Tunnel Books: how to create imagery and content, how to construct a tunnel book, and how to build a cover for your book!

September 6 – 8
$375 for all three days; or $160 / day + $15 / day for materials
Limited to 8 per day
Bring a bag lunch; lots of snacks, drinks, and desserts are included.

Tunnel Books can be playful or mythical, story-like or abstract. We suggest you muse some before you come – do you have a favorite story? Are you interested in a self-portrait? What about a collection of geometric shapes or natural objects? Tunnel need to stand up, constructed in a unique way with a basic concertina, and sturdy pages. They can be hard or soft covered. Here’s what we’re offering this year!

Friday, September 6
Beginning : creating printed content for your book
Maybe you have no idea what your book will be about! We know. Abbie and Sandy will create printmaking stations of gel plates and block printing. We will continue to think about layering and color mixing, but this time will start to work for some them to develop as you work through the day. The morning will be a refresher of gel print possibilities, and some instruction about creating simple block prints using Speedy Curve, a soft material for creating simple stamps. The afternoon will be spent developing some kind of thematic use of color or shape or ideas. The studio will become a hive of paint, prints, and possibilities. Bring your apron.

Saturday, September 7
Constructing: cut-outs, making the pages, assembling the book
Another exciting day! In the morning Cindy will demonstrate the process of making your tunnel book and how to create the pages of your book with cut-outs and other dimensional ideas – like collage or pop-ups. This can be challenging so bring your most patient but inspired self for this process. The last part will be assembling your tunnel book: making the concertina folds for the spine and glueing in. Be amazed!

Sunday, September 8
Covering: making a folded box
Some of you learned to make a box several years ago with Joelle Webber. This year, with step-by-step guidance from Joelle, we will create a folded box to elegantly present your tunnel book, or any other book you would like to cover. We will use fine archival materials to protect your books. This structure can also be used to enclose a series of your prints, or other ephemera. Your folded box is bound together with traditional hinging techniques, and has this unique closure. I can’t wait to make this box!

Abbie, Cindy, Joelle, and I are excited to offer this very, very interesting book structure to you! As usual, we want to take this workshop ourselves! Please join us. You can sign up for one, two, or all three days. Our hope is that you’ll want to come back each day to work along these artists who want to share their skills with you.

Cynthia McGuirl works with fiber, metal and paper utilizing the techniques of stitching, hammering and bookbinding and discovering a back and forth repertoire between creating narrative images and creating objects. Cindy states: “I try to work in an intuitive way when creating books. One image or word leads to another and when I feel it has come together completely, the book is done. I hope people find the narrative informative and entertaining but that it also inspires them to think about their own stories.”

Abbie Read works in collage, book arts and mixed media sculpture that usually incorporates old and discarded books as well as
found objects. She has taught art in high school and college; most recently she teaches workshops relating to Book Arts in the midcoast Maine area. She lives and works in Appleton, in her studio on Appleton Ridge.

Joelle Webber began her career building boxes for photographers, print makers and book artists. Mermaid Bindery traveled for
many years offering decorative treasure boxes and other hand bound gifts at craft fairs. She now creates artist books that combine her almost forty years of collecting binding techniques with her love of philosophy, nature, writing and sculpture.

Sandy Weisman is a poet and visual artist. Her poetry has been included in two anthologies and several other journals, including Salamander, Spillway, Barrow Street, and The Maine Review Sandy’s art work has been exhibited locally at the Michael Good Gallery in Rockport, Granite Gallery in Tenant’s Harbor, Waterfall Arts in Belfast, and the Maine Jewish Art Museum and University of Southern Maine in Portland. She is a member of the Midcoast Maine Book Arts group.