Between the Pages
Book Arts with Candida Bradley
This series of workshops was an excellent porthole into the expansive world of book arts and culminated in an exhibition at Cambridge Central Library.
Book Art is a little known genre of art which is surprisingly rare in Cambridgeshire. Given that Cambridge is such an academic city, full of books and knowledge, it seemed strange that one of the creative types so commonly found in the city had not seized the opportunity to transform all the local libraries with a wonderful melange of non-conformative 'books'. Since this opening was still available, this is exactly what we did!
The art of binding is a very versatile skill which you can combine with many other art practices as well as it being a useful everyday skill for creating unique and special gifts, presenting portfolios, binding reports, recording holidays or events and much more!
The course was not a traditional bookbinding course but a more creative and experimental art/craft course. Skills learnt and developed by the participants on the course have easily been transfered to their home lives, as many of the materials can be recycled from home and tools are of minimum cost.
Candida Bradley from South London, has been experimenting in the field for a number of years now. She has exhibited her work in London and Scotland and has a piece in the Tate Britain Books Arts Collection which is about a poem called New Craas Massahkah by Linton Kwesi Johnson. She derives her enthusiasm from a variety of sources proving the diversity of the subject. She also has an enthusiasm to share her ideas and teach us all the craft of books.
Course Activities
• Exploring the world of Book Arts and Book Artists.
• Learning a wide range of book making skills.
• Making books using different techniques.
• Applying personal styles and imagination to unique, hand made books.
• Discovering a new art form!
• Challenging and developing creativity.
• Exhibiting work in an end of course, public exhibition.
A brief introduction to Book Arts
The Tate Gallery define artists books as ‘books (normally defined as a number of pages attached to each other in some way) that are wholly or primarily conceived by (though not necessarily actually produced by) an artist and that are made in multiple editions.’
Book Arts bypass the constraints of the gallery – giving the creator complete control. The ‘walls’, or pages, of the book are the limit of your gallery. One can transform the form of a book from how we are accustomed to it, to something much more creative and thought-provoking. The course intended to challenge participant's perception of books as objects and as tools for communication, giving them a completely new level of appreciation for the 'book'.
About the Artist
Candida is an artist book maker who has exhibited in both London and Scotland. She is fascinated by the endless possibilities that the medium of Book Arts allows. There is always something new to discover and an artist to draw inspiration from. Her piece in the Tate Britain explores a poem by Linton Kwesi Johnson. She continues to develop her own ideas and explore new content within her books, picking up inspiration from the environment around her.
Course Information
Dates & Times
The Book Arts course was a 10 week course designed to introduce the art of book creation. It ran every Wednesday evening for 2.5 hours from 6pm to 8.30pm.
Who
Anyone over the age of 18 was welcome. No previous experience or creativity was required!
Participants simply required a willingness to experiment and explore with a mix of materials, visual inspiration and ideas!
The course had limited places.
Cost
£85.00
This covered the full 10 weeks of tuition, materials & tools as well as light refreshments and venue hire.
Venue
Central Library, Grand Arcade, St Andrew's Street, Cambridge
An appropriate setting for such a course, the sessions were run in meeting room 3 of Cambridge's central library.
The library will also hosted the end of course exhibition featuring the works produced by the participants on the course and by Candida Bradley. (For more details see.....)
For further information about the library facilities see their website: Cambridge Central Library.
Time & Date
Course: 6.00 - 8.30pm every Wednesday evening from 29th September - 1st December | Exhibition: Library Opening Hours from 10th December 2010
Transport
The Grand Arcade car park is situated within the same building as the library. For rates see their website.
The central bus stop at drummer street is approximately a 10 minute walk from the library entrance. It is also possible to walk to the library from the train station.