The little book project

I was invited to take part in this project by artist Sara Bevan, who will be exhibiting the finished books this summer. The project excited me from the start. The potential of the blank pages and the manageable size was very attractive to me.

I had a holiday to Vancouver Island booked and I thought I would look for inspiration there. The scenery was breath taking. The ocean was decorated with islands full of trees that looked like giant bonsai gardens. It was wild.

On returning home I had to piece together the fragments and create something cohesive. I knew that I wanted to lino print the book and so I carved some new blocks that were inspired by my getaway. Conceptually I was thinking a lot about memories. Memories from my holiday, memories of my old art now being recreated. How memories change as you think about them.

Memories are made of layers. They are not always clear and crisp, but often faded around the edges like a dream when you awake. Some parts we embellish. Some we dust with glitter. Others are just like a little book that we take out to read again and again.