PUNK A to Z

The Front board nears completion. With only a few days to go before the Designer Bookbinders Covered Exhibition . I am beginning to to feel the edge. It will be finished and for sale.

From the very start of this binding I have enjoyed every process. When I discard the conventions and traditional materials of "fine" or "design" bookbinding, I open a new palette of design opportunities and methods of expression. I work with my craft and technique. They are my tools that allow me to create my art.

Society of Bookbinders. Accredited Society of Bookbinders Teacher.

I am delighted to be able to post this... the first Certificate of Validation to be issued by the society.

Punk an A to Z

Really enjoying the moment.

PUNK A to Z A, the 7".

PUNK.. A to Z and A is for? Half way, or thereabouts, making a 7" record sleeve...

 The idea is to work with real objects, either to re-use or make from scratch... In this case a little of both.

 Now for the placement.

PUNK... Work in progress.

PUNK. Just to show my working style. Though I have an overall idea of how the finished work will appear, I still have to work out who, what, how and when. I have to be fluid in my approach whilst still keep my eye on the goal. So still very much work in progress.

PUNK

I intend to try to capture some of the colour and vibrancy that captured my youth. 

  I have always enjoyed working with collage and bri collage. I did some when I was at college but I suppose it was knocked out of me by having to jump through hoops to get various qualifications.

 I think that with the passing of friends and understanding the fragility of life and how short it can be, I want to do what I feel is correct for me.

 Having thought about what I want to bind and that I work now not 100 years ago means that I can explore more modern... dare one say contemporary solutions to my work.

 Freedom is to be worked for.

I have nothing to prove to anyone except me. Perhaps I am the most difficult to prove anything to.

Dante Magazine

Dante Magazine.

A to Z of PUNK

  I am going to love binding this.....

Announcment

It is with enormous sadness that we have to announce that Lisa von Clemm died peacefully at home yesterday, after a long illness. Dear friend to  Designer Bookbinders and a devoted supporter (and Honorary Fellow) of the Society. Lisa bound and collected helping many emerging binders on the way.

A dear friend to many, Lisa will be missed not only by those she has left behind but by those who will now not have the chance to meet such a graceful and wonderful person.

5 weeks of mini master classes in Design Binding

Over the last few weeks I have been giving what has turned out to be a series of one day master classes in Fine Contemporary Design Binding.
The beauty of working with individual students or student is that as a teacher it is possible to give the time that is necessary for the student to understand and apply new techniques and methods.

I have enjoyed the process, from exploring print to sewing, rounding and backing, right up to the finished book. The learning curve for the student has been steep and not always easy-going but the end result will result in a piece of work that has stretched and expanded the skills and understanding of the student.

Rubbish Books, the film.

The Studio 5 Gift Card.

It is the time of year when one wonders what to get the bookbinder/bookartist in their life for Christmas or come to that, a gift at any time of year. How about the Studio 5 Gift Card? For a lesson, class or master class at Studio 5.

New Master Class

An Advertiser's Alphabet.... finished.

From the very beginning I wanted this series of three bindings to have a flow, to belong but for each to be individual.

Booklyn... work in progress and the finished book.

Work on the boards for the Booklyn Project continues. Though the process looks to be hit and miss, and to be frank there is an element of happen-chance, I do work the surface.

Purposely  adding and taking away. Exposing, altering and covering selected areas.

The finished boards attached. From the start I wanted this book to have an urban and gritty feel, to have the quality of a wall covered in posters and stuff, part text and image.

 The box was fun..... who says that the titling has to be in gold? on the spine?

Booklyn.. The outer Boards.

The ideal I am looking for is an Urban Grittiness. It is very rare that one technique that I am working with will follow on to another project but the work I have done with An Advertiser's Alphabet.. the poster work.. works so well that it is a logical answer.

The process starts with the laying out of image and text derived from various sauces. These are then painted over and more layers added.. Just as in real life, the surface undulates with the various layers.

Next is the waiting, waiting, waiting. Waiting for all to dry, to add the final top layer and then to start to rip or tear the surface and layers away. There is a degree of control about this but  one is at the whim of the natural, the spontaneous and happen chance. Much of the layers will never be seen but I know that those hidden layers exist.

Finally the outer boards for Booklyn are complete (perhaps) Now I can work on the inner boards.. The clock is ticking and I cannot make mistakes......