More Drawings

Last week, I re-drew the final element in Tinkercad for my artists’ book Finding Home. Major problems were surfacing, and the results were not good. Defeat, no way! This simple structure can be 3D printed, I’m sure.

My solution was to break down the sections of my structure into 7 pieces and once printed I would glue the sections together. The question remained, will the parts fit together? I’m hoping it works! 

Friday, I travelled one more time to Unbound to retrieve my work. Well, surprise! surprise! every part fit, amazing!! Persistence as always served me well.

The slipcase for my book Xtraction was also a success. My strategy worked. I’m excited to finish these projects. J'ai le vent en poupe ! I’m on a roll! as they say. I will elaborate on this project later, but here is a photo of the result of the last 3D print of Xtraction's slipcase.

© 2016, Louise Levergneux, 3D printed slipcase for Xtraction


Last week we visited the compelling Clock Drawings by Adrian Göllner. One more drawing from the series is worth looking into because of it’s interesting history.

The MGM blockbuster movie Ben Hur made its screen debut in 1925. Borrowing on its success, the Westclox Clock Company designed a handsome, roman-style alarm clock, which they called the Ben Hur and began marketing in 1927. The Ben Hur clock in my collection was purchased at Rideau Antiques in the Ottawa Valley, so it had likely been the property of a farm family in the vicinity. A mark on the reverse indicates that it had been serviced in 1942, but sometime after that it ceased to run and a repairman scavenged its winding keys. The clock is in poor condition and the spring was broken, but the alarm spring was still partially wound. I suspended the clock movement above a piece of carbon paper and then triggered the alarm. The alarm hammer struck the surface for several seconds. A decidedly men’s-style alarm clock, one might conclude that it was a birthday or Christmas gift for the father of a household. Perhaps he had traveled to the big city, seen the movie and now his family honoured him with a clock of the same name. If that is the case, then memories of the movie and thoughts of his family were an inextricable part of the energy coiled on the alarm spring and which made the marks upon the paper.

© 2010 Adrian Göllner

Another series, another device. Adrian’s project the Norwegian Wood Drawings configures a turntable so that the vibrations of the needle are transferred onto a drawing surface.

© 2012, Adrian Göllner, Norwegian Wood Drawing Mechanism

© 2012, Adrian Göllner, Norwegian Wood Drawing Mechanism

 A vinyl recording plays on the turntable causing the speaker’s woofer and attached pen to vibrate. The pen is slowly drawn backward across the drawing surface that itself rotates at 33 1/3 rpm.

Adrian’s intention was to divine the shape of John Lennon's loneliness from the grooves of his old Beatles albums. 

“A brilliant but troubled song songwriter, rejection and self loathing underlie many of Lennon's most enduring songs: Girl, I'm a Loser, Help and Norwegian Wood. Speculative? Absolutely. But even the consideration that the lines before us contain the essence of John Lennon’s loneliness make these drawings both curious and compelling.”—Adrian Göllner

© 2012 Adrian Göllner, Come Together, ink on vellum, 34 x 22 inches

© 2012 Adrian Göllner, Come Together, ink on vellum, 34 x 22 inches

© 2012 Adrian Göllner, I Want You, ink on vellum, 34 x 22 inches

© 2012 Adrian Göllner, I Want You, ink on vellum, 34 x 22 inches

© 2012 Adrian Göllner, Across the Universe, ink on vellum, 34 x 22 inches

© 2012 Adrian Göllner, Across the Universe, ink on vellum, 34 x 22 inches


The studio of James G. Jenkins is part of the Water Street Studios an artist co-op in Batavia, Illinois. Lucky to meet this talented artist, luckier to have him as a friend.

Drawing the Line(Somewhere) was made on one of the many bicycle paths around Batavia, Illinois. The reason for building this device was to "connect the dots" around the world to all areas suffering from climate & environmental problems. "We all must "draw the line" on something," says Jenkins. I use this device and performance to demonstrate it. 

© James G. Jenkins, Drawing the Line(Somewhere)

© James G. Jenkins, Drawing the Line(Somewhere)

James also notified the Museum of Contemporary Art in Chicago that he would be "drawing rings around them." This drawing is from that performance.

© 2004-2006 James G. Jenkins,  Drawing the Line(Somewhere), detail of drawing 

© 2004-2006 James G. Jenkins,  Drawing the Line(Somewhere), detail of drawing 

James’s sculptures provide a theme for both intellectual and visual curiosity. They contain road maps directing the observer through a process of distillation and fusion of contrasting ideas and investigative humour. James a genius at work is always happy to show you around his studio and direct you to the actual installations around Illinois. If you are in Illinois, James's studio is worth the visit!

 

These wonderful well thought out art pieces leave me with deep thoughts...

Flip Books and 3D Printing

I found one thing I miss from living in Utah, the Sundance Film Festival in Park City. I took this photo in 2014 on our annual–go see what it’s all about—visit. We had the opportunity to say hello to Sam Shepard and to Gilles Marini.

© 2014 Louise Levergneux, Sundance Film Festival

© 2014 Louise Levergneux, Sundance Film Festival

Getting back to the work at hand. It’s difficult to keep the processes and steps straight with three projects on the go, no four! 

I’m waiting for an order of paper to finish the last two copies of my book entitled Conversation. After two months, finishing these copies with my notes might be a challenge!! 

Meanwhile, I’m tinkering with Tinkercad for my second book entitled Finding Home. An emotional project that tackles my experience of living in Idaho while still rooted in Canada... I will discuss the many changes and end product later.

I am learning the ins and outs of 3D printing and enjoying the sculptural facet of the process. A third print is happening today and will take nine and a half hours to print over 497 layers. Fascinating!

I thought it might be fun to sit and take photos as my object was printing till I saw this timelapse video of a Ultimaker 2 printing a deer. Have you ever heard the expression “it’s like watching paint dry”

The binding and slipcase for my artists’ book Xtraction is also in the queue to be 3D printed, hurray!

While we wait for paper and prints, lets look at the steps it took to create the flip book for Xtraction. The idea grew from this X-ray. In this instance I used a mix of stills and video taken with my Sony D-SLR.

© 2013 Louise Levergneux

© 2013 Louise Levergneux

 1. First, the stills are manipulated in Photoshop and the video manipulated in iMovie

2. Next, I import the frames from the video into layers in Photoshop

3. Once, the layers are all chosen and sequenced, they are resized into another Photoshop template, I number all the pages—yes, number, it makes it easier to sort. Have you ever had 120 unnumbered pages fall to the floor and not knowing the sequence? I have! FUN! FUN! FUN!

4. All the adjustments in the next step is great fun for people with OCD, as all the layers have different opacity between bottom and top layers for each group of images. The flip book has 120 pages counting the colophon

5. Shown are 13" x 19" sheets of pages in Bridge ready for print

© 2014 Louise Levergneux, Xtraction

6. My printer co-operated, thank God! This does not always happen, everyone knows that! I start the cutting phase after the sheets rest for 24 hours. This time relaxes the paper and removes any curling from wet ink. Dried ink allows the paper to be handled without concerns 

© 2014 Louise Levergneux, Xtraction

© 2014 Louise Levergneux, Xtraction

7. Each page goes through a five steps cutting process, this ensures perfect placement of image on each page. The time taken in properly cutting each page properly gives a smooth action when flipping pages. I know these steps by heart after cutting pages for 156 flip books in the last 3 years. First cut is done by dividing the sheet in half.

© 2014 Louise Levergneux, Xtraction

© 2014 Louise Levergneux, Xtraction

© 2014 Louise Levergneux, Xtraction

© 2014 Louise Levergneux, Xtraction

The second cut is done by following the cutting lines for the top of each page.

© 2014 Louise Levergneux, Xtraction

Making sure that all the pages are trimmed at the exact same place on the right edge is the third cut.

© 2014 Louise Levergneux, Xtraction

The fourth step is to properly cut the bottom of each page by using a straight edge that will not move.

© 2014 Louise Levergneux, Xtraction

© 2014 Louise Levergneux, Xtraction

The last and fifth cut is the left side with a pre-determined length for the flip book.

© 2014 Louise Levergneux, Xtraction

I sort and stack, then punch holes through the pages to receive screw posts

© 2014 Louise Levergneux, Xtraction

© 2014 Louise Levergneux, Xtraction

A small binding with cloth over boards is usually cut and assembled to finish the book. Xtraction has a 3D printed binding so this step is omitted

Voilà, one finished flip book. I will have photos of the completed project next week.

The fourth project I mentioned above is the image manipulation, printing and cutting of the last volumes of City Shields. Forever!

© 2011 Louise Levergneux, City Shields

This will take more than a week, need to get going.


One Less Camera and 3D Printing

A new week, a new dilemma. This world of technology makes our lives more efficient, they say! I use different technologies to create my artists’ books and at the moment I am trying to survive without one of these.

My camera didn’t make it!! After 4 years I felt comfortable with my Sony D-SLR a33. How to replace a beloved camera? 

I am sure someone can figure out what is wrong and repair said camera.

Oh No! No Sony repair shops in Idaho. There are repair shops in New York City, but not in Idaho!! There’s Sony but financially unapproachable. There’s always new cameras...

... But mine had tilting LCD screen, panorama setting, telephoto lens... can I get these capabilities in one camera again?

After a few moments of grief I searched the internet and the thought of having fun with the latest gadgets, got me excited–I grinned to myself. Then the prices flashed on my computer screen! 

Are these amounts for real? Yes! And on sale!

Prices have skyrocketed in the last 4 years. D-SLR’s can do everything under the blue sky, even take photos. As an artist with no real income to speak of, a camera above $500 is overwhelming, but often match the capabilities I would enjoy. What route to take? What confusion! There are hundreds of models from different brands out there for beginners, intermediate and expert photographers. Will let the last choice go! With a particular budget and certain needs, (not wants, needs), the twine shall never meet.

Why can’t artists have access to free tryouts like photographers or other people in the know. WE ARE IN THE KNOW; and it would be fantastic to try out new equipment. If any of you have an idea on how to achieve free try-outs, please share. Any comments on a brand of camera you love would also be appreciated and make my decision easier or not!

Here I am, no camera in hand and a new published book to document entitled “Conversation” for an up-coming exhibition. Argggh!

I am glad I took lots of photos at the end of December. Here's another snowy shot in Avimor, our little community wild and free.

© 2015 Louise Levergneux, December in Avimor, Idaho

© 2015 Louise Levergneux, December in Avimor, Idaho


3D printing as been an interest of mine for several years now. The little robot in this video is Spazzi™ imitating me in a confused frenzy over my camera situation. Spazzi™ has plastic parts that were printed on a MakerBot. Check him out at: http://beatbots.net/80750/713698/projects/spazzi

Last year, I designed a flip book on the theme of EXTRACTION to enhance the idea I felt that both binding and slipcase should be translucent. Since I couldn’t find any translucent board or binding cloth, I designed it for 3D printing. The cost was too high to complete the project. How can one sell a flip book for over $700?

On the up-side, after our move I found an organization with 3D printers. My new book entitled “Finding Home” includes a 3D part. Now, I am able to design and create my idea as I saw it in my minds eye. Hurray!

How? you say, Idaho does not have any connection to Sony but has unBound—a place to make, learn and design your creative ideas! This is the key phrase on their introductory webpage. unBound offers help and access to 3D printing, a design lab, a print center, a sound studio and a business nook. With the moneys I will spend on a D-SLR, having access to unBound is a Godsend. Anyone in the area of Boise or Meridian should investigate unBound.

3D printing has been around for years and it has infiltrated the art world. A slipcase for the limited edition of Chang-rae Lee's novel On Such a Full Sea was printed on a MakerBot Replicator 2 Desktop 3D Printer. You can listen to Helen Yentus, the art director of Riverhead Books, talking on designing the 3D printed slipcase.


Tom Burtonwood an artist and educator based in the Chicago area, creates artists’ books using a 3D printer. You can find more information on Tom's books on his site. Orihon is the first entirely 3D printed book of textures and reliefs of architectural patterning and decoration.

© 2014, Tom Burtonwood,  "Orihon"

© 2014, Tom Burtonwood,  "Orihon"

Tom Burtonwood and Tim Samuelson in a humorous way talking on their collaboration of Twenty Something Sullivan at Pecha Kucha at Chicago Architecture Biennial in October 2015.

© 2015, Tom Burtonwood and Tim Samuelson, detail of "Twenty Something Sullivan"

© 2015, Tom Burtonwood and Tim Samuelson, detail of "Twenty Something Sullivan"

© 2014, Tom Burtonwood, "Folium"

© 2014, Tom Burtonwood, "Folium"

© 2014, Tom Burtonwood, "Folium"

© 2014, Tom Burtonwood, "Folium"


Bill Westheimer uses the phrase book sculptures to describe his work. Bill’s book entitled Silver Sunbeam incorporates some 19th century style wet-plate photograms on the cover of the box and the book. The contents of the book is a USB flash drive with a scan of the original 1864 Silver Sunbeam book which taught the world how to make wet-plate photographs. Check it out! It is worth the time to browse Bill’s awesome work. Here are some tantalizing photos of Silver Sunbeam.

© 2015, Bill Westheimer, Silver Sunbeam

© 2015, Bill Westheimer, Silver Sunbeam

© 2015, Bill Westheimer, Silver Sunbeam

© 2015, Bill Westheimer, Silver Sunbeam

© 2015, Bill Westheimer, Silver Sunbeam

© 2015, Bill Westheimer, Silver Sunbeam

Fantastic work guys!

unBound, a subsidiary of the Meridian Library was a great find, I’m stoked! Need to get back to my ideas and learn Tinkercad.