Dignity

So many things to see as one travels the country. As we crossed South Dakota, my eyes were attracted by a large statue on Interstate 90 in Chamberlain. I grabbed my phone and googled the statue, its reason and its installation on the banks of the Missouri River at the Lewis and Clark rest area where it overlooks the river.

I discovered a soaring 50 feet/15.24m high, 16 feet/4.88m deep and 32 feet/9.75m wide stainless steel sculpture entitled Dignity created by South Dakota Artist Laureate Dale Lamphere.

© 2018 Louise Levergneux, Dignity by Dale Lamphere

Dignity represents the courage and wisdom of the Lakota and Dakota people who hail from the area.

© 2018 Louise Levergneux, Dignity by Dale Lamphere

The statue depicts an American Indian woman holding a star quilt made of 128, 4-foot-tall glass diamonds in shades of blue that move in the wind "like an Aspen leaf." The colours in the quilt shift in intensity depending on the time of day. colours in the quilt shift in intensity depending on the time of day. The glass diamonds also spin when the wind passes through them so as to reduce the statue's wind resistance.

"In the shadows or at night, that dark blue looks really dark blue. The sun shines lighten up the colours" says Brook Loobey, who painted the glass diamonds. 

“Wind and sun will pass through the sculpture so that rather than resisting the natural environment she moves with it,” Lamphere said. “She is of the earth and sky and the water that surround her.”

© 2018 Louise Levergneux, Dignity by Dale Lamphere

Dale Claude Lamphere has created over 60 public monumental sculptures from Washington, D.C. to Burbank, California. He recently installed a 23’stainless steel and stone sculpture in Snowmass, Colorado. Additional recent monumental sculptures have been placed in Chicago, Kansas City, Colorado Springs, Omaha, and Dallas.

Lamphere has consistently derived direct inspiration from the land and people of the prairie and mountain environment where he lives. Innovative use of new materials and technologies are frequently incorporated on his evocative and elegant sculptures.

© 2018 Louise Levergneux, Dignity by Dale Lamphere

If you travel by Chamberlain, South Dakota, do not miss this inspiring and amazing sculpture.

This short two-minute video shows the statue Dignity from the air.

A Bridge Between Two Cultures filmed by KOTA TV in September 2016. This video is approximately 25 minutes long, but if you are interested in the production process, it is excellent. The statue was commissioned by a Rapid City couple.

Salt Lake City, Utah

This chaotic week is making my head spin after traveling 360° from Utah at the end of May to Ohio and back during the past two months.

© 2018 Louise Levergneux, Lake Powell in Page, Arizona

At my return in Salt Lake City, I promptly communicated with a local artist, I, unfortunately, missed the last time around.

Desarae Lee is a talented artist and illustrator who lives and works in Salt Lake City. Her art has appeared in galleries and art shows across the US and she has won numerous awards for her work including Best of Show, Best Illustrator, and Featured Artist. Desarae a published author and illustrator serves as a founding board member at Salt Lake City’s Downtown Artist Collective, where she can occasionally be found teaching drawing or printmaking.

© 2018 Louise Levergneux, Desarae's studio in Salt Lake City, Utah

Desarae works primarily with pen and ink and balances exact meticulous line-work with natural flowing compositions. Over time, her art has developed organically to include watercolor, tea staining, and printmaking. 

© 2018 Louise Levergneux, dry point by Desarae Lee

© 2018 Louise Levergneux, dry point by Desarae Lee

Influenced by personal trauma and struggles with depression and anxiety disorders, Desarae naturally creates work that revolves around themes of finding humor in pain, beauty in the grotesque, and light in the darkness. 

© 2018 Desarae Lee, Memory, dry point print

© 2018 Desarae Lee, Meronymy, pen & ink and watercolour

© 2018 Desarae Lee,Octopus, pen and ink

Desarae’s work ranges in the themes she develops but her work inevitably attempts to connect the deep places in herself to the unknown places in a potential viewer, to somehow create a bridge of communication over the immense expanse of our differing perceptions, beliefs, and experiences.

I enjoyed the hour spent talking with Desarae in her studio and I’m looking forward to meeting more and more artists on this fruitful journey. In the next  couple of weeks I will be in the area of Houghton Michigan.

New Acquisitions on the Road

As an artist, I recognize my world and the many hours I spend on administrivia. The constant disruption of non-stop tasks is troublesome but necessary. I schedule my creativity in between the repetitive tasks and hope there is enough time to finish what delights me.

Apart from the creativity and the operation of a business, it’s meaningful for me to have my published books acquired by collections. How do you manage this part of your art world? How do you create opportunities to sell? Communicating and visiting libraries is all part of the fun side of the territory. The artist is likely the optimum person to talk, explain or promote hers/his work. The creator knows all the details, the frustrations, and the stories behind the wonderful final product—the artists’ book.

I benefited from the privilege of engaging with other dealers in the past. I still pursue an excellent relationship with Vamp & Tramp, Booksellers, LLC out of Birmingham, Alabama.

I discovered that presenting your work is a bit of an adventure. I enjoy seeing the expression of someone reading/viewing my book for the first time. Since some of my books exhibit a playful aspect, the smiles and laughter are inspiring. Traveling and meeting with librarians in the previous year contributed to my self-reflection and recognition of who I am as an artist.

In the Spring, I reached out to Katherine Krzys, Archivist, Interim Head of Distinctive Collections Curator at the Arizona State University Library. The artists’ book collection includes small-print publications created as works of art, exemplifying the importance of collaboration between a writer, artist, papermaker, and printer. Katherine was interested in Entre deux and La Guadalupe and purchased both for the Rare Books and Manuscripts Library. deux and La Guadalupe and purchased both for the Rare Books and Manuscripts Library. 

© 2013 Louise Levergneux, Entre deux

© 2013 Louise Levergneux, Entre deux

© 2013 Louise Levergneux, La Guadalupe

© 2013 Louise Levergneux, La Guadalupe

© 2018 Louise Levergneux, Vernon Alden Library, Ohio UNiversity in Athens, Ohio

In June, I visited with Michele Jennings at the Vernon Alden Library of the Ohio University in Athens, Ohio. I was fascinated by what books attracted Michele. I received an email just the other day that Michelle was interested in adding 26NOV2006 to the Arts and Archives Library collection.

© 2008 Louise Levergneux, 26NOV2006

© 2008 Louise Levergneux, 26NOV2006

I communicated with Jessy Randall, Curator, and Archivist of The Tutt Library of the Colorado College in Colorado Springs. The library maintains collections of rare books, special editions, manuscripts, and published archival material on Colorado. Two volumes of City Shields that include manhole covers around Denver, Vail, Highlands Ranch, and Colorado Springs were added to Special Collections.

© 2018 Louise Levergneux, Tutt Library at the Colorado College in Colorado Springs

© 2016 Louise Levergneux, City Shields, Colorado volume 1

© 2016 Louise Levergneux, City Shields, Colorado volume 2

At the beginning of July, I met with Holly Prochaska, MLIS Preservation Librarian of The Robert A Deshon & Karl J Schlachter Library for Design, Architecture, Art, and Planning at the University of Cincinnati. The DAAP Library acquires examples of works in order to provide a rounded view of contemporary attitudes towards the book and to inspire students to think outside the book. Holly is a welcoming individual who also creates artists’ books. In the end, Holly purchased Xtraction and City Shields—the nine Ohio volumes for the Special Collection. 

© 2018 Louise Levergneux, an exhibition of globes at The Robert A Deshon & Karl J Schlachter Library for Design, Architecture, Art, and Planning at the University of Cincinnati

© 2018 Louise Levergneux, display of artists' books at the DAAP Library of the University of Cincinnati. A book by JoAnna Poehlmann attracted me with its delicate detail of a tulip, just gorgeous! On the last shelf is the Bon Bon Mots of Julie Chen.

© 2016 Louise Levergneux, Xtraction

© 2016 Louise Levergneux, Xtraction

© 2006 Louise Levergneux, City Shields, Ohio volume No 5

Excited when reading obsession, Holly decided to add a copy for her own personal collection.

© 2012 Louise Levergneux, obsession

© 2012 Louise Levergneux, obsession

One can never expect to land a sale while visiting a library; but I have been surprised at the response to my publications.

Enjoy your visit and contacts when you can, since it is the best part of the business of art, apart from creating your work.

Cincinnati, Ohio

I’ve tried to connect with artists and librarians in and around Cincinnati for a couple of years, but scheduling has always been an issue. This year, Cincinnati, Ohio, here I come! Last month a decision to write to the Cincinnati Book Arts Society and inquire if any group member would be interested in meeting with me and introduce me to their work and studio was a success.

I received an email from Judith Serling-Sturm, past president of CBAS, to join her for a morning of conversation in her atelier. Sitting in this wild and art-filled space, Judith was as curious about my work as I was about her's. 

© 2018 Louise Levergneux, Judith describing her work

Judith’s studio is in the Pendleton Art Center. The Center strives to encourage and nurture artistic creativity. It provides a supportive and inspiring environment for artists by offering art exhibitions, events and educational programs that raise public awareness and appreciation for the arts.

© 2018 Louise Levergneux, Judith's studio

Judith Serling-Sturm had been a freelance essayist before she apprenticed with a binder whose specialty was exposed bindings. She was instantly captivated by the textures and beauty of the artists' books, as well as the way book arts elevate the efforts and magnify the beauty of binding.

© 2018 Louise Levergneux, Judith's blank books are often created from recycled leather jackets, incorporating zippers, pockets, hooks, and snaps in the cover design, lined with fabric reclaimed from treasured jeans, work shirts, skirts and silk ties

In her work, the binding technique, structure, materials, as well as content, are important in the communication of an idea. Her work incorporates found objects and natural elements and often addresses issues of social justice.

© 2018 Louise Levergneux, Unarmed in America by Judith Serling-Strum

Judith teaches binding techniques in her studio and a visiting artist in classrooms up and down the east coast. She's currently a participating artist in the Taft Museum’s Artists Reaching Classroom program, as well as the Chair of the Cincinnati Book Arts Society.

© 2018 Louise Levergneux, a fun piece by Judith hanging in her studio

© 2018 Judith Serling-Strum, Banned

My morning was wonderful, the interaction with a new contact made the trip worthwhile. Many artists seek to meet and talk to other artists it gives us all more knowledge on the world of binding and artists’ books.

Bye Bye city of wall paintings. These painted walls are exquisite and fun, I saw five out of ten murals from this article "10 Must-See Murals in Cincinnati."

My favourite is on Pendleton St where we parked our putt-putt for a few hours.

© 2018 Louise Levergneux, wall painting on Pendleton St in Cincinnati

Walnut Creek, Ohio

Traveling transports me to locals I never thought of going and unfamiliar places of being. While in Walnut Creek, Ohio, awaiting the repairs on our trailer we organized a few touristy things to do on the extensive list of places to visit and shop in the area.

© 2018 Louise Levergneux, a daily scene in Walnut Creek, Ohio

I devoted a couple of hours at the exhibit of nationally known maritime artist David Warther, a fifth-generation carver of Swiss heritage. In the breathtaking Amish countryside of Sugarcreek, Ohio, David records the history of the ship from 1st Dynasty Egypt, 3,000 BC, to the present day.

© 2018 Louise Levergneux, David talking about the ships he carves

© 2018 Louise Levergneux, David Warther's carving of the Lioness of Thebes, 1190 BC

© 2018 Louise Levergneux, the creation of the Royal Ship of Tutankamen, 1335 BC by David Warther

© 2018 Louise Levergneux, David Warther's creation of the Star of Memphis, 1350 BC

© 2018 Louise Levergneux, David's carving of the Royal Ship of Queen Hatshepsut, 1500 BC

With over 80 major works in the collection, David carves daily in his on-site workshop utilizing antique ivory and ebony wood. His works are designed using blueprints and drawings furnished by maritime scholars and researchers worldwide.

© 2018 Louise Levergneux, David Warther's creation of Bonhomme Richard, 1779 AD

© 2018 Louise Levergneux, one of David's exhibit room and carving studio in the background

David's carvings are made of legal pre-ban ivory. He has become an expert in knowing the laws and regulations of buying, selling and gifting old legal estate elephant tusks and ivory carvings within the United States.

© 2018 Louise Levergneux, David explains the hand filing and sanding technique of making the ivory rigging lines

The rigging on his ships is made of his "ivory string"; a technique that is a signature of his artwork. These ivory threads are seven-thousandths of an inch in diameter (.007"), twice the thickness of a human hair.

David engraves the highly polished antique ivory through a process known as scrimshaw where fine lines are scored on the ivory's surface with a hand-held stylus. Later, when ink is applied to the scored surface, the microscopic pores in the ivory absorb the ink while the polished areas remain white. The scrimshaw process allows the intricate details of the ship's planking, doors, and windows to come to life.

© 2018 Louise Levergneux, details of the scrimshaw effect where fine lines are scored, Lightning, 1854 AD

© 2018 Louise Levergneux, David's carving of the Wanderer, 1878 AD

When his art project is complete, David expects to have close to 100 carvings that will convey the progress man has made in shipbuilding over the past 5,000 years.

The viewing of the exhibit and the conversation with David were worth being a tourist for an afternoon. What will I encounter next? Are you on the path of my travels? Will I discover your work throughout my journey?

La Cienega, New Mexico

During the previous two weeks, we have been Eastbound from Salt Lake City, Utah, to Sugarcreek, Ohio by way of Colorado, New Mexico, Texas, Oklahoma, Tenessee...

© 2018 Louise Levergneux, Amarillo to Shamrock, Texas on Interstate 40

My traveling and blogging have unlocked many doors to studio visits and interesting meets.

© 2018 Louise Levergneux, visiting with my fur friend "Clyde" companion to Dana Perez in Nashville, Tennessee

I enjoy the comments received on each and every one of my posts. An artist from La Cienega, New Mexico has sent me weekly comments since the beginning. This is how I started a conversation and friendship with Gail Murray.

Last week I found myself in Albuquerque, fifty miles from La Cienega. “I’m close enough for a trek up north,” I said. La Cienega is seventeen miles southwest of Santa Fe, this was an excuse to stop by one of my favourite places and a studio visit!

After a forty minute drive, I was at Gail’s Adobe style home. I found her and husband Paul to be great people to spend an evening talking about art.

© 2018 Louise Levergneux, accordion with turkish map fold book by Gail Murray

© 2018 Louise Levergneux, paste papers by Gail Murray

Gail and Paul Murray are the quintessential New Mexico couple: Gail is a New Mexico State employee by day and book artist by night. Gail makes one-of-a-kind artist books, using her own paste papers or decorative paper techniques learned through the Santa Fe Book Arts Group. Her books are filled with her own original haikus. 

© 2018 Louise Levergneux, Fifty Shades of Green by Gail Murray

Since 1978, Gail and Paul have made their annual Christmas cards, in a variety of media, ranging from silkscreen, collage, painting, and lino-prints. Each year they hand make and mail around 80 original, signed Christmas cards. Many people report having kept each one since 1978! Those early card years were the origins of Gail's Paw Print Press and subsequently her artist books. After viewing the BAG’s “Celebration of the Book” exhibit in late 2008, Gail instantly knew she had found her creative home. It was there she had her “AH-HA!” moment that she could BIND things into books, which had never occurred to her in all the years of making holiday, birthday and thank you cards.

Paul has been a life-long, full-time artist, painting landscapes, still life, architectural, flowers or animals in pastel, oil, acrylic, or pen and ink. Paul ran his graphic design business, Murray’s Design, in Albuquerque from 1977-2003. He started painting in pastels in the mid-90s. This earned him numerous major awards and sales. With that, he was hooked, and eventually left graphic design behind, and focused on painting full time and teaching workshops.

© 2018 Louise Levergneux, Paul Murray in his studio talking about his paintings

Together Paul and Gail are a collaborative team and back each other up in most matters art and the care of their current three cats, the Furry Murrays. Paul’s painting studio is connected to their home by a breezeway, and Gail produces all of her work in their spacious kitchen, with lots of spill-over into the breakfast nook, dining room, and more storage in the second bedroom. Before Gail found book arts, she says “it was a normal home. Presently it is a book art studio with cooking facilities.” The three cats reside in Paul’s studio. Their license plates say it all: CATLADY and BOOKART.

© 2018 Louise Levergneux, Paul Murray with his favourite painting

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The Santa Fe Books Arts Group is a very active group of approximately 150 artists. Most are from Santa Fe, however many are state-wide and out of state. The Crown Jewel of BAG’s events is the Capitol Rotunda exhibit, held every odd year for 3 months, either summer or fall at the Rotunda of the State Capitol in downtown Santa Fe. Each year approximately 100 books are accepted for the exhibit. BAG also sponsors several workshops, salons, and monthly meetings with presentations or demos given by very creative members or invited guest artists. Another highlight of the BAG year is the annual Collaborative Book. Usually, 20 to 25 members create enough pages to exchange with other members, based on the specs, theme, or colors chosen for that year’s Collaborative Book.

In 2014 BAG organized several small study groups, called In Over My Head—they cover a diverse range of topics. The groups are limited to eight participants and often meet at member’s homes or other suitable location. Popular topics have been Book Structure, Zentangle, Pop-ups, Calligraphy, Collage... Each month the associates explore in a 3-hour session an aspect of their respective topic. The Book Structure group is in its 5th year with most of the original members. Members take turns teaching a new structure or technique to the rest of the group. This June, they held their Third Annual Paste Paper Extravaganza in Gail’s Garage. Seven artists created piles of lovely paste paper; they share a swatch of paste paper with each member, to create their own unique collaborative book from the paste paper they swapped.

© 2018 Louise Levergneux, Gail Murray demonstrating the sliding strap concertina

Gail showed me a Sliding Strap Concertina created during a BAG workshop by Priscilla Spitler. Priscilla, a fine bookbinder from Truth or Consequences, New Mexico learned this structure from Gary Frost. This intriguing book structure permits additional content in the book or the book can be displayed on a wall. 

© 2018 Louise Levergneux, Gail Murray showing the cover of the sliding strap concertina

The Sliding Strap Concertina is a versatile structure that expands by the straps sliding through the linen thread “loops” sewn into the front and back covers. The spine is made of stained or painted Tyvek, with the five signatures pamphlet stitched to each fold in the spine. Each signature and endpapers can be covered in paste or marbled papers, these are perfect for this book.

Every visit, every conversation teaches me something new. Do you have a new binding or a new way of folding paper?

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Book Arts Program, Marriott Library

Before leaving Salt Lake City, I printed all the pages and the cover of my book Shadow Me. I was having so much fun I continued to print the pages and images for Finding Home. The books are ready to cut, fold, and assemble. It is difficult to keep a working schedule on the road. First, I don’t have much space and often the everyday activities take precedence. That’s life when it interferes with art!

© 2018 Louise Levergneux, printed pages of Shadow Me

© 2018 Louise Levergneux, printed pages of Finding Home

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Last week, at the Book Arts Program Studio of the Marriott Library, I met with Emily Tipps, Program Manager, and Marnie Powers-Torrey, Head of the Book Arts Program and Managing Director of the Red Butte Press.

© 2018 Louise Levergneux, Marnie Powers-Torrey at the University of Utah

I had the pleasure of seeing some of Emily and Marnie's artists’ books, produced during the last few years. They also demonstrated some of the books produced by the Red Butte Press. The conversation continued by sharing thoughts on structures and techniques chosen, favourite binding methods, typestyle and fine press. The type of substrate of various books was stimulating as I’m constantly looking to print on new papers.

The feel of paper for the fourth imprint of the Book Arts Program (In)visible Shores by Danielle Dubrasky was very tactile, sensual to the touch. BAP imprints are designed, printed, and bound in-house.

© 2018 Louise Levergneux, (In)visible Shores by Danielle Dubrasky

© 2018 Louise Levergneux, Stranger and Stranger by Katharine Coles The book Stranger and Stranger by Katharine Coles with images translated from the paintings of Maureen O-Hara Ure

Marnie shared three of her own artists’ books. It was delightful to see Marnie enjoying the feeling of renewal through production.

© 2018 Louise Levergneux, Cities & Justice by Marnie Powers-Torrey

© 2018 Louise Levergneux, Nuts, Seeds & Heavier Fare (left) and Mama Self (right) by Marnie Powers-Torrey

Mama Self is an edition of 32, the age of the artist when she became pregnant and gave birth to her second child, realizing that she'd never be the same again.

Work on this book began in 2006 in a workshop with the brilliant Julie Leonard, just after the birth of the artist's third and last child. After nine years of gestation, the book was finally released into the world. Imagery is derived from circular ink washes suggesting the cyclical nature of being, the constancy of motion, revolving planets, ripe ovum and lactating breasts. The text is experimental and broken, collected in haste throughout the early years of motherhood. Stripped of formality and exposing raw, maternal femininity, the words string together a visual poem of primal and authentic language.

A short exposure with Marnie Powers-Torrey by KUEDCHANNEL7. "The visual book, as I like to call it, can be a mode of creative expression."

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Emily Tipps is the founder of High5 Press. At the moment Emily has a new visual book in production with the working title of Amoral. I enjoyed the visual aspect, design, and composition of its pages. 

© 2018 Louise Levergneux, Amoral, work in progress by Emily Tipps

I aim to provoke energetic reader interaction with innovative texts, using letterpress printing, hand paper-making, and bookbinding to create limited-editions whose content and form are conceptually and interestingly related. Says Emily.

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The most enjoyable part of traveling is meeting old friends and artists. I’m looking forward to having a space to create and express myself through these travels. Visiting artists and getting to know the productions behind the studios are absolutely invigorating! I welcome the next encounter.

Abecedaries

It feels tremendous to be on the brink of creating an artists’ book. Hopefully, I will have time to start the design process before we embark on our next trek. My traveling studio leaves Salt Lake City to go Eastbound at the end of May. 

For the present, I’m looking forward to stand or sit; and think, plan, and print. How will it feel to handle tools again? Especially the glue!!! I may choose a non-glue method of binding.

Through my research, I discovered many published alphabet/ABC artists’ books in different binding formats depending on the meaning behind the work. Some of the types of bindings used for abecedaries are the flip book, cards, tunnel book, accordion, codex, panorama concertina... to name a few.

Karen Hanmer has used different bindings for her alphabet books. In The Spectrum A to Z the letters of the alphabet are colored to run through the spectrum and back within a tunnel book format.

© 2003 Karen Hanmer, The Spectrum A to Z, pigment inkjet prints, 5 x 5 x 18", edition of 20

Another alphabet book inspired by the U.S. Patriot Act is in an accordion style binding. Patriot Alphabet incorporates words or phrases taken from the vocabulary of terrorism, homeland security, and the Iraq war.

© 2004 Karen Hanmer, Patriot Alphabet, pigment inkjet prints, open 5.75 x 66 x 3.5", closed 5.75 x 4.5x.5"

© 2004 Karen Hanmer, Patriot Alphabet, pigment inkjet prints, open 5.75 x 66 x 3.5", closed 5.75 x 4.5x.5"

Karen’s last alphabet book A2Z is in a flip book style. I had a chance to view A2Z personally at the University of Utah’s library while living in South Jordan.

© 2013 Karen Hanmer, inkjet prints, double-fan adhesive binding, 2 x 4.75 x 2”

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Another artist’s work that delighted my eyes was Shu-Ju Wang. Her theme is Belly Dancers in a pull-out accordion structure.

Alphabet for a Belly Dancer captures the essence of belly dance through wordplay and a rhythmic pattern that mimics the dance itself.

© 2003, Shu-Ju Wang, Alphabet for a Belly Dancer, wrap-around cover in Japanese Masa Unwaxed and French handmade paper finished with hand-dyed rayon ribbon, coins, and beads, the protective envelope is made with a shimmering cover stock.

© 2003, Shu-Ju Wang, Alphabet for a Belly Dancer

© 2003, Shu-Ju Wang, Alphabet for a Belly Dancer

In Shu-Ju’s unique nonlatin character set Da(3)Pai(2), we find a full deck of 54 cards trace the evolution of 52 Chinese characters from their original pictographs to their contemporary forms. The heart and diamond suits illustrate the evolution of 26 radicals, and the spade and club suits show these radicals used in complex, combinatorial characters. Based on the book Chinese Calligraphy by Edoardo Fassioli and Guo Yu Ri Bao Zi Dian, a Chinese dictionary.

© 2003 Shu-Ju Wang, Da(3)Pai(2), wrap-around cover, cards in Evergreen Cover Aspen and Astroparche Antique Gold

Many other artists have been inspired by the theme of consonances and vowels of our language and there’s too many to show in this post. Tune in next week for more fun abecedaries.