Awareness and Opportunity – Art making

Daily walk in the woods feeds my mind with ideas. I am transported to a peaceful place.

woods walk inspiration

I often notice:

  • smell of the forest
  • dust and prints on the path
  • delicate weeds and grasses

Sometimes, I get annoyed if I have to share the trail with lots of other people. Sometimes, I get in my head with worries. But mostly I am grateful to have the woodsy trail along the lake so close to home.

tree bark texture

The awareness and appreciation that I bring into the woods creates opportunities back in the art studio.

weeds for gelatin printmaking

The most literal would be the grasses and weeds that I collect for gelatin printmaking. Different grasses are available to me a different times of year. I have to keep my eyes peeled.

rose bud

Often times I will be inspired by flowers or buds and try to capture the energy and essence in a photo. Then I can do some sketches and use the image in a project.

shadows to inspire stencils

Shadows always capture my attention. I love using shadow pictures to create stencils. I love how simple shapes can be powerful and expressive.

gelatin plate monotype print by linda germain

What about you?

  • Do you have a daily walk that could create artistic opportunity?
  • Can you notice simple shadows and weeds with a new awareness?

I hope you do have the chance to notice the simple beauty available to you and to use that in your studio practice.

drawings for making screen prints

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Let’s look at book parts

Books are more than stories, pages and words.

books for making art

Let’s see what treasures these two books have offered me.

book apart

The African Violets book:

  • decorative spine
  • 2 hard cover boards
  • pretty green book cloth
  • lots of off white vintage pages
  • black and white photos
  • 300 pages for painting, sculpting and collage
  • and the part I love the most is the paper, mull glue and threads that make the spine strong

I can do a lot with all that. I can make:

  • poems
  • origami
  • monotypes
  • and collages

make art with books

I love finding yellow books at the sales. With the Nonsense Book I got some bonus treasures:

recycle books into art

  • Old library check out cards
  • super sturdy spine materials
  • fun text and lots of illustrations
  • Library ownership notes
  • bold text on the spine
  • the mull, pages and covers
  • Yellow!!! book cloth

Oh the fun I am going to have with these book parts. I have been making lots of patterned pages and collages lately.

collage of book pages

I enjoy the freedom of working on old book pages. Nothing is precious. I can play all day.

tiny coffee stained collage

I am even making lots of quick and loose painted monotypes.

monotypes on book pages

Want to explore making art with books?

Check out the current online art classes being offered.

 

 

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Books transport you

Do you get deep into a book and feel transported to another time or space? Do books make you laugh, cry and feel?

Recycled books for art making

Books give me:

  • hope
  • new ideas and
  • guidance

book pages to make art

When I am using books as art material books can:

  • connect me to an unknown past
  • make me want to touch and discover
  • give me a place to begin

cut up books to make art

Working with book pages, covers and parts is a tactile process. It can be a bit sculptural. I love combining cloth, threads, words, pages and glue to create a new conversation.

collage book parts to make mixed media art

I hope that the new abstract piece creates:

  • wonder
  • joy or
  • curiosity

Join me in the upcoming class, Books as Art Materials. Class starts soon. READ the details on the workshop page.

book pages and patterns

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12 collages at once

Thinking sometimes gets in the way of making. The fear of getting it wrong or making mistakes can stop us in our tracks.

small collages with book pages

I know that when I am just laying down marks and materials, and not analyzing too much, that is when the magic happens.

tiny paper collage

So in preparation for the online class, Books as ART Materials, I have been playing with paper and cloth scraps.

12 collage at once

Torn scraps are fun to use because they often already have and interesting shape. This way I am responding to the existing materials and not really needing to create something new.

It is also a fun way to start or end a day of making art.

If this sounds interesting to you, then join us in the online class, Books as ART Materials. Class starts soon. Read the details on the workshop page.

expressive collage by linda germain

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Inspired by books

I love the last day of a library book sale. That’s when I can get a big bag of old books for just a few dollars. These are books that nobody wants, so they are perfect for art projects.

books for art projects

So I approach the book sale and hunt with thoughts like these:

  • Do judge a book by its cover
    • cloth or paper
    • color
    • size
    • embossed design
    • plain, words or illustration
  • Inside pages are not about the story but –
    • strength of the page
    • color of the paper
    • how does it “feel”
    • what language, music or illustrations
  • The Spine and the End Pages can be the most exciting parts
    • texture of the materials
    • personal notes and marks that record history

spine of deconstructed book

After you have played with taking a few books apart, then you might come up with a wish list for your next book sale.

My old book wish list:

  1. Large cloth covered children’s book – for the cloth and book board
  2. Hard covered books with yellow, orange or cream colored cloth – for the colors
  3. Any book with embossed designs or text – for the rubbings

collage of book pieces

When I look at old books, I am thinking about design ideas like:

  • color
  • line
  • texture

If you want to play with using old books in your art practice, then join us in the online class, Book as ART Materials. Class starts soon. READ all the detail on the workshop page.

art made with book parts

The lessons include:

  • black out poems
  • large diptych and collage
  • book forms

 

 

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