AN ENDING AND NEW BEGINNINGS

A SHOW OF HANDS

The exhibit came down on the 28^th of January.  All in all it was a great success.  Adults and children alike enjoyed the exhibit.  Comments by those who viewed and played with the books were positive: 

·        “The art work is quite neat! Nothing like I have seen.  Great Job!”

·        “Great show, very poetic and full of colours and images.  Everything I like!”

·        “Fantastic, very impressive and so natural.”

·        “Very beautiful.” 

·        “Une sensation de bein – être.  Une experience réillement unique en son genre – fantastique!  On peu mettre de soon imagination et ceci sans aucune limite.  Merci beaucoup de partager.”

Mike Taylor installing the hanging hands in the exhibit. 

LaLande + Doyle Exhibition Space, Shenkman Arts Centre, Ottawa, Ontario

“Very interesting and inventive.  This is a great book - like the suspended hands and the solid ones on the table."

Sumerian Merchant's Account Book

  “Very imaginative! I know you want it as an art exhibit, but it could be used in homes for a game, educational interactive tool, way to express emotions…Great exhibit.”

 “Wonderful exhibit.  Great work Mary.  I was mesmerized moving around the words.  It definitely captured my attention.”

  “I liked playing with the hands and the words.  Bravo!”

 Flag Book: Eat, Create, Play

 Tunnel Book: Boys and Their Toys At Work

Accordion Slide Book: Eat, Create, Play

 

Accordion Book: Eat, Create, Play

Tunnel, Pop-up Book: Seeing the Trees in the Forest

WHAT’S NEXT

TWO EXHIBITS

I have two exhibits coming up in March:

CONTEMPORARY BOOK ARTS IN EASTERN ONTARIO

 March 1, 2013 to May 31, 2013

W.D. Jordan Special Collections and Music Library, Queen’s University

Kingston, ON

This exhibit brings together work from a representative group of book arts practitioners in eastern Ontario.  Each of the thirteen artists chose pieces made during the past decade which would show their creativity and skill. 

I selected 10 miniature books for this exhibit. 

Opening Reception:  March 7, 2013 – 5:00 pm to 6:30 pm

In the Graham George Seminar Room, next to the exhibition space:

·        Introductions by Margaret Lock, Lock’s Press and Larry Thompson, Greyweathers Press

·        Barbara Teatero, Curator of Special Collections will talk about the artists and the catalogue, which will be available at the opening. 

·        Books in the exhibit will also be for sale. 

Some of the books I have in the exhibit:

Butterfly Landscapes Box - 57 x 45 x 32 mm

Butterfly Landscapes - 45 x 29 705 mm

This Way - 64 X 70 mm

Star Light, Star Bright - 57 x 64 mm

Clam Shell - Box: 108 x 102 x 32 mm/ Book: 64 x 57 mm

SPIRIT HOUSES -  March 7, 2013 to April 30, 2013

Minto Suite Hotel, 187 Lyon Street, North, Ottawa, ON

This exhibit is based on seminars and lectures by Anaïs Nin.  At the age of 11, she moved to the United States with her mother.  She couldn’t speak English so she started journaling daily, writing about her losses, events and reflecting on life experiences.  She continued to journal throughout her life.  Drawing from the contents of her journals she wrote books: fiction and non-fiction.  In her seminars and lectures, she mentions Spirit House, a place of solace, a place to recover vision and a place to reconstruct oneself after shattering life experiences.   She describes two Spirit Houses, one the external: her journals and two, the internal: her inner world: a protective place to go to when life was difficult. 

Traditionally, a spirit house, found in Southeast Asian countries, is a shrine to the protective spirit of a place.  They often include images of people and animals.  Votive offerings are left at the house to propitiate the spirits.  A Spirit House is in the form of a miniature house or temple, mounted on a pillar or dais and placed in an auspicious spot in a corner of a property.  The house is intended to provide a shelter for spirits which can cause problems for the people, if not appeased. 

If you are downtown in the Lyon Street area between March 7 and April 30, 2013, drop in and have a look at this exhibit.  Here's a sneak peek at some of the spirit houses in the exhibit. 

This house is covered with fabric.  The flower on the top of the roof is made from paper and porcupine quills.  The small tree on the other side of the roof has words written on rice paper.  When the roof is lifted off the house the roots of the tree have words written on rice paper.  A large flower sits in the corner next to a large flower in the fabric.  Words written on rice paper adorn the interior walls of the house. 

This multi-level condo is made from Lokta paper, bookboard and the edges are finished in leather.  I used a decorative Japanese paper for the sides and a satin flower for the top.  Little cards at the entrance of each condo have words written on rice paper. 

COURSES AND WORKSHOPS

Here is the lineup for the spring courses and workshops.  Summer courses and workshops will be announced at a later date. 

March 16, 2013 10:00 – 4:30 pm	Soft Cover Coptic Bound Book with Sleeve	Ottawa School of Art Orléans Campus Shenkman Arts Centre
March 23, 2013 9:00 – 4:00 pm	Japanese Stab Bound Book	Ottawa School of Art 35 George Street Ottawa, ON
April 16 -  June 18, 2013 1:00 – 4:00 pm	Bookbinding/Book Arts Course	Ottawa School of Art Orléans Campus Shenkman Arts Centre
April 17 – June 19, 2013 9:00 – 12:00 pm	Bookbinding Course	Ottawa School of Art 35 George Street
May 25 – 26,  2013 10:00 – 4:30 pm	Japanese Hidden Compartment Box Workshop	Ottawa School of Art Orléans Campus Shenkman Arts Centre
June 8, 2013 10:00 – 4:30	Explorer's Leather Journal	Ottawa School of Art Orléans Campus Shenkman Arts Centre

Coptic Bound Book with Sleeve

Japanese Stab Bound Books

The Japanese Hidden Compartment Box is one box.  When opened one way, it has one compartment and when turned around and opened, it has two compartments.  This is a fascinating box and it makes a beautiful gift.  In making this box, there are four boxes, each with a lid.  I used beautiful Japanese papers to cover it and used four wooden beads for the feet.   

 Japanese Hidden Compartment Box - Front View  

 Japanese Hidden Compartment Box - Back View

 Japanese Hidden Compartment Box - Two Compartments

Japanese Hidden Compartment Box - Two Compartments

Explorer's Leather Journal

Explorer's Leather Journal - Back View

Explorer's Leather Journal - Front View



BOOK ART EXHIBIT AND BOOK ART CLASSES

Tell Me A Story - Interactive Book at the Exhibit

HAPPY NEW YEAR!  I am starting off 2013 with my Book Arts exhibit, A Show of Hands.     

ARTicipate Grant Recipient Starts 2013 with A Show of Hands, A Book Arts Exhibit

If you are a book lover, curious about how books are made or enjoy different art forms, then this is an exhibit you won’t want to miss.  Mary Kritz is a bookbinder, book artist, photographer and artist and incorporates these elements into her book designs and creations.  She teaches Creative Bookbinding and Book Arts at the Ottawa School of Art’s George Street and Orléans campuses.  This past summer, while working on a book, she realized she was watching her hands at work.  Thinking about the importance of hands and the activities carried out by them, she asked herself how she could turn the idea into a book.  Combining a sense of humour and play on words, she designed a set of eight books, called, “A Show of Hands.”  This is an exhibit that will appeal to people of all ages.

Kritz is known for using different materials in her books and for this set of eight books she has used clay, cloth, wood, paper, terra skin and acrylic. The books are shaped in hands, surrounded by hands and supported by hands, and incorporate photographs of hands performing different activities, with images relevant to the narrative in each book.  She embroidered the cloth, inscribed Sumerian hieroglyphs into the clay and turned wood, paper and acrylic into accordion books, flag books and tunnel books with pull-outs.  She combined   tunnel, pop-up and accordion book techniques into one book. 

Kritz provides an opportunity for viewers to interact with one of the books called, Tell Me a Story, which consists of six shaped acrylic hands.  Each hand sits in a stair in an acrylic staircase.  Viewers are invited to use their hands to play with the notion of a non-traditional book form by changing the order and content of the book.  Words may be hung on the fingers and thumbs of the hands or placed on or around the staircase.  When viewers hang the double-sided words on fingers and thumbs two different stories emerge. 

This exhibit challenges our understanding of what a book is and how it functions.  Each book’s narrative invites the viewer in to wonder about and interpret the story being presented through visual images rather than words.  The acrylic book, Tell Me a Story, provides a unique and unusual opportunity by inviting the viewers to interact with and create their own story, thus changing the previous artist’s story and becoming the artist and narrator in that moment of time. 

Mary gratefully acknowledges the financial support of the ARTicipate Endowment Fund which has made this exhibit possible. 

When:               January 8th - 27th, 2013

Vernissage:    Jauary 14th, 2013     7:00 pm to 9:00 pm - Everyone is Welcome

Where:             LaLande + Doyle Exhibition Space, Lower Level  

                          Shenkman Arts Centre

                          245 Centrum Boulevard, Orléans, ON

Staircase for the interactive book, Tell Me A Story

 The Hands were shaped into symbols we use everyday to communicate with one another.  I used a heat gun to shape the acrylic.  A great learning moment. 

Here are the hands with some of the words attached to them.  This is where the fun comes in with this book.  

JACK FROST'S NEW YEAR'S GIFT

Well winter has finally arrived, in all its glory and whiteness, over the last two weeks.  Jack Frost has been a welcome visitor and he has left his beautiful art for me to enjoy over the holidays.  I see forests in this picture.  What do you see? 

 I see a flock of birds flying around a tree in this one. 

 BOOKBINDING AND BOOK ART CLASSES AND WORKSHOPS

Classes will be starting again this month.  Here is the schedule for the courses and workshops being offered at the Ottawa School of Art - Bytown Campus and Orléans Campus.  To register for a course or workshop, by phone or online, contact the following: 

George Street Campus: 613-241-7471, info@artottawa.ca, www.artottawa.ca

Orleans Campus: 613-580-2765, osao.info@artottawa.ca, www.artottawa.ca,

 

DATES	Title	CAMPUS	ID#	COST
January 15 – March 26 – 6:30 – 9:30	Bookbinding	George Street	W13D040	$260
January 23 -  April 3 – 6:30 – 9:30	Creative Bookbinding & Book Arts	Orléans	W13S0400A	$245
February 2 – W/shop - 10 – 4:30	Japanese Stab	Orléans	W13SW400A	$110
February 9 – W/shop – 9 – 4:00	Soft Coptic & Sleeve	George Street	W13DWS02	$110
March 16 – W/shop -10 – 4:30	Soft Cover Coptic	Orléans	W13SW400B	$110
March 23 – W/shop – 9 – 4:00	Japanese Stab	George Street	W13DWS03	$110
April 17 – June 19 - 9:00 – 12:00	Bookbinding	George Street	W13D040	$260

BOOK DISPLAY: CUMBERLAND PUBLIC LIBRARY

I was invited to display my books in the vitrine at the Cumberland Public Library.  On December 31st, I set up the display.  I broke it into three sections: Bookbinding, Box Making and Artist Books.  A selection of books on bookbinding and artist books from the library was included in the display.  They have a great selection of books on bookbinding for adults and children. 

 This is the bookbinding section of the display. 

 This is the Artist Books section.

 The top shelf is the Box Making portion of the display and the lower shelf was a combination of boxmaking and tunnel books. 

I will also be doing a bookbinding demonstration during their Literacy week at the end of the month.  When I have the exact date, I'll pass it on.  If you are in the neighbourhood of the Cumberland Library, drop in and have a look at the display.  They have a great selection of books and videos as well. 

UPCOMING EVENTS

In March, I will be participating in a group exhibit at Queen's University and exhibiting my books in the Vitrines at the Minto Suite Hotel on Lyon Street.  I'll post the particulars of these two events in February.

If you have any questions about the books, displays or exhibits, contact me at: bbinder999@gmail.com.

Wishing you a prosperous 2013.

Mary