Marriott Library, University of Utah

May 27, 2018

Last week, in Boise, I picked up from Unbound the 3D printed pieces of the houses incorporated in my book Finding Home. Unbound is a library and facility that experiment with emerging technology. I'm enjoying the sound of my printer as I print two copies of the pages of my book.

© 2018 Louise Levergneux, Finding Home house pieces

It was a pleasure being back in Salt Lake City after a year of traveling, even though more time was spent with doctors, chiropractors, and my physiotherapist. I appreciated a visit to the J. Willard Marriott Library the main academic library of the University of Utah this week.

© 2018 Louise Levergneux, entrance to the J Willard Marriott Library

The Book Arts Program has a fully equipped studio where artists utilize type, letterpress, photo engravings and bookbinding equipment as they combine traditional techniques with modern aesthetics and technology.

© 2018 Louise Levergneux, the book arts studio as one walk through the door

The Program promotes involvement with the art of the book by facilitating Academic designations of Minor, a Certificate in Book Arts, and the MFA in Creative Writing & Book Arts, which are supported by classes exploring letterpress printing, bookbinding, artists' books and typography.

© 2018 Louise Levergneux, Chris McAfee in the book arts classroom, getting ready for a workshop on conservation

At this time of year, the Special Collection Gallery found on the fourth floor at the entrance of the Book Arts Studio is filled with student's work in book arts.

© 2018 Louise Levergneux, Special Collections Gallery

© 2018 Louise Levergneux, exhibitionon of students work

For you lovers of ABC books, I found one in the exhibition entitled Animal Alphabet. This artists’ book is an alternative take on a traditional abecedarian book that exposes the cruelty that animals experience every day and calls the reader to action by Sydney Porter.

© 2018 Louise Levergneux, Sydney Porter, Animal Alphabet — © 2018 Louise Levergneux, Sydney Porter, Animal Alphabet

More books caught my attention:

© 2018 Louise Levergneux, Box Sonata: at play with Plato, Quasha, and Chronostratigraphy by Mahala Kephart — © 2018 Louise Levergneux, Box Sonata: at play with Plato, Quasha, and Chronostratigraphy by Mahala Kephart

© 2018 Louise Levergneux, Tatiana Tyszko, Places I’ve Fallen In Love — © 2018 Louise Levergneux, Tatiana Tyszko, Places I’ve Fallen In Love

© 2018 Louise Levergneux, another fascinating book by Hannah Harper Hansen entitled Book 3

I have taken many workshops and a full semester class on book arts with the Book Arts Program while living in Salt Lake City a few years ago. The next workshop, The Book Restructured: Wire-Edge Binding with Daniel E. Kelm is at the beginning of June. With my hectic schedule Eastbound, I will miss this wonderful workshop. Pretty shitty! But that is life!

Next week, I will have a look at some of the people in charge of the Book Arts Program and next year with no injuries to heal I will plan in advance to participate in a workshop.

Abecedaries

May 14, 2018

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"

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

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, 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

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.

Phoenix Book Placement

May 7, 2018

Last week was intense! My thoughts are to stop the madness and start creating, publishing and have fun with photos, I took way back when... Before the face the sand event!

© 2017 Louise Levergneux, Coachella Valley, Thousand Palms Oasis Preserve, California — © 2017 Louise Levergneux, Coachella Valley, Thousand Palms Oasis Preserve, California

Snapping photos during physical therapy for my alphabet book gets me excited about working and thinking about the content and title. With a high strain sprain, I’m also taking time to enjoy and study my Sony camera with all its features. Content to learn something every day but it’s absorbing the info that is a process.

© 2018 Louise Levergneux, Heiden Orthopedics, Salt Lake City, Utah

On the administration side of the studio, while passing through Phoenix, I contacted the Rare Books and Manuscripts Department of the Arizona State University Library. The result of my conversations represents the placement of two artist's books in the Book Arts Collection. The collection contains books with unusual formats about fine printing, binding, and handmade papers, it also includes pop-up books.

With this acquisition, the complete edition of Entre deux and Guadalupe are sold out. Both artists’ books are in great company, I discovered deux and Guadalupe are sold out. Both artists’ books are in great company, I discovered deux and Guadalupe are sold out. Both artists’ books are in great company, I discovered deux and Guadalupe are sold out. Both artists’ books are in great company, I discovered deux and Guadalupe are sold out. Both artists’ books are in great company, I discovered deux and Guadalupe are sold out. Both artists’ books are in great company, I discovered After Image: Colour at play by Barbara Hodgson & Claudia Cohen is part of the collection and The Blame Game: Winning Excuses and Strategies on and off the Court by Carolyn Shattuck.

Entre deux is an interactive documentary inviting the reader to take part in a simple meal with a couple whiles being privy to their conversation on the subject of love. deux is an interactive documentary inviting the reader to take part in a simple meal with a couple whiles being privy to their conversation on the subject of love.

Guadalupe was created after exploring Santa Fe, New Mexico, I created a documentary on the Virgin Mary, an image that saturates the entire city in different formats, sizes, and styles.

I have another three weeks in Salt Lake City and looking forward to positive answers to studio visits as hiking the wonderful Wasatch Mountains is out of the question.

California Palm Trees

February 5, 2018

Where to go when Texas gets cold? California!

We settled in and reconnoitered the place as we drove around the desert. Traveling in the Thousand Palms Canyon of the Coachella Valley, we found the most delightful haven—the Thousand Palms Oasis.

© 2017 Louise Levergneux, Thousand Palms Oasis

Everything is silent in the oasis and you can immerse yourself in the beauty and solitude of the magnificent palm trees.

Stepping into this sanctuary, I was startled by the unexpected lushness of the palms. I absorbed the feathery fronds and admired the stately trunks soaring 60 feet high.

Like all palms, the Washingtonia filifera, isn’t actually a tree at all, but is related to grasses and bamboos. Rather than sprouting growth rings, a palm is basically a column that sucks water from the roots to its sprouting crown via a series of drinking-strawlike tubes. The palm trees of this oasis feed on water from the San Andreas Fault line.

© 2017 Louise Levergneux, Thousand Palms Oasis, the skirt of dried leaves hanging down the trunk of the native California fan palm is more than a fashion statement; it’s a home to animals who help the palm propagate

To experience the magnificence of the Preserve, one can trek a two-mile round trip that takes you through a palm oasis, across the fault zone, through a desert wash to the McCallum Oasis, one of the largest groves of desert fan palms in California.

We were enjoying the trek, our boots filling up with desert sand. I stepped on a tiny rock twisted my ankle and my face hit the ground. Argh!

Remember the two-mile round trip, we still had the one mile back to the parking. Yeow!

© 2017 Louise Levergneux, Thousand Palms Oasis, all these photos were shot before the fatal kiss the dirt act

Charles Hobson created a marvelous limited edition artists’ book entitled Trees and it includes a poem by W. S. Merwin. Merwin’s poem is soft and contemplative and conveys a sense of quiet awe as he looked into trees from a mysterious time and place.

© 2010 Charles Hobson, Trees, an edition of thirty copies

When the book is opened, one can read the poem by standing up the first pages and using it to prop each page against it as the pages are turned.

The small tree in the opening at the front of the book is used to suggest the beginning of a recollection of trees in some distant, remembered time, following one of the threads of the poem.

When "accordion’d-out" the book offers a succession of palm trees that can be positioned on different sides of the standing pages, giving a front and back view of the same image. A large architectural model palm tree sits in the window cut in the last panel which is backed by a transparent image of the night sky.

© 2010 Charles Hobson, Trees, 16 pages, 4-1/4 x 12 x 2 inches — © 2010 Charles Hobson, Trees, 16 pages, 4-1/4 x 12 x 2 inches

The monotypes of palm trees are reproduced as high-resolution digital prints on transparency film. The monotypes lay over the words of the poem, which have been set letterpress to follow the shape of the palm tree trunks – the words of the poem climbing the trees.

When one shines the flashlight on the tree and through the opening at the back of the book, the light projects mysterious shadows of trees against the luminous night sky.

The book can be oriented in several ways, much as the poem offers subtly varied interpretations. Setting it on its side presents the type reading from left to right (rather than up and down), but results in the trees having fallen.

A stop action animation about the making of Trees with Charles Hobson and Alice Shaw.

You never know what will inspire you and where you will find amazing, superlative ideas.

Book Arts Collection in Texas

January 21, 2018

As I travel, my on-going goal is to promote my artists' books. After a few emails to book arts collections in Texas, I scheduled two appointments.

My first rendez-vous was with Shā Towers, Curator of the Book Arts Collection, Art Liaison Librarian, and Associate Director of the Central Libraries at Baylor University. Since 2007, the artists’ book collection of The Crouch Fine Arts Library has grown to over 800 works representing many artists and presses. The collection functions as a teaching collection for both studio artists working in the medium and various disciplines outside the arts. The collection includes a wide-ranging representation of everything from single-page constructions, complex forms, sculptural book-works, fine press, letterpress, photography, handmade papers, textiles, collaborative works, and more.

© 2017 Louise Levergneux, the Jesse H Jones Library, one of the central libraries at Baylor University in Waco, Texas

© 2017 Louise Levergneux, the Jesse H Jones Library entrance to a very friendly staff

I arrived in Waco, had a pleasant visit and exchange on the Library collection with Shā. Following my artists' books presentation, I left re-energized. It’s nice to talk with someone who has an understanding, interest and creates artists' books.

I'm thrilled to say my artists’ books: Conversation, Decades Apart, Traverse, the Texas and New Mexico volumes of City Shields, are now part of the Crouch Fine Arts Library.

© 2006 Louise Levergneux, City Shields, New Mexico volume

© 2017 Louise Levergneux, door in downtown Waco, Texas

My second consultation was with Rebecca Pad, Humanities Liaison Librarian for the Fine Arts Library at the University of Texas.

© 2017 Louise Levergneux, Oak trees around the Doty Fine Arts Building

Examples of Artists' Books can be found in Libraries and Art Collections across the University campus. The artists' books in these collections contain illustrations by artists, livres d'artistes, multiple-copied and inexpensive produced booklets, limited-edition, and handcrafted books.

Rebecca Pad, three other colleagues and I sat and reviewed my books. I took pleasure in seeing my ideas and concepts experienced with amusement. I’m fond of bringing a smile to the reader, part of my artistic statement and philosophy behind my work.

At the end of our session, the Fine Arts Library acquired Ambivalence, a flip book from the Outside of the Studio series entitled Earth.20 and my last published book Shadow Me.

© 2012 Louise Levergneux, Earth.20 from the Outside the Studio Series

Shadow Me is a documentary that exemplifies solitary moments after the loss of unconditional love of a devoted companion. Rebecca was touched by this book, I’m glad it's now part of the collection.

In the past, I wasn’t keen on talking about my work, but Texans have a way of welcoming you, what can I say Y'all made me feel at home!

© 2017 Louise Levergneux, The Harry Ransom Center

Austin, Texas

January 8, 2018

I visited the Harry Ransom Center at The University of Texas in Austin, twice during my séjour. The structure captivated my attention from the outside in with its two inside plazas etched in glass with images of the collections.

© 2017 Louise Levergneux, The Harry Ransom Center, Picasso's Eyes, David Douglas Duncan, 1957; silhouette of Oliver Twist, Sir Francis Carruthers Gould, 1890s; Rooster device, Golden Cockerel Press, ca 1923; Horse in Motion, Eadweard Myubridge, ca 1… — © 2017 Louise Levergneux, The Harry Ransom Center, Picasso's Eyes, David Douglas Duncan, 1957; silhouette of Oliver Twist, Sir Francis Carruthers Gould, 1890s; Rooster device, Golden Cockerel Press, ca 1923; Horse in Motion, Eadweard Myubridge, ca 1886

Front facade, first and second floors of the Center were re-designed and completed in 2003 under the direction of the San Antonio architects Lake/Flato. Abundant Texas light reflects architecturally the two-fold vision of the Ransom Center.

The mission of the Center encourages discovery, inspires creativity, and advances understanding of the humanities for a broad and diverse audience through the preservation and sharing of its extraordinary collections.

Enjoy an insider's glimpse into the Ransom Center. This 10-minute video provides a broad overview of collections, scholarship, conservation, exhibitions, and programs. Curators, students, members, and conservators discuss their work and how the Center shares and celebrates the creative process.

I received a wonderful Texan welcome by Olivia Primanis, Senior Conservator for the Ransom Center. Olivia was approachable and a gentle soul.

Olivia directed me to visit the artists’ books repository part of the Art Collection. To get access to the artists’ books one can open a research “Aeon" account then go to the reading room and page your chosen artists’ books for an original research or specialized study.

The Harry Ransom Website Collections page

© 2017 Olivia Primanis, a sample of the Book Arts database with thumbnail images online

It was a pleasure to do a “show and tell” session by sharing my process and books with Olivia and her co-workers; Ellen Cunningham, Associate Director for Preservation and Conservation, Dana Kull, a volunteer, Kimberly Kwan an intern for the paper lab, and Mary Baughman from the Austin Book Arts Center who also joined us.

After a wonderful hour, Olivia invited me to join her for French lunch. Olivia and other colleagues meet every Tuesday for lunch and speak only French for an hour. I did not realize I would speak French in Austin!

Cela était chouette d'être demandée !

Merci, Olivia pour une visite fantastique ! À la prochaine.

San Marcos, Texas

December 31, 2017

Sometimes, you find yourself in the right place at the right time. When I visited the Austin Book Arts Center a few weeks back, I did not know what wonderful opportunities would be presented to me. Some doors are worth opening!

I had the good fortune of meeting Craig Jensen a fine master craftsman. Craig produces custom designed housings and fine limited edition bindings. He executes bindings for some of the best-known libraries and private presses in the world.

It was an inspiring mid-day visit at Craig’s home and studio, BookLab II in San Marcos, Texas.

On arrival, a friendly four-legged muse—whose mission is to greet people—welcomed us with a smile. Most studios have a muse, a force who is the source of positive feelings in our space.

© 2017 Louise Levergneux, Craig Jensen's muse playing the "are they leaving so soon look"

Craig was generous with his time and shared his work stories and process in a natural open show and tell session. In front of his library filled with bindings and casing he has created, I was like a child in a candy store.

What would you like to see? Craig asked.

I thought any book will do, there was so much to choose from. Craig picked the first one, this book was the one Craig called the most technically difficult piece he had ever bound. Gaylord Schanilec's Lac des Pleurs, a study of the 22-mile length of the upper Mississippi River known as Lake Pepin, near Schanilec’s home in Stockholm, Wisconsin.

© 2017 Louise Levergneux, Craig Jensen talking about the process of binding Lac des Pleurs

© 2017 Louise Levergneux, Lac des Pleurs with full map open

© 2017 Louise Levergneux, Lac des Pleurs — © 2017 Louise Levergneux, Lac des Pleurs

On the many shelves of bindings a box covered in black Italian Canapetta lined with red rowlux caught my attention. Booklab II teamed up with Moving Parts Press to create the book DOC/UNDOC part of a grandiose collaboration between Guillermo Gómez-Peña and book artist Felicia Rice who created a work that stimulates all the senses.

© 2017 Louise Levergneux, a page of DOC/UNDOC

© 2017 Louise Levergneux, next, Craig displayed James Siena's book entitled Sequence One.

After a couple of hours, we went out for a healthy meal and lots of conversation.

Craig’s career began in 1977 when he was appointed Library Conservator for the Harold B. Lee Library at Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah. In, 1977-78 Craig interned at The Library of Congress Restoration Office under the keen direction of Peter Waters and Don Etherington to eventually become a bench conservator and bookbinder at The Library of Congress. In 1981, Don Etherington recruited Craig to serve as the Head of Book Conservation at the Harry Ransom Humanities Research Center Conservation Department at the University of Texas in Austin.

In 1984, Craig established the Jensen Bindery, for book conservation and box making, then focused on limited edition binding. Craig worked for Acme Bookbinding as Vice President of Imaging for a number of years then returned to the concept of a small book bindery, reestablishing a workshop, BookLab II, in 2003. After spending some time exchanging ideas and opinions with Craig, you can understand why he received the Lifetime Achievement Award from The Guild of Book Workers in 2011.

Here Craig is featured in the Oxford American: SoLost video series filmed by photographer and videographer Dave Anderson.

Craig Jensen demonstrates rounding and backing, techniques used in hand bookbinding with Olivia Primanis at the Conservation Department book lab of the Ransom Center, University of Texas, in 2009.

Guess who I met immediately afterwards—next week!

Tu dois juste ouvrir ton esprit à la rencontre de nouvelles expériences !

Rochester, New York

November 14, 2017

I finally crossed the border back into the US on October 17th. I was hoping to be down south before it froze. It was getting colder every day, and the rain never seemed to stop.

On October 18th, in Rochester, New York, the sun was shining and it was a gorgeous day. According to the locals, the temperature was out of season. One of my goals in traveling is to meet with new collection contacts or renew old ones. I love to visit artist's studios, it's fantastic but I also need to distribute my own artists’ books. This is my usual six month of administration duties.

On the road, I emailed contacts of different libraries for a possible visit. I received a quick response from the Rush Rhees Library at the University of Rochester.

© 2017 Google Maps, Rush Rhees Library, Rochester University

© 2015 Al Herms, Google Maps, Rush Rhees Library, Rochester University

I met with Stephanie Frontz, Head of the Art & Music Library and Art Librarian. The Art and Music Library is home to various collections including over 300 artists’ books. On short notice and to my surprise, Stephanie agreed to meet with me outside on Wilson Blvd for an artist’s book tailgate event!

"With this kind of weather everyone wants to be outside, it will not last long,"—Stephanie replied.

Through our conversation, Stephanie showed me her sense of humour by presenting me with a “League of Librarians” trading card-style business card for the University of Rochester reference and liaison librarians.

This project helps students resolve concerns regarding choosing and finding materials. What a fantastic idea! Gamification is the way of the future!

© 2017 Louise Levergneux, I now possess this trading card. Will it grow in value as the years go by? HaHa! Do you have one? Which one? — © 2017 Louise Levergneux, I now possess this trading card. Will it grow in value as the years go by? HaHa! Do you have one? Which one?

After an interesting show and tell, the Art and Music Library acquired five of my artists’ books. Thank you Stephanie!

© 2012 Louise Levergneux, Earth.11 from the series Outside the Studio

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Hello, my name is Louise Levergneux, I’m a book maker. This blog is where I share and reflect on the approaches and structures used in my creative process, artists' books, photography. and more...

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