Su Blackwell, Book Sculptor Extraordinaire

Ravenous has found another wonderful book artist from the UK, Su Blackwell.  Here is a sample of her work:

In her profile she discusses her process:

I always read the book first, at least once or twice, and then I begin to create the work, cutting out, adding details. The detail is what brings it all together, the magic element.

To view more of Su’s sculptures go to her portfolio.

The Providence Athenaeum has a budding paper sculptor, Robin Wetherill, Circulation and Development Assistant. A sample of her work:

Creative and clever, what a great combination.

Dragonfly Bindery/Studio Exhibit

John Russell Bartlett Society members Pat and George Sargent have operated their Dragonfly Bindery for thirty years, offering a wider range of services than most binderies, including restoration and design work that makes use of their art background and training as alumni of the Rhode Island School of Design. They have been able to challenge their creativity and explore new directions in producing unique bindings, casings, and displays for rare books and other printed artifacts which elevate the presentation up to and beyond the artistic level of the content.

The Providence Athenaeum will be exhibiting books, posters and artifacts in the Philbrick Rare Book Room from January 8th to January 29th.

The Sargents will be presenting a talk:  Looking Back at 30 Books from 30 Years at Dragonfly Bindery / Studio on Saturday January 26 at 1 pm.

Thanks to guest blogger, Kate Wodehouse, Collections Librarian

 

 

Luzinterruptus

Luzinterruptus is an anonymous light art collective from Madrid that is known for taking over public spaces. Raven-ous is intrigued by the installation they performed in Melbourne Australia titled: Literature vs Traffic:

Books and lights are the medium and watching people interact with them is the entertainment.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

There are many more photos here and for examples of other installations check out this Colossal post and Vimeo for some videos.

 

Thanks Christina

Roycroft Press Books

The Providence Athenaeum’s collection of Roycroft books and periodicals, donated by longtime member and poet Brett Rutherford, are on display until the end of the month at the RISD Library. The exhibit is curated by RISD Librarian Robert Garzillo and highlights the graphic design work of Dard Hunter. The exhibit includes items on loan from Brown University, Providence Public Library, the University of Rhode Island, RISD Library, and the Redwood Library and Athenaeum.

On March 14th at 6 pm. in the RISD Library Special Collections Reading Room there will be a talk by historian Walker Rumble on Hubbard’s Roycroft: A Little Journey to East Aurora. This presentation is sponsored by the John Russell Bartlett Society. For more information check the RISD Library News.

Typography

PBS Arts received many comments on this video but I liked this one: If words have meaning and type has spirit then handwriting got soul! shaunoconnordotnet

There are innumerable fonts and imaginative ways to express letters and numbers. Paul Octavious stacks books to create numbers.

BYGG Studios has designed an entire alphabet of stacked books.

 

Brain Pickings has put together their list of 10 Essential Books on Typography.

And the Athenaeum recently bought Simon Garfield’s Just My Type. As they say in the video: you need type again and again and again to get through the day, to live your life.

 

 

Thanks to @Brainpicker

Beatrice Coron

Beatrice Coron has fascinating stories to tell and she tells them in silhouettes.  The paper cutouts take numerous forms from book arts to clothing to large constructed public art displays.  If you have the time (20 min.) the TED talk below is amazing:

I’d like to leave you with a quote from this Atlantic piece about her work:

In life, and in paper-cutting, everything is connected — one story leads to another. –Béatrice Coron

Guy Laramee, Book Sculptor

Another wonderful book artist, Guy Laramee focuses on landscapes. Carving a hole in the top of this one to allow filtered light in is brilliant. For more pics of his work check this Colossal Art & Design post or this at the Huffington Post.

I wonder if the Athenaeum could afford one of his works. We could supply him with the raw material if he’d consider it.

Thanks John

 

Paper Sculptor, Redux

Remember the paper sculptures left in Edinburgh libraries? Well according to NPR the artist has completed their work. Anonymity, sought and maintained throughout the months since the first sculpture appeared at the Scottish Poetry Library back in March 2011, is still intact although we have learned their gender. She. She is a sensitive, talented artist and storyteller, who loves libraries. Here is the last of the series of ten sculptures:

Any library in the world would be thrilled to have her creations. If you are ever in Providence…

Poetry on the Page

The Rhode Island Center for the Book has a new home at the Rhode Island Council for the Humanities and a wonderful series planned for their 2011 Art of the Book Program: CFTB_PoetryOnThePage_2011. Forrest Gander, 2011 Witter Bynnar Poetry Fellow, will read from his latest book Core Samples from the World at the RISD Fleet Library.  The John Russell Bartlett Society is sponsoring a lecture by Rosemarie and Keith Waldrop on the 50 year history of the Burning Deck Press. This session will be held at the Providence Athenaeum and books printed by the press will be on display.

Poet Forrest Gander

Another fun part of the series is Moveable Type a project of Kyle Durrie of Power and Light Press in Portland Oregon. She is traveling around the country doing letterpress demonstrations and she will be producing a letterpress broadside honoring Forrest Gander as a part of her cross country tour.

Check the program pdf above for dates and times.

Thanks Kate.

Paper Sculptures

Book arts are a favorite of Ravenous and recently we’ve seen two spectacular examples of book inspired paper arts. The first is by Anonymous, an artist who creates fanciful pieces in support of libraries, and leaves them around Edinburgh Scotland with notes. This was left at the National Library of Scotland:

A gramophone and a coffin, sculpted from a copy of Ian Rankin's Exit Music. The tag in this case read: For @natlibscot - A gift in support of libraries, books, words, ideas..... (& against their exit) Courtesy: Central Stn

Appeared at the Edinburgh Book Festival

For many more beautiful sculptures go to Central Stn.

The second artist is also from Great Britain, Jennifer Collier. She takes paper, turns it into fabric, then sews it into amazing pieces.  She writes of her work:

The papers themselves serve as both the inspiration and the media for my work, with the narrative of the books and papers suggesting the forms.

Little women shoes

Alice in Wonderland gloves

She creates a variety of objects that you can view at her website.

Thanks to Twitter