Tag Archives: you can;t draw in books

Blarney Biblio Art Prize entry

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My entry has been accepted into Blarney Books & Art Biblio Art Prize. When you enter the competition you get given a book title to interpret artistically . I entered in June this year and got A year of Wonder : a novel of the plague by Geraldine Brooks. I purchased a second hand copy, knowing that I would draw on the page.

I read the book twice (and really enjoyed it) and have browsed through it numerous times in the last few months. My initial thought was that the drawings I would do in the book would probably be of the plague as it was described on various pages through the book. But in a moment of inspiration I noticed the references to plants in the novel. Looking further, I realised there were many references and knew that this would be my theme.

The novel is set in 1666 when the plague sweeps through England. It is based on the true history of the small Derbyshire village of Eyam that quarantines itself in order to prevent the disease from spreading further. It is written from the point of view of Anna and what she lives through in that time. It includes her observations of the reaction of villagers as they descend into social chaos with increasing fear, paranoia and suspicion. Anna’s resilience grows as she takes on a role as healer. During this time she learns about medicinal plants and they work to help the community at this time.

This weekend I have scanned the pages I have drawn on. I will post the book shortly to arrive in time for the Saturday 7 December Exhibition Opening Night at Blarney Books & Art in Port Fairy. If you are Melbourne, It is about a three hour drive. I would love to know if you are going to visit. My friends Angela & Jodi also have their projects in the exhibition. I believe they have both done paintings for their titles.

You can view all of the above drawings on my Flickr site

I also entered last year, drawing on the pages of a book of my own choice .see my blog post about my entry Blarney 2018 entry

I realised last year that when people were at the exhibition looking at my book, which was displayed open on a bookstand, that they did not turn the pages to look at the different illustrated pages. This weekend I am working on a poster of all the images, which I plan will stand next to the book, and once again, all pages will be bookmarked with a ribbon.

Once again, it will also be available for purchase.

Clunes Booktown Festival – Creative project

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The last two weeks blogs have been about being Social Media Reporter at Clunes Booktown Festival last weekend.

There is one final project that is part of my role, which I am completing over the next few weeks.

The brief : The final creative piece is some form of artwork made in response to your overall festival experience. This piece is to act as a deeper reflection on your part about your experience of the festival, and to give you another opportunity to really get creative and experiment. You can think of this piece as either a summary of your whole experience, or an opportunity to really dive deep into one aspect of your experience you want to explore/portray.

For my Creative Piece I am going to be drawing in a book.

I planned to purchase a book at a second hand book stall on the day. I had in mind to purchase a book about books or language, I only had a little time to browse as I was sketching all day, and actually bought the two books in the last hour. The final book for possible drawing in was bought at Clunes Railway Station (walls lined with books) to read on the two hour journey home. I was attracted  to drawing on the dictionary, however the pages are rough and not fun to draw in. So, my decision was made.

My book is : Language and Ideas: a course in English Expression for Junior Forms. Book 1 by Lane, Brereton, Dobell and Nelson published by Hall’s Book Store Pty Ltd Melbourne 1964. Previously owned by David J Netherway (in child’s writing in pencil in the front page). Cost $4

I dithered for a few days about what drawings to do and where to place them through the book.
I decided on
• drawings of historic buildings of Clunes
• drawings of books
• drawings of people looking at books at the Booktown Festival.
I am undecided about events at the Festival
I photocopied a few pages of the book and did some experimental drawings on those to see what it would look like. Then I began to draw on the actual pages.

I decided not to start at the beginning of the book – just open a page and start . Lots more drawing and lots of ideas to add to the pages over the next few weeks.