Holiday gifts

Looking for a perfect gift for the holidays? Perhaps these Volkswagen retro notebooks are exactly what you are looking for.

For every wish there is a notebook; lined, blank pages, thicker pages to sketch on, A4, A5, square, rectangular and not to forget the minis.

Handbound, firm and handy notebooks. Planning a nice long summer trip, use one of these handy booklets to write down your hotspots. Or do you have a lot of good intentions for next year, don't hesitate to write them down in one of the Volkswagen cahiers. If your not such a person for words, some of these notebooks are ideal for sketching. With pages of 115 gr/m2 you can use a marker or fineliner without making a mess.

Check out www.prien.nl for the details and the models.

Photos like fairy tales

wow ... that was the first thing that came in mind seeing these pictures. I wish I could do that ... those colors, the composition, the atmosphere of the picture ...

Oleg Oprisco is the maker of these fine art photos. He doesn't take snapshots, every photo is the result of hard work. First Oprisco sketches the image, than he starts looking for the props at flea markets and when everything is ready, the photo shoot takes a day or two. The photos might look fairylike, but they are the result of hard work.

I could tell a lot more about this Ukrainian photographer, but an image says more than a thousands word ... so just look and enjoy! I hope the situation in Ukraine doesn't have too much impact on this artist! Hopefully he will make a lot more of these beautiful fine arts photos. By the way the photos are for sale at his site.

Irma Boom about the future of books

Last week book designer Irma Boom won the Johannes Vermeer Prijs, the Dutch state prize for the arts. In an interview with De Volkskrant Boom says that she sees the prize as an appreciation for the graphic arts industry in The Netherlands. This industry can use some encouragement, because fewer and fewer books are printed and bound.

Luckily Irma Boom believes that the book has a future, even in this digital century. She thinks that a book is more necessary than ever, to bring slowness and deepening in people's lives. A book slows, it makes you choose another rhythm. Boom sees a book as 'frozen information', with a fixed order, so that the reader can reflect and derive meaning from the design choices of the compiler. In contrast, internet is chaotic, without focus and temporary.

Boom says it is not only the order that gives a book extra value, but also the touch of the pages and the book edges. Her Chanel book is all white with blind printing, so you can see the content at floodlight, or you can feel it with your fingertips. The book edge of the Sheila Hicks book is frayed and feels like cotton.

The juryrapport about why they granted Irma Boom this big prize:
'In the world of the internet and virtual communication, Irma Boom's greatest achievement is that she has made the book a physical experience once more. She continues to impress with her ambition to push the boundaries with each and every book, her unbridled desire to reach beyond the original wishes of her clients, and her ability — maintained for decades — to deliver work of the highest artistic quality. For all these reasons, the jury has chosen her as the deserving winner of the Johannes Vermeer Award 2014.'

Just like Irma Boom, I believe that books have the future. I love to read and of course I own a e-reader and a tablet with hundreds of e-books ... but reading a real book remains the best! It is not only reading which is special, writing is as special as well. Making plans in your notebook, write down your most brilliant thoughts or dreams in your diary ... the hand bound book certainly has a future :)

The beauty of Rust

Sometimes little wonders just happen. Do nothing .. be a bit lazy ... and ... tadaa ... the magic is there.

Last summer my father in law gave me a lot of iron heavy weights to press booklets and other stuff. The only thing I had to do was paint them, because they were really rusty. The cardboard I used as underground was put aside and forgotten ... until I found it again and was stunned by the colors the rust had left.

The grain of paper

After years of bookbinding, often I am still confused by the grain of paper. Today I was at war with my paper again while making business cards. I have this beautiful flyleaf paper, white with a linen finishing, very cool paper, but much to thin for business cards. So I decided to glue this paper on both sides of a sheet of 250 grams A4. To prevent this new formed thick sheet from warping, the grains had to match ... so thinking, folding, doubting and to be sure ... reading ... So this is a refreshment for me ... maybe it is convenient for you as well ...

The grain of the paper is important for

• The final fold of your booklet. You want the page to curl from side to side, so you can easily turn the pages and the book opens flat.
• Prevention of warping. You don't want your booklet to end up with warped covers.
• Creating crisp, even folds and prevent cracking.

It is always easy to work with handmade paper. The pulp is allowed to settle randomly, so the fibers are multi-directional. Unfortunately you often don't have the luxury to work with this kind of paper, so you have to determine the grain of the mass-produced paper. In the mechanical process, the water flows across the surface in one direction, so the fibers get their grain.

Ideally the grain of the paper and the boards of the side-covers always run parallel with the spine of the book. Keith Smith has a very simple example to clarify the direction of grain; a sushi mat. The direction of the wooden sticks represents the direction of the grain in paper or book board. Just as the mat rolls easily in one direction, so does paper. As a true sushi lover I certainly will remember this one :)

Unfortunately you need some more info to determine the grain direction. Grain runs parallel with the direction of the paper in which there is less resistance to folding. If you can't determine the resistance by folding you can dampen a little piece of paper. It will curl immediately, the axis of the curl is parallel with the grain. The curl shows the direction the paper should be folded.

To prevent warping it is important that the grain of the flyleaf and the book board are identical. Book board is easy to test. Just bend a full sheet, the board will flex more easily in the direction that is parallel with the grain. Since it is very difficult to determine the grain for small parts of cardboard, make sure you put lines on the big sheet, so you can always see the grain at the small parts later on.

Besides paper and cardboard, book cloth also has a grain. This grain is typically parallel to the selvage or outer edge of the cloth. This is often very confusing, because when you buy book cloth it is typically rolled cross-grain. So be careful with that one!

One basic rule you can always remember is that the grain usually runs parallel to the long side of the sheet ... although not always ... so remain wary :) 

More tricks & tips are always welcome, so please don't hesitate to make a comment!

Watch Case

As a bookbinder your basic materials are cardboard, bookbinders linen and glue ... perfect ingredients for other projects, such as a watch case.

Commissioned by Fitzory & Everest, Prien remodeled an antique English briefcase into a luxurious watch case. The leather suitcase forms the perfect basis for the suede framework and cushions. Since the suitcase was pretty lopsided every side had to be measured and glued separately. A challeging job, done in several days last summer.

It is nice to have such different assignments. Figuring out the best way to fulfill the project, thinking, drawing and discussing the possibilities with your client, that's what makes my job the best of the world!

Paper Sculptures

'I have chosen paper as a medium because it captures that mixture of delicacy and durability that for me characterizes the natural world.'

With this quote Rogan Brown even inspires me more. Paper art is something I love! You can create such beauty with simple plain white paper. Who needs gold and silver and other expensive and rare commodities. Of course paper also has a footprint. A lot of trees and chemicals are necessary to create our simple plain white paper. So think before you use it and recycle!

Rogan Brown creates interesting beautiful kind of micro organisms and plant life with cut out paper. Topographical charts - such as the Norwegian fjords -  are also a big inspiration. The immense complexity and intricacy of natural forms is what fascinates Brown most. He sees the 'story of the understanding of the subject and the making of the artwork' as a prominent part of the artwork in total. 

Prien Personalized Family History

At the Utrechtse Fabriek, an outside market in the Griftpark in Utrecht, I met someone who wrote down his family history and was looking for a method to print and bind his story. We had a nice conversation about your own history and its imagery. The changes in the world per generation are enormous. When you were born at the beginning of the 20th century you were the lucky one to witness the change from a barely industrialized world to the computerized world of today. Can you imagine your house without a fridge, a vacuum cleaner ... or computer ...

My client described the impact of those world changing inventions for his family, intertwined with personal events. Interesting to read, and supported with pictures that give a good image of the era.
The text had been written in Word, without taking the bind method into account. In InDesign I edited this text and images to printable sections.

The sections were sewn and bound in a multi-section case binding, so the booklet is strong and durable. This binding method has the advantage of lying flat when opened. The sewn signatures were bound in a hard covered board-bases case. The simple linen structured endpapers attach the book block to the case.

The client designed the cover and I just printed it and laminated the paper with a mat soft finishing. This extra layer protects the cover from stains and minor damage.

Working in close cooperation with your client is one of the things I like most in my work, especially when you receive a very nice message afterwards! My client was really happy with the result, and is already working on his next booklet. I am looking forward to a new cooperation!

Looking for a special way to save your text or photo's, don't hesitate to contact me!

Lille

Lille ... also known as 'Paris of the North' ... nice to visit for one day! Last Tuesday we took the Thalys from Rotterdam and in two hours we were in Lille. Arriving at Euralille isn't exactly the best way to enter the city. This modern concrete monstrous environment doesn't give you a warm welcome ... but within five minutes you forget about that. Lille is a beautiful French-Flemish city, very nice to stroll around.

There are plenty of nice boutiques, salons de thé and restaurants in 'La Vieille Ville', the old city. Winding cobblestones streets, ancient facades - often very colorful -, hidden passages and nice squares. In short it is a feast for the eyes to walk through Lille.

Unfortunately the museums are closed on Tuesdays, otherwise we certainly would have visited Le Palais des Beaux-Arts or the museum of modern art. Fortunately the shops were open, and we managed to find a really nice one; L'Atelier La Sorciere Verte, a boutique for paper artists, writing and bookbinding. In French it even sounds better: Boutique de Créateurs en Papeterie, Ecriture & Atelier de Reliure. A lovely shop to nose. A lot of beautiful paper! When you are in Lille and you love paper, don't forget to visit this shop!
Since we were in France we couldn't go home without some really nice French (smelly) cheese as well, so we saw (and smelled) a lot of funny cheeses that day :)

It's definitely worth visiting Lille! .. I had a lovely day ... and now ... back to business ... I have some books to bind today :)

Fine Binding

France France France ... here I come ... even twice this week :) Lille is on my agenda for Tuesday and Paris for the weekend ... could be worse :) So with France in my head, today a binding method called Franse Binding (French Binding) in Dutch. The exact English verb is not easy to find, perhaps Fine Binding - if someone can help me with it .....?

Binding method
The Fine Binding method has been in use since the 18th century. For bookbinders this is one of the most beautiful ways to create a book. You can recognize this method by the spine cover, which is not attached to the spine and the visible lack of the board edge. If there are raised bands, they are most of the time false, the headband, on the other hand, is always hand embroidered, so not false at all.
The advantage of the unattached spine cover is that the precious decoration of the spine - usually gold leaf - is protected, because the spine cover doesn't move when one opens the book and therefore it will keep its shape.

In practise
A lot of bookbinding skills are required to make a beautiful correct Fine Binding. Somewhere at the internet I read that an experienced bookbinder works for at least twelve hours at this binding. The steps in making such a book are:
- folding the sections and endpapers
- glue, trim, round, abpress and glue the book block
- creating the covers
- board lacing
- embroider headband
- prepare the cover material
- tie up for the fake raised bands
- apply flush joint
As you can see making such a book is a lot of work and therefore almost priceless. Since we don't have the habit of using gold leaf at the covers and spines of our books, one of the biggest advantages of the Fine Binding became superfluous. Of course it is fun to maintain the craft is this bookbinding method, so I made one ... once .. but learned a lot of it and I can use some of the tricks a learned for other books or possible new ways to bind books ...

Another Guestbook

Guestbooks are not exclusively connected to weddings ... they also fit well on other occasions, such as an official opening of a foundation. One of the board members of Stichting Zorg en Onderwijs Nu wanted to give her foundation a present that would last for a long time and that was also a present for the kids they represent. Together we developed a guestbook with blank pages of thick off-white paper, suitable for writing or drawing. It had to be a sturdy book that could withstand some rough handling.

The foundation's logo is brightly colored and was an excellent starting point for the cover.
I bound the book in a traditional sturdy multi-section-case-binding, with the advantage of lying flat when opened. To accentuate the bright colors, I used red yarn for the sewing. For extra strenght the corners of the book have been provided with an extra layer book binders linen.

I love making personalized guestbooks! It is always a pleasure to develop a unique book together with a client. There are so many opportunities to give or use a book that has been made for that particular situation. Every person or occasion has it own story, and that is what makes it interesting: Matching the product with the occasion according to the wishes of the client. 

 

A beautiful second life for books

... wow ... Swedish bookbinder gives old books a beautiful second life!

Cecilia Levy, graphic designer, bookbinder and paper artist makes makes stunning objects of second hand books. Instead of creating books she tears books apart and cuts the pages into small pieces. Those pieces are reassembled in new dreamy delicate objects, such as teacups, bowls, eggs or boots. Some of these products are off-white, others show text, or text details ... just take a look ...

Prien's Personalized Guestbook

Spring and the beginning of the summer means Wedding Season ... so I am and have been quite busy making wedding booklets and guestbooks. As you already know it has been quite hectic, so I haven't show you much of my work lately, but I didn't want you to miss out on this special one.

In June Jan & Inge asked for a personalized guestbook for their special day. In close consultation we designed a beautiful A4 guestbook. Both the inside and the outside have been personalized. The book contains 70 pages with 204 squares for personal messages and some nice doodles at the bottom. These small drawings from Jan & Inge reflect their lives and personality. The doodles of the bikes have been chosen for the cover as well.

The book has been bound  in a multi-section case-binding, so it is strong and durable. It method also has the advantage of lying flat when opened, so it is easy to write in. The sections are sewn together and case-bound into a hard cloth-covered board-based case, with endpapers used to attach the book block to the case.

This is just one of the countless opportunities. You can always contact me if you have specific wishes or ideas for a special book.

Japanese Patterns

Japan - land of the rising sun - inspires me in so many ways. When I visited Kyoto and Tokyo I bought a lot of beautiful Japanese paper, with all kinds of patterns. These patterns can be found everywhere; as decoration in temples, at fabrics, pottery and porcelain, paper and a thousand other things. But where do these patterns come from? What do they mean? 

Seigaiha or Seikaiha

A wave design made of the arches of concentric circles placed upon one another so that only the upper portion of each set of circles is visible.
The four arcs are meant to be the four oceans (north, south, east and west) surrounding Japans islands. The calm waves symbolize our days repeating calmly and peacefully forever.
It was used in China to depict the sea on ancient maps. In Japan this pattern was used to decorate temples, halls and gates from the 16th century.

Shippo Tsunagi

This pattern is an abastract shippo tsunagi. Shippo means 'seven kinds of treasuries' and tsunagi means 'with interrelated objects'. The diamond shape can be associated with a sparkle, that is connected to a jewel or treasure.
The pattern comes originally from China.

Same Kommon

Same Kommon means Shark Skin Pattern. Sharkskin-like semicircles are placed one of the top of another. Fabric with this pattern is believed as protecting from evil or illness. Traditionally, the bride will bring a new Same-komon Kimono with her.
In the Edo period, each feudal lord had his specific pattern of kamishimo (samurai cloth) and the Kishu family owned the Same Kommon pattern.

Gyougi

Giyougi is a derivative of the Same Kommon pattern. It is also derived from the Edo period. Characteristic of this pattern is the diagonal allignment of the dots.
The komon patterns were made by forcing rice paste throught a stencil of tiny dots, then dying the surrounding fabric, so the dots stay white. In the early Edo period komon were commonly white on indigo. 

Matsuba

Matsuba means pine needles from the matsu, the evergreen pine. This tree is considered to be a symbol of longevity and principles.

Of course this is just a small selection of Japanese patterns, there are many more I'd like to show you! Coming weeks I will be working on some new booklets, using these fabulous papers I bought in Japan. Check out my blog every now and then for an update an sneak peek ...

If you have any additions or corrections, please don't hesitate to react!

New Studio and Swan Market Antwerpen

Sorry sorry sorry for my long absence! It's been crazy over here!

Especially the period around Whitsun was very very busy. On Whit Sunday I was at the Utrechtse Fabriek in Utrecht. Going to a market always means working extremely hard the week before. You have to supplement your stock, decide what you will show at the market, iron your tablecloths and a million other things that always come in mind last minute.
The Utrechtse Fabriek was a nice cozy market, with friendly visitors and fellow exhibitors. Unfortunately it was such a beautiful day, that is was a bit too warm to stroll around in the sun. I guess a lot of people chose the beach that day ...

The next day, Whit Monday, was even warmer ... and that was the day I choose to move my gear to my new studio. It was also the day we discovered that I had collected a lot of stuff and machinery. So it was quite a heavy day ... that almost started with a ticket for parking on the sidewalk. After a long long intense conversation with a city guard I wriggled out of it ... but it was close ...  Since I had so many things, large things, we had to drive four times and in the afternoon there was this major event in the city called Roparun ... which meant a huge traffic jam ... but at the end of this long, warm day everything was in my new office!

The weeks after that were filled with tidying and finding my way in this lovely new workspace. In between I had a lot of nice assignments ... photos will follow on the blog later on. First more about my new office: It's super centrally, literally in the middle of the city, which gives an enormous vibe! I share my workspace with Kim from Papiermonsters. She makes amazing stuff as you can see at her website: http://www.papiermonsters.nl/
Together with Karin from Lecarpentier, Quirine from QS Grafisch Ontwerp, Monice from Monice Janson and Olga from Ontwerpkeuken we share an office. I am so glad to be here and to work here!!

This week is partly devoted to the preparations for the Swan Market in Antwerpen. Prien was already there in May and that was such a wonderful day! The weather was perfect, the people were very friendly and the entire atmosphere was truly that of a festival! I am looking forward to Sunday! Hopefully the weather will cooperate! At the moment the weather reports contradict each other ... and when it will rain that day, I won't go .. because my booklets can't handle the moist ... so my fingers are crossed and I hope to see you in sunny Antwerp this Sunday!!

Utrechtse Fabriek 8 juni 2014

Next Sunday, Prien will be at the Utrechtse Fabriek in the Griftpark in Utrecht. This creative and relaxed outdoor market offers a wide range of unique products. There will be 55 webshops presenting their finest products, you can attend workshops and there is enough space to enjoy a nice picnic :)

Hopefully it will be a sunny summerday! Hope to see you next week! Until that time I am working very hard to replenish my stock :)

Japanese Prints

Wow, so simple and sooo beautiful ... Japanese prints, and I am not the only one who is impressed by this imagery, for centuries Japanese art inspired artists all over the world. The exhibition 'Verstilde schoonheid op Japanse prenten' (Tranquil Beauty on Japanese Prints) at Centre Céramique in Maastricht shows the influence of those wood prints on European artists.

In 1851 the Japanese borders were opened and Japan participated in the World Exhibition in London in 1862. Japanese products were exported all over the world, and Japan and its products and art became super fashionable. Japonism even became an art movement for a while. Especially impressionist artists were influenced by Japanese prints, such as Manet, Monet and Van Gogh. The American artist Bertha Lum made beautiful woodcut prints based on Japanese themes:

Woodblock Printing
Woodblock printing had been used in China for centuries, but was only widely adopted in Japan during the Edo-period (1603-1867) were it was used to create the ukiyo-e. The production was fairly simple, but also very precise. A number of persons was involved in the process, like the designer, the woodcut artist and the printer. First a sketch was drawn on Washi-paper. This sheet was put on the wooden block and everything outside the lines was cut away, so the image was mirrored. Every colour had it's own wooden block, so colorful images were more expensive. The wooden blocks were pressed on damp paper and the printer used a 'baren' to rub the ink in the paper. An early form of mass production.

Ukiyo-e
The Edo-period has been named after the city Edo (Tokyo). Because the entourage and the military top were required to live close to the Shogun, Edo became a very wealthy city, with a flourishing cultural live. Teahouses, restaurants, gambling houses, bathhouses, theaters and brothels were the symbols of this rich and fleeting (ukiyo) world. Artists were inspired by this new world, and a new art movement was born: Ukiyo-e, means image of the fleeting world.


Shin Hanga
Early twentieth century the ukiyo-e was restored by artists such as Goyo, Kotondo, Kiyoshi, Shinsui Ito and Shiro Kasamatsu. Characteristic is the reference to classic images, but with a modern twist. For example, the modern women (moga) don't look down, the just look you in the eye ... the courtesans at the antique ukiyo-e always looked down. Kasamatsu was one of the most respected of the Shin Hanga artists, his specialty was landscapes:

This was just a very very short resume of Japanese woodblock print art. Since I am extremely fascinated by the Japanese culture and Japanese art the coming weeks I will blog about Japanese patterns, artists and bookbinding. Hope to see you on my Japanese tour :)

Wooden Books

In the vast maze of information once in a while something stands out. Last week my eye was caught by a beautiful wooden book. In the monthly magazine of the National Library of Australia I read an item about 'Old, Rare and Beautiful Books on Indonesia', because my eyes were triggered by a colorful illustration of fish. Since I am taking an illustration class these days, illustrations have my special attention :)

But the next page contained even a bigger surprise; a book made of bark. The library owns two Batak bark books of uncertain age. The Batak people of northern Sumatra had their own script, which is seen in tree-bark manuscripts created by magicians and healers for their rituals, oracles and medical recipes.
The book is very simple, it is accordion shaped and it looks like only one side has been described. The picture is a bit grotesque, because the size of the booklet is actually very small; 8 x 6 x 1 cm (folded). A very handy, small notebook :)

Bark is not the only thing used to write on in earlier times, Indonesians also used to write on palm-leaf. The examples in the Australian library are not of great age, as writings on such fragile material do not survive well in the tropics. The acquired manuscripts are copies, believed to date from the nineteenth or twentieth century.

These books reminded me of the birch bark I brought back home from Norway last summer. It is still somewhere deep down in my closet ... time to make my own bark book :) Perhaps to write down some modern oracles :)

Of course I also want to show the image that first triggered my attention, the beautiful illustration of fish.