another pic...

Final Outcome

Well after much work and umming and aahing here is the finished book! Single signature binding using a hard cover with bookcloth. I'm really pleased with it. It took me a long time to work out the pagination, and I used a photocopier to print it. I decided to call it recollection because it is looking back at memories I have and things from the past. It is also a collection - of drawings, of objects, of thoughts.

Artists books

I had a session in the library looking at artists books - found some really nice books that inspired me - particularly Ed Ruscha's '26 Gas Stations'. I really like his work - I saw another couple in the V&A's Blood on Paper exhibition which inspired me. I loved how the books were such beautiful objects on their own, like Ian McDonnell's 'I Like Aerials' which consists of lovely drawings of aerials from all over the world (found this in the Design Museum shop). I really want to create a book which is a lovely object in itself.
I also went to the V&A China Design Now exhibition, and there were some lovely displays of books and exhibition catalogues with beautiful binding and stitching and paper.Inspired!

oooh old games consoles!

I discovered that one of my friends has an extensive collection of everything Nintendo. I was round his house straight away and took photos to draw from.

Coming together

So I'm more focussed now. The crits at uni have been very helpful - everyone is really enthusiatic about my ideas, and I've had lots of suggestions. One idea is to take apart the old telephones and radios I've found and look at the insides and how aesthetically pleasing they can be. But I'm too precious about the objects! Another idea is to create a technology timeline or family tree but it is now at the stage where that would take a lot of time which I don't have. I would like to in the future though - a family tree for each decade - and make them into massive posters.
So now I'm thinking I would like to collate my drawings somehow - and I'm mostly thinking I'd like to make a book because I had a bookbinding workshop with Billy Bragg from Le Gun and he taught us to perfect bind. I really loved it!

My drawings...

Evolution

I am interested in the idea of evolution, and the way trends change, and how fashion comes back around and everything gets recycled again and again. The fashion at the moment is to recycle anything from the past, any trend, and mix it with something else, the more mixing the better. And it seems the same way with music. Mixtapes are cool again, there is a record label called mixtape records who just release music on cassette. People are still buying vinyl too.
Old technology is not seen as rubbish, it is retro, and has cultural value.
This fascination with the past is what my project is focussing on - the notion of nostalgia is a major aspect of what I'm researching. Nostalgia is the feeling that lies behind all the objects I'm drawing.