On April 28th, Thursday beginning at 6 PM, Asheville Bookworks is pleased to announce an Artist Talk by, Doug Beube. Free and Open to the Public.

Doug Beube is a mixed-media artist working in bookworks, collage, sculpture and photography.  Since 1993, he has been curator of a private collection in New York City entitled, The Allan Chasanoff Bookworks Collection: The Book Under Pressure.  Doug teaches classes at Parsons The New School in mixed-media, artists’ books and photography and workshops at Penland, Haystack and Peter’s Valley. He regularly lectures on his work throughout the US and Canada. Prior to receiving an MFA in Photography from the Visual Studies Workshop in Rochester, NY, graduating in 1983, he was darkroom assistant to Minor White in Arlington, MA.  He exhibits extensively both nationally and internationally and his bookworks and photographs are in numerous private and public collections. In the spring of 2011 a monograph about his artwork over the past thirty years entitled, Breaking the Codex: Bookworks, Collage and Mixed-Media, will be available. Several writers, critics and curators contributed essays about his art. From March to May, he will be at the Cassilhaus Art Residency in Chapel Hill, NC working on a commissioned mixed-media bookwork.

Sunday, April 10, 9:30 – 4:30
Peter and Donna Thomas
$103.00, includes materials included

This class will introduce participants to new and innovative book structures that have been developed or explored in depth by the instructor, while at the same time teaching the basic bookbinding skills required to create them. Participants will make two of the artist book structures described in the Thomas’s book “More Making Books By Hand” published in 2004 by Quarry/Rockport Publishers.

This workshop will explore the exciting world of the artists’ books. Participants will be given instruction in basic book arts techniques while making two small format books. The first book will be an accordion book with a unique “nested pop up accordion fold” structure that was developed by Peter and Donna Thomas. This binding has a second accordion that weaves in and out of the first. The second will be a scrolling case bound book. This structure, also created by Peter and Donna Thomas, features a wooden framework holding a scroll housed in a paper covered case binding. Advanced students may have time to put text in their books and will want to come prepared with a short 4-10 word quote to work with. All materials will be provided, but students may want to bring their own papers to substitute for those provided. This will be fun and informative workshop and students will go home with two completed books.

Recommended Tools:  a stiff 1/2 inch wide acrylic paint brush or alternate for spreading glue, bone folder, scissors, 12 inch metal ruler, awl or needle, pencil, medium size cutting mat, break off blade mat knife, small bottle of pva (Elmers Glue All is a satisfactory product). If you don’t have these items and don’t want to buy them, don’t worry you can probably borrow them. Bring decorative paper, paints, watercolors, pens, rubberstamps, etc. to illustrate and add text to your books. You might also want to bring images and small objects to collage.

From beginners to advanced. All will have fun.

'In Defense of Food' by Erin Walker

Where: Asheville BookWorks  When: April Fool’s Day , April l, 2011, Friday. 5:30 – 8:30 PM Who: Bibliophiles, Foodies, Book Artists, Chefs, Bakers, Librarians, Kids and Punsters. How: View – Vote – Eat. Make an Edible Book or simply come and enjoy the masterpieces. All books will be eaten at 7 PM. Cost: Admission is free for those bringing entries and $5 for those without entries.

Eat a Book Today! Edible Book Festival is an annual world-wide event held on or around April Fool’s Day, to celebrate books and food and the people who love them. It combines the creative and culinary talents of bibliophiles, foodies, book artists, chefs, bakers, librarians, kids and punsters.

'Overview of Ancient Scripts' by Jenna Weston

April 1st is the birthday of French gastronome Jean-Anthelme Brillat-Savarin (1755-1826), famous for his book, Physiologie du goût,’ a witty meditation on food. April Fools’ Day is also the perfect day to eat your words and play with them as the “books” are consumed on the day of the event. This ephemeral global banquet, in which anyone can participate, is shared by all on the internet and allows everyone to preserve and discover unique bookish nourishments. This festival is a celebration of the ingestion of culture and a way to concretely share a book; it is also a deeper reflexion on our attachment to food and our cultural differences.

Produced locally each year by Asheville BookWorks, our regional Edible Book Festival will be held on Friday, April 1st, 2011, 5:30 – 8:30 pm (don’t bother coming after 7:30 pm cuz, we eat all the books at 7:00!) Admission is free for those bringing entries and $5 for those without entries.

Register before March 30th by e-mailing us at gallery@ashevillebookworks.com and we’ll reserve a space for your masterpiece. Click for pdf entry form.

'Book of Kale' by Ester Rimer

Create and bring a piece of edible art related to books. It can be a pun on a title, refer to a scene or character, look like a book (or paper, scroll etc), or just have something to do with books. Whatever the inspiration – it must be edible. If you are interpreting a particular book, bring a copy of it to display alongside your masterpiece. Every type of book—children’s classics, detective novels, biographies, fiction and non, poetry, short stories —will be sculpted from a smörgåsbord of foodstuffs. Imagine The Brothers Karamatzah, S’more and Peace, Alice in Wonderbread, The Bun Also Rises, Goodnight Moon Pie, Curd Vonnegut… and so many more brainy, beautiful, silly, clever and tasty transubstantiations of books we love into treats we eat!

Bringing a book? Arrive anytime between 1 and 4 PM to deliver your Edible Book entry. Your admission to the event will be free! Come back with friends and family to view the Edible Books at 5:30 and at 7 PM the Edible Books will be eaten with tea, coffee and milk, perhaps some wine too.

Eating the Books!

Not bringing a book? Come at 5:30 and no later than 7 PM or you won’t have time to see them!

Friday April 1, 2011 Edible Schedule:

• Noon – 4 PM Edible Entries will be accepted, photographed and exhibited.
• 5:30 – 7 PM Public viewing and voting for Best in Show.
• 6:30 Celebrity Judges award prizes.
• 7 PM Edible Books will be eaten with tea, coffee, milk and vino.

Categories

• Most Pun-derful
• Most Drop-dead Gorgeous
• Most Delectably Appetizing
• Best Young Edible Book Artist (K-12)
• Best in Show by Popular Vote!

And our Celebrity Judges are:

Larry Lou Foster making Paste Paper

March 12 – April 30, 2011
Opening Reception and Artist Talks – Saturday March 12, 5:30 –8:30 PM

Announcing the opening reception of Artists in Residence / Concept to Conclusion on Saturday, March 12, 5:30 – 8:30 PM. Three Artist-in-Residence recipients, whose work is featured in this exhibit, will speak about their independent book projects beginning at 6 PM.

Frank Brannon’s book is a treasury of historical and contemporary Paste Paper patterns produced by Louise Lawrence (Larry Lou) Foster, a remarkable book artist and teacher. Frank’s book edition contains tipped-in examples of paste paper that Larry Lou prepared for the book, along with a discussion of her work. Frank designed the book, letterpress-printed the text and made the paper for it as well. Frank set up the Papermaking Studio at BookWorks in 2009, he now lives in Dillsboro, NC and is a regular instructor at Asheville BookWorks.

Bridget Elmer’s project, Fibre Libre, is an artist’s book that tells the story of a group of people, learning about free software while learning to make paper. Bridget set up a situation much like ‘open-software’ that brought together a group of friends to collaborate on her book project. Many of the participants had no prior papermaking or computer software experience. She asked them to bring cotton t-shirts that were cut up and sorted by color to make paper for the edition. Each participant was asked to create a vector ‘curve’ using open-software program. The book is rich in color and texture. Bridget Elmer now lives in West Asheville and is a regular book arts instructor at Asheville BookWorks.

Jessica Peterson’s book, Ma’Cille’s Museum of Museum of Miscellanea, is about a museum of natural history, taxidermy and folk life that was located on a rural back road near Gordo, Alabama. Jessica collected interviews from people who knew Ma’Cille for contributions about the history and scope of her eccentric and quirky cabinet of curiosities. Jessica put together stories to document and create a phenomenal memorial to the legendary museum that no longer existences as it once did. Jessica made paper for the handmade book from Alabama clay colored t-shirts during her artist-in-residency. Jessica lives in Gordo, AL and is teaching up-coming class at BookWorks.

The Artist-in-Residence Program at Asheville BookWork was initiated in 2007. It gives practicing book artists, the time, space and materials to complete a project and further their work. Artists receive a stipend to assist with necessary supplies or housing during their residency. Proposed projects are read and reviewed based on merit and originality of the project, goals, feasibility and what the project will contribute to the arts community of Asheville and BookWorks.

The Artist in Residency Program is funded by the BookWorks Co-op. Each year Co-op members make an edition of handmade miniature books that are offered for raffle and purchase.