Bookmaker's Blog

Mar 24 2008
The larger fish are finished. The smaller ones still need some clipping and filing where the etching process has not completely detached them from the background. It took about a day to carefully do this to the larger fish.
I have measured the available space at the Maritime and come up with a size for the cast paper background for the fish, which I am making in 3 strips. I have designed a pattern for the three collagraphs, and started cutting out card shapes. I hope it is good drying weather in late April – though it is not known for it – as this will make it possible to cast the paper on the collagraphs outdoors, which will be a good thing, because of the size. I will very likely make a horrible mess if I do it indoors. I am still playing with colourways on the computer.

Mar 1 2008
I spent 3 more hours etching the copper fish. Stopped out some areas with hard ground and discovered that the copper had etched sideways underneath the photo film, so some areas collapsed when I pressed lightly with the brush. It is not supposed to do that. The result will be rather more distressed than I intended.
Also built up more layers on the cover.
However I have not had much spare time for the Lune Book, as I have been preparing for Leeds Book Fair.

Feb 11 2008
Lune Book
I do not know why people look down on digital production, as if it is easy and less time consuming than traditional methods. I find it takes me a long time to get the result I want.
I had a new idea for the book still keeping the course of the river and the old names, but emphasizing the rock as container and the water as pools. I did a word etymology search on some of the names and selected 20 to feature in the book. I searched through all my photos, (over 175) which had a relationship to the chosen words and to the particular part of the Lune. I selected circular areas with mostly water. I found gaps and had to go out and take more photos and discovered a heronry in the middle of Lancaster. An unexpected bonus.
I researched the rocks along the Lune valley but in the end gave up trying to get samples of the appropriate ones for each part of the valley. I took about 100 photos of rock – some out at Warton, some paving the streets of Lancaster. I processed about 60.
I then spent hours choosing the best matches of pools and rock.

I started on the cover – making 2 half pebbles of papermache, used a sander to smooth the shape.

I wrote drafts of 2 poems to go in the book.

Installation
I have started etching 5 copper fish.

Jan 21 2008
Lune Book and installation
I read a book aimed at embroiderers about stitching on paper and metal, but there were some useful ideas in it for me.
‘Paper, Metal and Stitch’ Maggie Grey and Jane Wild.
I tried heating copper until it changed colour – a bit brown and muddy, I thought. However I then put it into the freezer in a plastic bag with malt vinegar. The vinegar in the creases took the colour back to the original copper. I could do this with my copper fish installation.

I have spent days putting in the names of different reaches of the Lune – very evocative of a time when each field and each bit of river had a name. I expect fishermen now go to numbered stands.
I decided to use photo-shopped photos of stone for the background through which the river runs, and try to represent the different contour levels with various colours of stone. Printed out a one page experiment which used a few existing photos. Then had to take a lot more photos of stone. Wet stone on a dull day gives the best result. Dry stone does not have enough contrast, and wet stone and sunshine gives too much. A visit to Warton Crag and the disused quarry was magical. The scale of the cliff is hard to take in until you see the birds (choughs?) fly toward you from the cliff.

Jan 4 2008
Book to Book entry
I have finished it and can send it off in time to meet the deadline. Using type to print the title on the book cloth for the cover was more demanding than I expected. I haven’t been able to replace the rollers on my adana press, so I was always going to have to print by hand. Why did I choose an alliterative title? Hooked By Books is not a good title for a limited amount of type. I ran out of O and K, so I had to print in 3 goes, with an elastic band holding the type together. The lining up was hard to do.

2007

Dec 26
Book to Book entry
I have managed lots of revision, though that will go on until I publish, and I expect even afterwards I will spot changes I wish I had made, but the deadline is too close.
Some chapters have disappeared and others created. All the illustrations are done except for one. Why did I decide to put the borrowed campervan into the picture, when I know I cannot draw vehicles? It looks so clunky, and is completely illegal, with no mirrors, and no head rests as I can’t work out what they look like or how or where they fix on. I have also realised that the book shape I set up in publisher is not right, so I will have to alter it manually, as that is less trouble than altering all the pagination by hand.

December 4
Book to Book entry
Typed up my stories so far, though they still need lots of revision, especially to make the titles more catchy. Made a mock up of the size and layout on Publisher and pasted a few stories in, just to check the best length of story, and size of drawings.

November 28
Book to Book entry
Realised that I just will not have time to make my marvellous idea by Jan 19. Total rethink.
Decided to do an entry based on the presence of books in the home throughout my life, with proper references to the relevant books and hand-drawn illustrations. This should be do-able.
L ay awake at night, thinking up the wording for several pages. Still not really wel next dayl, so sat wrapped up warm, and doodled some drawing designs.Ideas are coming very fast which is good.

November 21
Book to Book entry
Ill in bed. very frustrating. So I spent hours thinking up marvellous plans for an entry for Book to Book, -response to form, volume, content, paper, printing, structure, sequence,reading in general, presence in the home, library, collections.

November 19
Lune installation

Decided on a plan of just 3 etched copper fish, to be hung in front of some coloured, sewn and distressed paper. Iwill try out a test piece on Rives paper, as I am not sure if i want to hand make a large piece of paper.
Did three test pieces in the end. machine sewed in blue and white, and decided that the blue side looked better. Ithen tried sanding the paper down in various areas and found it hard to avoid the stitches. Used my drill to make some holes as well. Wanted the edges to be wavy. Tried wetting a line with a paintbrush, but Rives is too thick for that to work well.
The next 2 test pieces used blue thread front and reverse as both sides will be visible. i sanded them first to some degree. Still not enough as I realised when i held them up to the light. The light comes through the thinned paper beautifully, and makes a lovely bright edge to the holes. One piece was designed as ice. The other 2 are to be dyed various blue and green colours

November 17
Lune Book
Made an accordianfold model based on the course of the River Lune. Viewed from the west rather than the south, it seems strange. This means that the central stretch of the river goes left to right; the small section from source to the M6 is a fold up flap, and the larger section from Halton to the sea is a fold down flap which will hang over the edge of the plinth when it is on display.
I also made a model with the course of the river altered so that it all flowed left to right – that it clearly an option, but somehow it is less exciting than the one with folded flaps
What paper to use? Digital production or monoprint the colours and then add the etchings? How to add words? calligraphy? screenprint?
What about a total rethink? and stitch on ribbon with writing on it and use sewing machine to stitch the tributaries? Do a test run.
How to decorate the spare bit of paper at the base of the main left to right section of the river? The etched fish could go here, or I could use photos of places for photo etchings. However I am not sure about identifying places to well – I want to make people work a little – and Idon’t want it to be too like a tourist guide map.

November 14
Lune installation
Oh dear. The technician took it out, saw it only needed another 30 minutes or so, put it back in, got busy and forgot. Vanished without trace.
Lune Book
Did a test run on mirrorboard etchings – little 2.5 squares with symbols of water. They came out well. Thought I might use some old type face to make impressions in the mirroboard

November 7
Lune installation
The technicians put it in for 2 whole days, and I have done another 3 hours at Artlab – and it is still not totally finished. Asked the technicians to do another day for me.

October 31
Lune installation
My written instructions said to expose the photofilm for 120 units. I misread the display on the exposure cabinet and set it to 120.00 but apparently the point means nothing so I was really exposing for 12000. Luckily for me, one of the technicians realised my error, so we stopped it at about 8000. Still a massive overdose. However the image was so graphic it seemed worth developing it, and the taping up ready to dip in the Edinburgh etching solution after it has hardened.

October 24
Lune installation
Went to Artlab at UCLAN and started on a test run for an etched copper fish for an installation at the Maritime Museum in 2008. The idea is to use the same design for a non-etch photo-etch in a book as well. A group of us were shown how to use an airbrush to apply aquatint to give a good surface to attach the photo film. I attached the film and allowed it to rest for a week.