The Boro Aesthetic: Blurb Book

Ever since I started teaching my Boro Sampler Book and Boro Bags workshops people from afar who can't attend have been asking me for information on these classes so that they can play along, too.

Finally, I have done something about that! I've written a book called: The Boro Aesthetic: Books, Bags, Zakka and Zokin. I used Blurb, a self-publishing platform, to help me create and distribute the book. Follow this link to my Blurb book page.

[Update: The Boro Aesthetic is now available on Amazon, too.]

Heavily patched Japanese textile from my personal collection

 I tried to make the book as much like my workshops as possible with images of my personal collection of Japanese boro textiles, images of class samples, scans of handouts, tool and supply lists, a glossary, and writing the reflects what I talk about in class.

Included in the book are directions on how to get started with projects that are inspired by Japanese boro textiles. This includes the Boro Sampler Book, Boro Bags, and a newer class that I call Zakka, Zokin and Chiku-Chiku.

Boro Sampler Book - instructions in book

In the Boro Sampler Book section I take readers through the various kinds of mending techniques seen in boro textiles. At the end of that section I have included directions on how to bind your sampler pages using the Japanese Side Sewn structure (I teach fancier versions of this binding on Creativebug).

Boro Bag - instructions in book

Next, is the Boro Bags section where I encourage readers to continue practicing the mending techniques on a larger piece of fabric and then make it into a Japanese style bag. Included are instructions on how to make the Tsunobukuro and the Azuma Bukuro.

Zokin inspired coasters - instruction in the book

In the Zakka, Zokin and Chiku-Chiku section I include instructions on how to make hand stitched cloth coasters (and how to adapt to a placemat or table runner) using the techniques learned in the sampler book section.

Throughout are beautifully photographed (thank you r.r.jones) Japanese boro textiles from my personal collection, a couple of images of my artwork, and class samples that I have made.

Boro Sampler Book page

 

I have ordered copies of the book and am very pleased with the reproduction of images, as is the photographer (and Mr. Jones is very particular about that). The book is artist and photographer approved!

Because many of you are from areas outside of the U.S., and I know shipping costs can be prohibitive, I have made an e-book version available (it shows up as "related editions" under the "add to cart" button). It is much more affordable and there are no tax or shipping charges. The e-book option may also be attractive for U.S. readers, too. 

Boro Sampler Book page

Students that have taken my in-person classes are also ordering the book to have it on hand for continued inspiration and instruction. I plan to have copies available at my future workshops, too.

My KEEP: Modern Library exhibit book may also be of interest to some of you since it is a series, exhibit, and body of work that was greatly inspired by Japanese boro textiles. It is also available on Blurb as a physical book and an e-book.

Bias from KEEP: Modern Library series

I hope that some of you find The Boro Aesthetic: Books, Bags, Zakka, and Zokin useful, informative and inspirational.

Happy reading, viewing and making!

Fall 2016 Workshop Wrap Up

When I had my teaching studio I would try really hard to create a blog post after every studio workshop with a little report on the workshop containing images and information about the structures, instructors, materials, etc.

Since moving my studio this summer I have been lax about writing up reports on my workshops that I have been teaching out and about.

So, here is a little wrap up of my Fall 2016 workshops.

In September I taught at 3-day workshop at Cabrillo Arts Extension (as a result of the Summer workshop filling up and having a waitlist). I took more pictures of the summer workshop that you can see in this previous blog post, but I just wanted to share this wonderful bag that one of the students made on the last day of the September class:

This is a structure that I casually teach as a bonus project on the last day of the 3-day Japanese Boro Textiles workshop. I've played around with this structure a little in the last year or so, and I just love how it looks in this rather unfinished state with the "floppy ears".

In October, I traveled across the bay to A Verb for Keeping Warm to teach my Boro Bags class. Verb is such a wonderful shop and they always gather fabulous students for me who do beautiful work:

In the Boro Bags class we practice Japanese mending techniques on a length of fabric and at the end of the day make the cloth into Japanese style bags. Always a fun day.

Later in October, I had the pleasure of teaching a group of public school art teachers who were in town for a conference. I decided to teach them the Exploding Picture Box since it was something that I could teach in half day, and it was a structure that they could pass on to their students:

I have to say that sometimes teachers are not the greatest students but this group was an exception - a wonderful group that was talented, creative and appreciative!

Next up was a unique opportunity to teach photographers a book structure and talk to them about the Importance of Play. I was invited to teach at the Center for Photographic Art in Carmel as part of their PIE Labs (Photography + Ideas + Experience).

 I showed some slides of my work, talked about how allowing myself to play in my studio has led to new ideas, and then engaged them in a little play of their own by having them use their own photographs or found photographs in an accordion structure. They were encouraged to extract lines and shapes from their images, repeat them, and create interactive structures.

 I've taught my Boro Sampler Book workshop many times but it was so nice to teach it at the San Francisco Center for the Book in conjunction with their current exhibit In Remembrance: People, Times, Places curated by Lucy Childs. It is a beautiful exhibit if you get a chance to see it, and my original Boro Sampler Book was included in the show so it was nice to teach along side of the exhibit. And, of course, the students did gorgeous work:

You can see more Boro Sampler Books from previous workshops here and here and here. 

Lastly, was a new workshop for me taught at Handcraft Studio School - one of my favorite places to teach. The workshop was called: Zakka, Zokin and Chiku-Chiku. I have been teaching Boro Books and Boro Bags a lot in the last two years and wanted to vary from that a little while still teaching stitching inspired by Japanese mending techniques. I came up with this class so we could just make stuff! The class was inspired by zokin which are Japanese dusting cloths made from old pieces of fabric that are layered and stitched and stitched and stitched:

My collection of Zokin

Zakka is a Japanese term that means: anything that improves your home, life or appearance. Chiku-Chiku is an onomatopoeia that mimics the sound of needle and thread passing through cloth repeatedly. I just love all these words so I put them together for my class.

Students did beautiful work interpreting these ideas:

 

Phew! That was a lot of teaching. I'm going to take a couple of months off from weekend teaching so that I can concentrate on my own artwork, and some other projects, but I will be back at Cabrillo Arts Extension in March for a two-day workshop called: Creative Textiles: Deconstruction, Reconstruction and Re-Use. We will be taking old clothes apart and drawing inspiration from seam lines, tears, and fading to create new textile objects.

Then, I will be teaching a similar class at Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts in June that will be a five-day class called The Boro Aesthetic where we will also be taking apart old garments and then looking to Japanese Boro textiles for inspiration in creating new objects

Be sure to check back and visit my workshop page on this blog where I will continue to post workshops as I schedule and confirm them. And, as always, I have classes on Creativebug that are available 24/7.

This is my last post of the year so I will wish you a Happy New Year and I hope to see some of you in a workshop next year!