BABL went to Brighton for Press & Release






There's no better place to be on a gloriously warm weekend than Brighton. Heading to the sea with the full BABLibrary in tow and a few special friends to help transport her, we listened, prescribed, laughed and basked in the delight of all those we met. The fabulous Press & Release exhibition lived up to the hype and was a joy to behold. Karin, Belinda, Sumi, Ben, Anna, Pip, all the Borbons and even Prof Mizrah - my thanks to all you lovely lovely people. x

Letterpress Film


The lovely ladies at The Shop Floor made this cracking little film of me demonstrating the wondrous Adana Letterpress in Cumbria last month during their 'meet the maker' event. The new special edition of Cumbrian Sayings postcards exclusively for The Shop Floor was launched while locals had a go at pulling their own 'Reet Chuft' letterpress print. Pop over to their beautiful online store to see more. Thanks to the lovely Sam for making the film x



BABL to Brighton

 

PRESS & RELEASE EXHIBITION: SPECIAL EVENT

OFF THE PAGE

An Afternoon of Books

Saturday 1 June, 2 – 5 pm, £1 entry

Immerse yourself in a lively mix of talks, workshops and special events, and learn more about resources and networks for book artists. Borbonesa, a collaborative trio of book artists, will give an illustrated talk about their work, Jakie Batey shows you how to make zines, and Lucy May Schofield will offer visitors a session of 'bibliotherapy'. You can also roll up your sleeves and try some drop-in workshops covering simple book formats, collage and working with downloadable books; there will be a café, stalls, networking activities and more. Check the website for full details.

The Blackburn Pamphlet





Since the Summer I've been gathering material to create an edition of 30 pamphlets documenting the 'Blackburn Book Archive' project. Inspired by funny stories from local paper mill workers, sublime book recommendations from courageous men and delicate confessional mono-prints. The 16pp soft back book has been created for the people of Blackburn though I have a few copies left available.




Libraries, Picnics & Buses.






On Monday I took my Bibliotherapy Artist's Book Library to Newcastle where I parked up outside the library and opened the boot to tempt the heavy hearts of Blaydon to share their woes with me in the blazing sun, while I prescribed them some reading relief. I also described and read from some of the wonderful books in BABL to an inspiring visually impaired book group.

On Sunday I headed to Yorkshire to perform BABL on a super double decker route master bus as part of the Hebden Bridge Arts festival. Despite the fateful football cries from the pub, I was kept busy prescribing artists' books to those who were captivated by words not goals. BABL will be on the bus once more this Sunday 4th July for a free perusal between 2pm - 6pm.

Window Pains

Three meters of typed text rising from the baby blue Imperial 200 is installed at 'Odd', George Street, Hastings for the duration of the Coastal Currents festival. The Bibliotherapy Artist's Book Library was in residence at' Odd', providing prescriptions and micro loans to the curious. The window text forms the narration of 4 weeks of solitude in Scalloway, Shetland, unedited, uninhibited, unapologetic, hung for the reading.




this time tomorrow


An exclusive invitation from the first Aberfeldy Book festival took me on a monumental train journey north to the warm, tea drinking Temple gallery for a weekend of windows and workshops. A sea of paper boats were cut, folded and hung by the comfort of the roaring fire, while locals tentatively peered in to see what all the laughing and smiling was about. By Saturday morning word in the town was out that sail boats bobbed in mid-air on Dunkeld Street. A well attended mini book making workshop followed and was received with enthusiasm. By sunset I was racing through the exquisite landscape to seek my own life boat in Edinburgh for a dose of unique hugs and a rice pudding supper.