Chas Chaplin. Icon 2. The binding, so far.
One of C. Chaplin was in or made many extraordinary films. One that sticks in the mind is The Gold Rush. With the cooking and eating of the boot one of the most memorable episodes in film history.
Sooooo, it struck me this morning.. why not use a boot or at least part
of a boot in the binding. It makes perfect sense, why not?
First was to find a boot, old and beyond repair. Tucked away, under the guillotine, I remembered I had 'stored' an old pair of studio boots some 15 years ago.... A case of never throwing stuff out that may be useful or I was just lazy... one or the other.
After choosing the part I would use, removing from the upper I pared down from about 2mm to 0.6mm using the old Schärf-fix (other paring machines are available) with the turn-ins to 0.4mm. This will be applied later today. A good mornings work. This will, of course, be no mean feat.
I amazed myself with being able to remember that I had an old pair of boots in the first place but I also considered where the idea had come from... First of course is the inspiration from the film and the fact that using recycled or up-cycled materials in book binding and book arts is not new. I am not going to go on about the historical side of things, there are many better versed in that area, however I would like to dwell upon a couple of bookbinders/book artists that first got me excited in the creative process of the contemporary book/binding. Perhaps two such people, along with so many others are Trevor Jones and Jiří Hadlač.
Perhaps better known to me is he work of Trevor Jones (b1931-d2012) Fellow of Designer Bookbinders amongst other things. Please, I would suggest that if you are not familiar with his work to take a few minutes to look him and is work up on line.
Jiří Hadlač (b1927-d1991) A prolific artist who continues to fire my imagination. When I first came across his work (at college) he rocked my boat. Again, please look him and his work. I think amazing, but that is only my opinion.
The first few images are of my boot with the last few images being from the publication Fine Bookbinding in the Twentieth Century by Roy Harley Lewis. David and Charles Publishers 1984. ISBN 0-7153-8586-0. A super book that captures a period of time and a number of binders/artists work so magically.
WIP. Paper, ink, print, various threads and cloths and a boot.
Stay Safe
Please note there are other ways of doing things and opinions..... spelling and grammar. Please further note, the opinion of the author may change at any moment. This is due to having an open mind... of sorts.
First was to find a boot, old and beyond repair. Tucked away, under the guillotine, I remembered I had 'stored' an old pair of studio boots some 15 years ago.... A case of never throwing stuff out that may be useful or I was just lazy... one or the other.
After choosing the part I would use, removing from the upper I pared down from about 2mm to 0.6mm using the old Schärf-fix (other paring machines are available) with the turn-ins to 0.4mm. This will be applied later today. A good mornings work. This will, of course, be no mean feat.
I amazed myself with being able to remember that I had an old pair of boots in the first place but I also considered where the idea had come from... First of course is the inspiration from the film and the fact that using recycled or up-cycled materials in book binding and book arts is not new. I am not going to go on about the historical side of things, there are many better versed in that area, however I would like to dwell upon a couple of bookbinders/book artists that first got me excited in the creative process of the contemporary book/binding. Perhaps two such people, along with so many others are Trevor Jones and Jiří Hadlač.
Perhaps better known to me is he work of Trevor Jones (b1931-d2012) Fellow of Designer Bookbinders amongst other things. Please, I would suggest that if you are not familiar with his work to take a few minutes to look him and is work up on line.
Jiří Hadlač (b1927-d1991) A prolific artist who continues to fire my imagination. When I first came across his work (at college) he rocked my boat. Again, please look him and his work. I think amazing, but that is only my opinion.
The first few images are of my boot with the last few images being from the publication Fine Bookbinding in the Twentieth Century by Roy Harley Lewis. David and Charles Publishers 1984. ISBN 0-7153-8586-0. A super book that captures a period of time and a number of binders/artists work so magically.
WIP. Paper, ink, print, various threads and cloths and a boot.
Stay Safe
Please note there are other ways of doing things and opinions..... spelling and grammar. Please further note, the opinion of the author may change at any moment. This is due to having an open mind... of sorts.
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