Welcome the New Year at BAR with the Collaborative, Rara Avis!

In September, members came to the first meeting of the new year ready to present and exchange their contribution to the BAR collaborative.  This years theme was Rara Avis.  Co-chair Elisa Kessler Caporale, explains it very well:  "Literally "rare bird," this Latin expression indicates a rare or unique person or thing.  This theme asks you to choose an existing bird, or create/design your own (species of) bird and its environment."

Participants were instructed on size (1 folio, 7" x 11", grain short; when folded 7" x 5.5"), and selection of paper (BFK Rives, Stonehenge, or Canson Editions, white).

So, from the members and the fabulous pieces we exchanged....(drum roll please!)...here you go!!

L to R:  Chris Schorr, co-chair Elissa Kessler Caporale, guest, Cynthia Weiss

artist Elissa Kessler Caporale

artist Chris Schorr

L to R: Vicki Parker, Patricia Toltl, co-chair Joe Reilly, Debbie Livingston

artist Vicki Parker

artist Patricia Toltl

artist Joe Reilly

artist Debra K. Livingston

Wait!  There are more!  Visit Part II for the rest!

Photo credit: Janet Ducote

Book Arts Roundtable Presents Holiday Sale and Workshops!

Saturday, December 7
10:00 – 3:00

THE BAIRD
5 Mead Street
South Orange, New Jersey

The Sale:
Handmade Books, Paper Art, Cards, Photographs, Unique Quilted Items, 
Glass Art, Scarves, Jewelry

and more for your holiday gift giving.


The Workshops and Make and Takes:

Paper Art to make at the BAR holiday Sale.

Karen McDermott will teach you how to make the Little Box at 1:00
(see below to sign-up for this workshop)

Joe Reilly will teach you how to make this Big Bank Book at 11:00.
(see below to sign-up for this workshop)

After shopping, stop by the FREE Make and Take tables and have a BAR member assist you in making an Ornament, a Paper Wallet or a Star Book. (Tip: the small ball ornament above fits beautifully in the little box made in the 1:00 Box workshop. Two gifts in one! The paper wallet is perfect for gift cards and a gift of money.)

Workshops for adults:

11:00 – 12:00: Joe Reilly and the Big Bang Book – Express your sentiments with a bang! This magical book structure helps get your message across with feeling!

1:00 – 2:00: Karen McDermott and the  Photo Box / Gift Box - A delightful little box made with patterned cardstock. Great for school pictures through the years or a quick look at the year in photos.

                                                                                            

Fee: $5 for each workshop. Please bring pencil, scissors, mat knife, ruler and cutting mat. All materials provided. Space is limited.

You must reserve a spot for the workshops by contacting the Roundtable at bookartsroundtable@gmail.com or calling Karen McDermott at 973-761-7151

And Don't Miss the Door Prize!!

Win a beautiful paper art piece 
crafted by BAR member Joe Reilly!!

Picture credit: Karen McDermott

Y, Z, and a Surprise!

Lynn Keffer on her letter:  "In looking for something from nature to illustrate the letter “Y”, I settled on a Yellow Jacket (wasp). Then I composed the limerick and went on from there." 

Front &Back- letterpressed & linocut print, where one side is a derivative of the other (they were cut apart), additional hand coloring.

Linda Mead took the last letter of the alphabet, "Z".

“I chose the word Zephyr, which means a gentle or west wind, because of my love of the wind and the imagery it evokes.”  

Front & Back - hand pulled prints, the letter "Z" combined drypoint with soft ground etching, the image for "Zypher" is an aquatint etching. 

So here is the surprise....a very cool box made by Joe Reilly!  He made it to hold the Abecedarian for BAR.  Thank you Joe!

Very cool box by Joe Reilly

And, we owe an even bigger thank you to Claire Simon for chairing this project for us.  Thank you Claire!




Picture credit: Janet Ducote

S, T, U...

Randy Keenan talks about her experience with her letter "S".

“I had a blast making my “S” cards.  I turned on some music, got out my Sumi ink and just “painted” the shape on the cards then quickly went to the sink and washed off the ink. The dried lacquer stayed black and the ink that hadn’t quite dried was washed off - what a great time I had!  Then on a very rainy day I burned all the edges of the card and used the candle soot to paint the backs.”  

Front & Back - hand painted & own process, Sumi ink, soot, burned.

Joe Reilly and his "T".

“My nature-themed T stands for topiary.”  

Front - original pen and ink drawing, digitally copied onto Canson editions paper,then hand-painted in watercolor and acrylic.  

Back - original acrylic painting, with a collaged banner (also original drawing) in the top section of the image, digitally copied onto the card. 

Karen McDermott explains her work on letter "U".

“Each card has a slightly different watercolor image painted behind the umbrella tree.”  

Front - relief print carved on Mars Carve, printed by hand using black acrylic paint.  

Back - pressure sensitive letters were applied to a surface and then inked with an ink pad and printed. Color was added with pencil and a sponge.

Picture credit: Janet Ducote

Second Demonstration!

Joe Reilly demonstrated Coptic Binding on Sunday at the Baird.

There was a lively discussion of the various types of coptic binding and the pros and cons of each as well as other aspects of binding. Whenever a group of book people gets together over a task like this you are likely to learn something new! I learned about using collapsible needles and how to keep from losing them.