Dear Everyone ~
Bookful of Wordless Stories is my thirteenth Bookful collaboration with artist, author & dear friend Cat Bennett. Our four-session workshop via Zoom will begin on Saturday, May 18. May the subsequent weeks be a wonderful time to be out & about walking amongst flora & folia, and sniffing spring breezes—an early warm-up for seeing and sensing summer.
In this Bookful, as Cat describes in her spirited way, “We’ll illustrate three spring walks on which we encounter fanciful birds, fantastical flowers and a few fabulous people! Our art explorations will be on mixing mediums—drawing and painting with collage, colored pencil or pen with watercolor, and oil or crayon and paint. We’ll also explore making decorative collage papers by painting on tissue and mulberry papers. We will tell delightful short wordless stories with surprise endings. And we’ll look at the work of other artists to find inspiration.”
We will start by making a trio of single-signature booklets each with decorative stitching, a see-through window, a title page (which will also have a see-through window), and a pocket in the back inside cover. Each walk will be documented in its own booklet, and the title page will include a description and embellishment.
We will also hand-fold a trio of envelopes without a template, in which to enclose each booklet. Each booklet measures 6 x 7¾ x ¼ and will fit neatly inside its envelope for protecting, or presenting, or even posting! (We will discuss postage during the workshop.)
The kitful of materials for this Bookful features a colourful mix of Canson Mi-teintes cover papers in two palettes, for our covers and envelopes: Delaunay and Bloomsbury. This lightly textured (on one side!) paper is wonderful for many types of mediums, and its foldability is a joy to behold. And the creative, chromatic potential for mixing & matching is fairly intoxicating.
In weeks #2, #3 & #4, Cat will begin the workshop session with a curated slideshow. She will then lead the class in painting & drawing exercises using a variety of mediums.
Cat & I want to assure you, especially if you are a Bookful newcomer, that truly no drawing or bookbinding experience is necessary—all levels of artistic skill & enthusiasm are encouraged to join us! The pace is peaceful and the camaraderie is delightful. Plus, you will have four complete workshop videos (recorded in real time) to watch and rewatch at your leisure. We look forward to seeing you soonish via Zoom!
To celebrate our thirteenth—The Binders Dozenth—Bookful, every kit will include a glassine sleeveful of BZS Exquisite Scraps, suitable for collaging, massaging, admiring, and kaleidoscopic contemplation.
Bookful of Wordless Stories
Bookfully, Bari