Sunday, July 25, 2010

Unbound

Went to Unbound today with my friend Susanne. The show at the Bedford Gallery in Walnut Creek features Book Arts by various artists both locally and nationally recognized. Some of my favorite works are as follows...

Evidence of Compression by the amazing Julie Chen of Flying Fish Press. Chen's limited edition books range from shaped books housed in complex box structures to wooden games with carefully crafted components.

I loved these little nature studies on discarded library check out cards made into an accordion book.

I love this piece by Emily Payne. It appeals to my fabric loving side because it reads as a textile from afar, and that palette and arrangement of hues is so seductive!




These amazing Touchstones by were so velvety and soft! They are for sale at the show for a mere $60 each.

I discovered artist Andie Thrams for the first time today. I adore her observation journals; They are so immediate and direct! Her images are full of life and color and all the text is handwritten. Much of the work in the show is comprised of limited editions. These little gems stood out not only for their exquisite quality but also because they are unique, one of a kind books, made by the artist.






I loved this accordion pop out book entitled Quell by Alison Yates. The presence of the artist's hand evident in the woodcuts is an aesthetic that is so pleasing to me. The story illustrated is that of a hunter who attempts to shoot a deer only to find it is really a woman with whom he falls in love...


These silhouettes were so striking against this curry colored wall. They were made with a series of tediously sewn cross stitches on a found book. Artist Lauren DiCioccio.

The show was a great survey of an artist's interpretation of the book and it made for a wonderful Sunday!

3 comments:

MJ said...

beautiful work!

kiki said...

Love these Courtney! My favorites are the one that you said looked like a textile from afar and the library card ones!

Unknown said...

Oh my, beautiful stuff! I especially liked the silhouettes and the library cards. It's a shame everything went digital and we don't have to look through the library catalogs anymore. I loved doing that!