain old white gesso. I use Liquitex brand gesso but I think this would work with any brand.

Start out by writing up a journal entry in sharpie. You can use any color, I’ve done this techniques successfully with black and red but I’d love to see results that use other colors. After giving the sharpie some time to dry fully, go over your lines of text with gesso. A nice even thiin layer. There should be no need to thin it with water but if you aren’t getting an even layer you can loosen it with some water. You should barely be able to see the writing under the gesso while it ‘s wet. The key to this technique is a thin even layer.

Now wait for it to dry. If you are impatient like me you can hit it with some heat and dry it out, but you don’t have to.

When you come back to it you should see a faint purplish bleed through of your writing. I find that mine is barely legible but it can clearly be read. From here you can decide if you want to write on top of the gessoed words or draw or collage. As you layer over the gessoed writing you’ll find it becomes more faint and more ghostly. It makes a great background for more writing, drawing or collage.

Prompt # 13 Combine 2 materials: Sharpie and Gesso.

Hump Day Prompt #10, #11 & #12: Gesso

The prompt is open ended and deals only with the
material, subject and content are up to you, but the
material is dictated.

Another great item that no art journaler should be without
is gesso. It’s an easy to use product that can be used to seal a page before
creating art on it, so that your paints go further but it can also be used
mixed with acrylic paint to give it a flat sheen and to make it more opaque. It
can be put on heavily to create great textural effects.

Prompt #10 Seal a page with gesso them journal on it.

Prompt #11 Mix gesso with Acrylic paints.

Prompt #12 Use gesso to create a lot of texture on a
page.

Leave a comment with a link to your blog with pictures of what you’ve done!