Aisling
Caffeine for the Creative Mind
Caffeine for the Creative Mind is on the very short list of books I ra
te with the full five stars. It’s that good.
Subtitled “250 Exercises to Wake Up Your Brain,” this book offers some tremendously fun and stimulating exercises to get you un-stuck as an artist… in minutes.
This book suggests things I’ve never seen anywhere else. For example: Write down 20 things that smell great when they are cooking.
See? Doesn’t that kick your senses out of the doldrums?
Or how about these:
- Go take 15 pictures of different kinds of barriers.
- Build the shell of a robot out of objects around you right now.
- Choose a song and make a children’s story out of it.
This book offers 250 fresh, exciting ways to refresh your brain and your creativity.
It’s visually inspiring, too. The presentation — a mix of fonts in a very creative book design — makes this book tremendous fun to flip through.
Ordinarily, I try to say something negative (but fair) about every book, even those I rave about. With this book… I can’t think of anything bad to say about it.
Go buy a copy and take it out when you’re stuck. It will work. I promise.
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ABCs of Art
Herman the Jester and the ABC’s of Art, by Rafael Filion, is a tremendously useful book for teaching art theory to very young children.
It’s ideal as the basis of a daily or weekly art lesson. It’s also a great preparation for taking young children to art museums. In fact, it’s one of the best I’ve seen, for that purpose.
Each letter of the alphabet is matched to an art-related word. The word — like the book — is in English, but it’s also provided in Spanish, German, and French. Each letter is also represented with Sign language. This expands the use of the book in any classroom setting.
The illustrations in the book are delightful. They aren’t too intimidating for young children, and will definitely appeal to them. They’re colorful and fun.
The brief definition of each art-related word will give teachers enough to work with, to teach effectively. They’re even more useful if the teacher spends a little time online or with art books, learning more about the subject to explain it in more depth.
I especially like that the book includes several complex art concepts, and it doesn’t “talk down” to children.
This kind of book is ideal for a homeschool group, teaching children at multiple grade levels.
For teaching a class, or reading to more than a very small group of children, larger illustrations will be helpful. The examples in the book are too small to be seen beyond the second row in a classroom setting.
However, many school and public libraries have excellent books to supplement what’s in “…The ABC’s of Art.” (Every book has its limits, and this one addresses that issue well.)
The price of the book reflects the full-color pages, but it may be a little price-y for a teacher or homeschooler who is taking this out of his or her personal budget.
However, this is a very useful book for a department, school library, or public library to purchase. It will be greatly appreciated by teachers.
As a starting point for a daily or weekly art theory lesson, this is a book that teachers have needed for a long time.
Pros
- Every page is in color, and has a lot of visual appeal.
- The terminology doesn’t “talk down” to children.
- Helpful tips make it easy for teachers to share this information without an art background.
Cons
- The price of this large paperback book isn’t competitive with some art books from larger publishers.
- Images of the art being described are small for students to see from a distance.
(Aside from the price, I had to look hard to make a second negative comment.)
If you are buying books for a public or school library, I think this is a must-buy. If you frequent your public or school library, recommend this book as a useful resource for teachers and parents.
Making Books and Journals
The Weekend Crafter: Making Books And Journals: 20 Great Weekend Projects is a short (80 pages) book that features some unusual book designs and lots of photos showing readers exactly how to make each book.
What I love about this book is that it’s great for beginners and it includes some innovative ideas that will delight experienced book artists as well.
Some people thrill when they discover a new, intricate binding technique for art books.
While I enjoy those, I’m far more enthusiastic about clever, simple designs that allow me to wildly embellish the books.
The latter is why I recommend this book: The projects are easy enough for beginners, and exciting enough for experts.
Here are just a few of the 20 projects featured in this book:
- Folded Book with Pockets
- Roll-Up Travel Journal
- Mailable Journal
- Jelly Bean Books
- Angel Photo Albums
- Ornament Books
- Coptic-Bound Sketch Journal
- Japanese-Bound Picture Frame Album
… and 12 more, plus many ideas based on these handmade books.
What I love about this book for beginners is this: The photos show how to create each book, step-by-step. These really are projects that you can complete in a few hours, or at least in a weekend.
This book is also great for experts because many of these books can be embellished into awe-inspiring projects. And, the simpler books can be given to friends, sold online inexpensively, or displayed around your home or office, to let others know about your more elaborate handmade books.
All in all, this is a book that may look average on the bookshelf, but — once you look at the projects that it features — you’ll be impressed.
Making Books and Journals is also simple enough to give as a gift for anyone — including a child old enough to use the tools — who’d like to learn to make handmade books. It also offers a wealth of ideas for Scouts or youth group projects.
[rating:3.5/5]
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Unique Handmade Books by Alisa Golden
Over 40 projects fill this book with fabulous ideas for making one-of-a-kind handmade books, journals, and albums. It is one of the most exciting and inspiring books for anyone who is interested in making unique art books.
Whether you want to start with a simple folded book or scroll book or leap into a tunnel book, flag book, pocket book, or even a three-panel Jacob’s Ladder book, Unique Handmade Books will delight you.
This book includes projects that beginners can complete within an hour or two using paper, glue, scissors and any art supplies that you have on hand. However if you want to learn classic and ornate bookbinding techniques, they are included as well.
One of my favorite chapters is called “Transforming Everyday Life,” which includes inspiring illustrations of a mixed media books and related projects. This chapter includes instructions for spiral binding, a card file book, a found poetry journal, and an innovative use of a spell checker to create poetry.
If you’ve been intrigued by cloth books, the author includes three different fiber projects.
In separate chapters, Ms. Golden includes techniques for illustrating your new handmade book with a variety of media. She also presents fascinating ways to display your handmade books and even discusses ideas for collaborative projects for adults and for children.
If you can only buy one book about making handmade books, this would be an excellent choice. I highly recommend it .
I have referred to this book often for my own work and consider it a vital reference in my studio library.
PROS: Enough ideas to spark and sustain a career in handmade art books. Juicy photos show many ways to personalize these projects. I can’t possibly rave enough about this book.
CONS: Beginners may be overwhelmed by the number and variety of projects in this great book. Illustrations can be confusing if you tackle a complex design without prior experience in paper folding and book constructing techniques. Start with the simplest projects, and work your way up.
Summary
[rating:3.5/5]
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Artists’ Journals and Sketchbooks by Lynne Perella
If you are someone who is intimidated by startling, innovative art journaling techniques, this rich, juicy book may overwhelm you. This is an idea book more than a step-by-step guide for beginning book artists.
Since my approach to paper art is often, “When all else fails, read the directions,” this is one of my favorite reference books. However, I also understand why many of my students feel that it is strictly for advanced artists.
If you are an artist who learns visually and would prefer to have more pictures and less text in an art reference book, you’ll probably love this book.
On the other hand, if you are someone who stares at completed work and wonders how they did that, you may prefer a different book.
If I could own only three books about art journaling, this would probably be one of them. I am endlessly inspired by the many lavish photos in this book.
While the focus is generally on paper arts, the approach is more aligned with mixed media techniques. Some of the featured projects include found object art, fabric art, decorative metal work, and truly extraordinary art.
Depending upon your learning mode, this book will either be one of your favorites or a book that you put aside to enjoy when you are more confident about exploring new materials, media, and techniques on your own.
PROS: Rich, colorful, highly inspiring illustrations covering a wide range of art journaling techniques. From textiles to aluminum foil to cigar boxes, you’ll find a wealth of ideas in over 125 glossy, full-color pages.
CONS: Weak instructions rely on readers’ experience/intuition–or perhaps daring–to achieve similar results. If you prefer to learn from specific, step-by-step instruction, you probably won’t like this book.
That said, if you buy this book and are disappointed in it, put it aside and look at it again in a few months. It will probably become one of your favorite reference books.
Summary
[rating:4/5]
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