Inspired by the work of Rosemary Broton Boyle, I created this altered book shrine (and two more) in a weekend art binge last weekend. I grew up in a household where books were treated with great respect - books as physical objects were highly valued, and I saw the adults in my life treat these objects with more responsible tender care than they did their own health and bodies at times... interesting. A vivid early memory is of being roundly scolded for drawing inside a book. I clearly remember my fascination with the shapes the words made on the page (this was well before the age of literacy) and carefully using my pencil to follow the maze from the top of the page to the bottom - I also remember my mother's absolutely horrified expression when she discovered me defacing a
book. I
did grow up to be very literary, and a true bibliophile and collector of books. I do love books as objects - but it has been liberating to engage in the art of altering books ( I must admit that at first I found the idea horrifying.) This one was really a leap, however; in order to create this shrine, I had to absolutely gut this book. The book had been on my shelves for some 20 years, a nice hard cover, but not of any particular value, not antique, and I have another volume which is a better, more readable translation of the same texts. It is a volume of selections from Aristotle. Oh my. I really did feel like a bold iconoclast when I took a craft knife to this one. It was worth it. I'm absolutely infatuated with the result.
Inspired by the work of Rosemary Broton Boyle, I created this altered book shrine (and two more) in a weekend art binge last weekend. I grew up in a household where books were treated with great respect - books as physical objects were highly valued, and I saw the adults in my life treat these objects with more responsible tender care than they did their own health and bodies at times... interesting. A vivid early memory is of being roundly scolded for drawing inside a book. I clearly remember my fascination with the shapes the words made on the page (this was well before the age of literacy) and carefully using my pencil to follow the maze from the top of the page to the bottom - I also remember my mother's absolutely horrified expression when she discovered me defacing a book. I did grow up to be very literary, and a true bibliophile and collector of books. I do love books as objects - but it has been liberating to engage in the art of altering books ( I must admit that at first I found the idea horrifying.) This one was really a leap, however; in order to create this shrine, I had to absolutely gut this book. The book had been on my shelves for some 20 years, a nice hard cover, but not of any particular value, not antique, and I have another volume which is a better, more readable translation of the same texts. It is a volume of selections from Aristotle. Oh my. I really did feel like a bold iconoclast when I took a craft knife to this one. It was worth it. I'm absolutely infatuated with the result.
2 comments:
Lovely shrine! Inspiring and is getting my juices flowing. I've worked on three encautic pieces the last two days and posted them and a page from one of my altered journals on my new blog. I enjoyed hearing about your families reverance for books. My mom was a librarian. I've come away with a definite 'relationship' with the world of books and could really relate. The best to you. Your place in Canada sounds lovely. Pam
http://pamssointoit.blogspot.com/
Thanks Pam, yes, encaustic is so fun and addictive! I'm off now to check out your blog!
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