Rubber Stamping at the Arnolfini

Looking back over this blog it’s been a while since I did what I would call a professional post. That’s not to say I haven’t been active. In the last two months I have started a new job, sent off my Chartership portfolio to be checked for a second time and written a number of applications for bursaries.  In fact I recently found out that I will be able to attend the ARLG members day at Regent’s University thanks to ARLG South West and that, come June, I’ll also be attending Interlend 2013 on a sponsored place. I’m currently finishing off a biggie, an application for the traveling librarian bursary, and I’ll post that once the selection process is finished.

However one of the things I’ve loved since moving to Bath is the opportunity it has provided to do the things I love, especially when it comes to visiting and making art. Therefore I was incredibly pleased when I found out through a colleague that Bristol’s Arnolfini would be hosting the Bristol Artist Book Event.

I was lucky enough to get a place on Stephen Fowler’s Stamp Roller workshop which was being held as part of the event. While it was lovely visiting the different artists at the event and learning about the concepts and ideas behind the many books, prints and pamphlets on display the workshop was a real highlight.

 I wasn’t sure what to expect from the workshop. It turned out we would be learning how to make printing stamps from erasers. This is surprisingly easy to do and all you need is a decent eraser, a sharp blade, preferably a scalpel and an ink pad. The important thing to remember is not to undercut your design and make your initial incisions using a V shaped cut to keep the stamp edges stable and sharp.

The lovely thing about these rubber stamps is that they are reusable, have a lovely primitive quality, can be combined with other stamps and prints and can be used to create varying density of ink. They are also very quick and easy to make and I’m thinking that I can make them in response to individual books, pamphlets and maps that I find.

The second part of the workshop focused on creating carved rollers made out of pipe lagging. These can be slotted onto a regular decorating roller and used to create a repeating pattern. The lagging is even easier to carve than the rubbers and although any fine detail is difficult the resulting prints also have a lovely primitive quality to them. Below is the roller stamp I made (it took about five minutes) and a collection of the results from the group.

Finally, once I got home, armed with various tools I had bought from the ever useful Wilkinson's, I made a couple more stamps and rollers and produced this. So I reckon, should my library career ever fail I'm all set for a new job designing wallpaper and wrapping paper! (Or maybe not!)

What I really got up to in Edinburgh.

After visiting Edinburgh recently I wrote a nice, if slightly lengthy,  post on the various things I had got up to during the single day I had to go sight seeing.  However the real reason I was up there was to attend the 12th Annual Scottish Ebooks Conference so here is the report I wrote as a result of the conference.

http://www.cilips.org.uk/mmits-news-and-events/

If I'm honest, I did enjoy the conference just as much as the sight seeing. Just don't tell anyone I'm that sad!

Make sure you look out for Penny Andrew's report in the forthcoming edition of Information Scotland.

Russian Dictionary Recreated

Yet another refugee from our recent weeding exercise this small dictionary had never been out on loan. I like to think I've given it a new lease of life by saving it from the recycling bin,  even though this work isn't particularly original it does have  a tactile element to it that I like. It also makes a lovely feathery sound when moved, sort of like autumn leaves rustling. 

The major mistake I made with this one was not leaving a few untouched pages in the centre so it looks a bit unfinished when open. A couple of whole pages would have solved this problem so as always it's a case of live and learn. I also have a few more plans for this particular piece so it may feature again once I have had another play. 

Classic Fairy Tales

This book was one of many withdrawn from our library over the last 6 months. It's fate was sealed due to it's lack of movement and the amount of notes some considerate student had made over several of the pages. I was drawn to it because of it's numerous and varied illustrations which immediately brought to mind the work of artists such as Alexander Korzer-Robinson  and so I saved it from the recycling bin. 

I make no claim for originality here, these cut away books have been made better and bigger than this one, certainly it is nowhere near as intricate as Korzer-Robinson's creations. However the process was fun and educational  - I'd never realised before just how tough hardback covers are, it's a miracle I didn't do myself injury hacking away at it.  I think I'm either going to have to make some friends in the construction department or add an electric saw to my Christmas list if I want to do another one of these.

With hindsight I made several mistakes. I discarded too many illustrations, (and more importantly threw them away before I had seen the finished item) and then made the front window to big. The cover is also a bit of a hack job, mainly because I was too impatient to find the proper tools. It is also lacking depth because many of the illustrations I kept were from the back of the book. However making it was fun and although I won't be attempting another in a hurry it was a fairly satisfying process.

Making the Cut

This weekend I had promised myself I would write a proper post. By this I mean one about work. I had been thinking of investigating the capabilities of the 3D printers currently being used in America or catching up with the government e-lending and e-book review. I just knew that I wanted to do something a little less frivolous than my recent posts. 

This went out the window thanks to Facebook and it's sponsored ads. Now, I'm not normally a fan of these ads, they rarely interest me. But on Wednesday Facebook presented me with one which I not only found interesting but which I would have been willing to travel across the country to see. 

This was ad was for The First Cut at Manchester Art Gallery, a new show that will run between 5th October and 27th January. The reason it excited me was because it's about artists who use paper, and more specifically, a number who recreate, reuse and recycle books. 

On Saturday there were a number of artist talks planned so I rushed down after my hockey match and managed to make it for the last 4. I haven't been to an artists talk for years and I have to admit I cringed slightly when a eager art student (with obligatory oversized sketchbook) piped up to compare her own work when asked of there were any questions for the exhibitor. However it was nice to feel part of the art scene again and to learn a bit about the process and methods employed by the artists. 

I don't want to repeat what they said, suffice to say most of them were genuinely passionate about their work, if maybe a little tired from the stresses of installing over the previous few days. I've tried to sum up in a few words how the works came across below:

Andreas Kocks (Paperwork) : epic, meticulous, depth, raven.

Andrea Mastrovito (Exodus:8:13) : floral, layers, humor, bright.

Mia Pearlman (Roil) : storm, deconstructed, spontaneous, strokes.

Nicola Dale (Sequel) : dry, dead, unloved, reloved.

I also saw work from Sue Blackwell, Noriko Ambe, and Claire Brewster and will be going back to spend more time exploring the works that I missed. I especially want to spend some time in Manabu Hangal's Wonder Forest without the crowds of small children running about. Don't get me wrong, I love that the exhibition excites children, nothing is better for art than that. However there is something about the suspended forest that calls for contemplation rather than shrieking!
I didn't like all the work. As a librarian I found Nicola Dale's talk of 'the death of books' a bit twee and I'm not completely sure Mia Pearlman's work translated successfully from it's normal room sized scale. However I did love the way the curators placed additional pieces throughout the main galleries, matching paper dresses, feathers, butterflies and skeletons with epic sea scapes from Turner and the grand neoclassical entrance. If you're visiting the exhibition it's worth doing the rounds of the other galleries to see these additions.

The overarching theme I took from the exhibition was how vital appropriate scale is to the success of a peice of work. Whether it was the tiny work of Peter Callesan or the room sized creation of Andreas Kocks the size seemed to either draw you in or overwhelm. Both these artists made a huge impression on me although their work is vastly different in both scale and concept.


The First Cut is worth a visit if you have anything more than a passing interest in art, books or craft. There are a number of events planned including workshops, family events and a series of additional artists talks. There is also additional work at The Gallery of Costume in Platt Fields Park. I certainly found it interesting, beautiful and inspiring in equal measure.

 So I supose I should say thanks to Facebook. Although I'm sure I would have stumbled across The First Cut eventually I wouldn't had made those first weekend talks if it hadn't been for the adverts. Although it pains me to say it Facebook actually got it right this time.

Flowers and Mushrooms

When I was studying art at university one of the characteristics of my work was that I would rework and reuse pieces. Very little of what I made was ever intended to be permanent, my work was often perishable and transient, captured in photographs before being torn apart and made into something new. As such my work continuously evolved with many of the pieces in my final year able to trace their roots back to my initial experiments during my Foundation Degree. 

It seems you can never escape your past and in this case I don't really want to. Over the weekend, in between the baking, cleaning, running and hockey playing, I took my wax flowers a step further. Staying to form I also reworked some paper mushrooms I made back in March. 

Here Comes the Sun (Briefly)

I spent a lot of this weekend either napping or working on my Chartership portfolio. Not exactly rock and roll but then I'm not as young as I used to be.

In between the sleeping and working I started writing a Week In the Life of a FE Librarian post for this blog. However it's not turned out as I thought and I'm in two minds whether to post it. What I did manage to do, in the very brief period of sunshine on Sunday, was to get out and take some photos.

It was only after I had gathered all my bits together that I realised I had left my SLR at work so armed only with my ipod I went out to make the most of the sunshine. The glare meant I was essentially shooting blind so the resulting pictures are a bit over exposed and lacking depth but a good starting point for other work. Because some of the images weren't brilliant I had a fiddle on iPhoto, something I rarely do nowadays.

 I'm still not sure about the colour photos, I suspect that this might be the last time I work with colour in this context. However I think there is much more to be done with the black and white work once I find the time so watch this space.

Weeding - A Vital Process For A Healthy Stock

There has been a lot of bad press recently for Manchester Public Libraries  clear out of it's archives and stored stock. I can sympathise as I've been having my own clear out at work (admittedly on a radically smaller scale) and it isn't always an easy process. For us it has has been made easier by our knowledgeable staff who can provide real feedback as to how the stock is used beyond the reports that can be produced from the LMS. 

Anyway the subject is a shameless excuse to post some pictures of some work from Easter - all made from recycled weeded stock. 

Holiday Homework

I'm  a bit unsure as to where I stand with copyright on these images. Obviously they are my own work but the book jackets aren't and even though these are just for my own personal use I was a bit hesitant about posting them. However I'm so pleased with how some of them have come out, especially the PlayMobil ones, I couldn't resist. If anyone has any copyright advice/objections just leave a comment. 

What I'm Reading

It's Study Week next week and with not much else planned I've brought home two wonderful books to keep me occupied. It's been a while since I've read anything apart from fiction so I'm really looking forward to a bit of self education.

The first is Patrick Mauries Cabinets of Curiosities, a wonderful encyclopedia on the origins of the Wunderkammer. I happened on this book by chance while browsing a publisher catalogue and immediately bought it for the art library. Even though I get to keep it for the next few months I'm still tempted to add it to my Christmas Wishlist.

The second is a book called Beauty in Decay from URBEX. It's a photographic exploration of abandoned spaces and architecture which I find both beautiful and sad at the same time.  It's the sort of book I'll pick through, dipping into during quiet moments. (Unlike C of C which I'll read cover to cover) Again, it's probably going to end up on my wishlist for Christmas this year.  

Toe in the Water - Summer 2011

For the first time in years I've done a bit of art work I'm pleased with. It's been a big step  for me to consciously sit down and work on a project.  The plan evolved from an old nature book which I found in a charity shop. The original concept was to remove all the entries for animals and plants which were now extinct in England. The reaction of most people is that they are amazed I would be willing to destroy a book. The real shock should be the number of species which had become extinct since the book was published in the early 1900s.

These are just some of my favorite images, I'm still working on the book and project has gone beyond just removing the extinct species to experimenting with the images and material of the book itself.