Roz Wound Up

I Never Have Any Wrapping Paper

Left: The final birthday wrapping for Diane's gift—I went a little nuts on the doodling as I was on hold on the phone and the package was in front of me. (Approx. 7 x 9 inches.) Click on the image to view an enlargement and read below for info on this package.

Well I don't know about you but I never have wrapping paper around when I need to wrap a gift. I have tried to save paper from received gifts, and also saved gift bags, but then I just end up with a mound of shiny papers and bags that never get used, finally get recycled (if applicable), and tossed (if not recyclable). About 6 years ago I gave up on the whole wrapping paper thing. Now I use whatever is at hand. This can be paper scraps, sections of the Wall Street Journal, fabric scraps, grocery bags, whatever—even bond paper from the photocopier recycling pile!

Gigapanning With Tom

Above: A short video made inside the main dome area of the Como Conservatory, while my friend Tom used his Gigapan. (Tom thought I was taking a still photograph when I pointed my camera at him—boy he can hold that smile well!) See it on YouTube if the embedded version doesn't work. You can view Tom's panorama of this area of the Como Conservatory here.

Last week I went over to Como Conservatory with my friend Tom. The goal was to find areas for taking  detailed Gigapan panoramas. In our short 90-minute outing he was able to shoot three panoramas while I occupied myself taking short little videos, chatting, generally being obnoxious, and also sketching. (You can see my Como Town sketch and a link to Tom's panorama of the same site here.)

It's Thanksgiving Day today in the U.S. and it's the perfect time to reflect on great friendships—people who let you participate in their life, their creativity, and oh, yeah, don't mind if you're lippy and obnoxious.

Below: Another short video made at the Como Conservatory, while Tom created a Gigapan of the Koi pond area. See my video of the Koi Pond on YouTube if the embedded version doesn't work.

Films for the Holidays

It's time to revisit holiday movie choices and after giving it some thought I decided to make my post from last year about this topic a PAGE (see the "Pages" list under "Categories" in the left column), so that it can be easily located. Also, I find that I'm sticking with my list. I hope you'll check out my holiday film recommendations here.

The Weirdo Journal Completed

On October 22 I posted a short video of my weirdo journal in progress. I thought it would be fun for people to see how the pages were being built, while they were under construction.

I finished that visual journal on November 12 and made the above video of the completed journal. (The video runs for about 8 minutes.) The video is low visual quality as I'm working with my small digital camera and taping in 60 second increments, but I think it shows you enough to get the pace and feel of the journal. Additionally you can see stills and read discussions about various page spreads by going to Weirdo Journal: Posts which Cover this Journal, which is a PAGE on my blog, found under "Pages" in the left column of this blog.

In the above vide, which shows the completed journal, I use the words "other journal" at the beginning of the video when I am actually talking about the other "video," but from context I think this is clear, and almost immediately I make the correct statement. I hope this clarifies things. If not, well just enjoy what you see.

If the embedded video doesn't work please go to view the Weirdo Journal Completed on YouTube.

If you haven't been reading the various posts on this journal and wonder whether you would enjoy going back to check them out I'll just say that I think that what is most fun for me in this journal is the mix of sketching and collage I did, as well as some gouache paintings and some Stabilo Tone drawings. There is as usual a lot of Pentel Pocket Brush Pen work. If those things interest you then you'll enjoy those posts.

Wendy Hale Davis' Latest Journal

My friend Wendy has posted photos of her latest journal on her blog Little Ray. She is a fabulous bookbinder and artist and you really need to see this stunning journal!

Also in her post she writes about the process by which she created this stunning book. It is always fun to read about how people make their creative ideas come to fruition in tangible form. You will be inspired by her ingenuity.

And you will enjoy her first journal entry in the new book, which she also posts. A mutual friend asked her about her hyphenation system, visible on the page. Wendy explained breaking words in odd places used to bother her, "…But they do it in all the old manuscripts. They also abbreviated the heck out of stuff. I usually try to use a dot when I break a word in a really really weird place, and a dash when it's a conventional hyphen like thing. But then I can never remember where the hyphens are really supposed to go."

Given that I have been writing about text treatment in journals (writing in columns or not writing in columns), I had to share Wendy's additional take on line breaks because it is perfect: a continuation of tradition while going with the flow. Something we can all learn from.

After you've read her blog you can go to Wendy Hale Davis' website and check out more of her beautiful visual journal work. Her work will inspire you to look more closely at your own life. Go read her blog now!

My Prized Possessions: Episode Two—Gert

Continuing my series of videos of my prized possessions (Episode One can be found here)—Gert. If the embedded video doesn't work click to see Gert on YouTube.

Gert has been with me for almost 10 years. She is particularly pleased that her portraits are included in Danny Gregory's "An Illustrated Life."

If you browse through the journal selections I have placed at Rozworks.com you'll find many (but not all) of the journal entries I've devoted to her. She makes an excellent life model. (While I enjoyed drawing her from the moment I purchased her, her career took off after Dottie died.)

Everyone should have a Gert.

Como Town, St. Paul

 Visit Urban Sketchers—Twin Cities today  to check out the mischief my friend Tom and I got up to on Tuesday

Sketch Out in January (But Inside!)

Above: Sketch I made of a beaver sitting in one of the dioramas at the Bell Museum of Natural History. Pentel Pocket Brush Pen, journal 8 x 7-1/2 inches. (Note there aren't any gossipy things about Liz on this page, it was simply something we were joking about.) Click on the image to view an enlargement.

Don't think a little snow and cold can stop Minnesotans. Even if the water in your Niji freezes you can still sketch here all year long. But wait, you can also sketch inside in comfort and still capture nature!

Join the MCBA Visual Journal Collective for an indoor nature sketch out on Sunday, January 31, 2010, from noon to 5 p.m., at the Bell Museum of Natural History. (Admission to the museum is free on Sundays but donations are always gratefully accepted. If you drive, bring money for parking in one of the nearby ramps.)

You don't need to be a Collective member to attend this sketch out, you just need to be interested in sketching from life (well in this case from the dioramas). Members of all skill levels will be present. Working at the Bell Museum with the taxidermy specimens is a great way to study nature and improve your drawing skills (your models never move).

I'll begin the meeting by giving a short tour of the museum so you get the lay of the land. Then you'll be free to sketch on your own or in groups. Individuals who have sketching questions are welcome to sketch with me. If you can't get there at noon, show up anytime and just start sketching!

At the end of the afternoon we'll adjourn to one of the local eateries in Dinkytown, where we can have a cup of coffee or dinner (or cake I hope) and share and discuss our work.

So mark your calendars now for this fun event. It's a great way to start preparing for, you guessed it—sketching at the Minnesota State Fair! (Which will only be 8 months away by January.)

VERY IMPORTANT NOTE: The MCBA Visual Journal Collective will ALSO be having its regular meeting on Monday, January 18, from 7 to 9 p.m. The sketch out is an additional meeting. Start your visual journaling year out right and join us for both meetings.

Altered Book Journal Round Robin Ends

Above: Some of the finished Altered Book Journals in this project. Not all of the members could be in attendance for the wrap up but the following books were started by (starting top left and going clockwise) Karen Wallach (Day of the Dead cover), Briana Goetzen (Book of Hours), Theresa Petermann (Bird eggs), Molly Anthony (blue journal), Roz Stendahl (Pigeon with Chicken Inset), Ann Ziebarth (Meditations), Clare Farrell (Songbook for Teenagers), and (center front) Lynn Fisher (purple and black book). Karen Wallach is a fabric artist and as part of her participation she made journal bags for each of the books when she had them for internal alteration. The books are shown resting on their bags, all of varying design and made with scraps from her fabric stash. Click on the image to view an enlargement.

At Monday's meeting of the MCBA Visual Journal Collective we also celebrated the conclusion of the Altered Book Journal Round Robin. The group project began in the fall of 2008 with about 12 people. There was a period of settling out and a couple people dropped out of the project, though their books continued to circulate for a few months among the other members! We finished the project with 10 participants.

The goal was that at each meeting of the Collective people would bring the book they had been working on and exchange it by passing it on to the next person on the list, always the same person, and same order. This didn't quite work out as planned and for awhile there were several orphaned books traveling together. I was never able to get a clear accounting of which person had which book as people unable to attend meetings often sent books on in the middle of a month, and were then without any book at all. But the happy news is that we didn't lose any books in transit through the mail or in exchange at the meetings! The even happier news is that each book has been altered in interesting ways by the participants following a suggested theme by the book's originator.

It was a fun project and I encourage you to organize a group for such a project. Set clear guidelines as to transfer and deadlines and subject matter or techniques as appropriate to your group, and then be prepared for things to take on a life of their own. Expect that some individuals will drop out because of time constraints or life events. And expect the unexpected as well—such as Karen deciding to make journal bags for all the books in this project.

New Batch of Books and a Pause for Reflection

Above: last week's batch of books—8.5 x 8 inches approx. (with two narrow, oddball books that are approx. 3.25 x 8 inches (I used the leftover scraps). Decorative papers were made with acrylic paints on watercolor paper (some 90 and some 140 lb.). The dark bookcloth is all purple, like the book on the back left. The text paper in the books is Winsor & Newton 90 lb. hot press watercolor paper. Click on the image to view an enlargement.

Last week I finished the above batch of books. I had purchased the paper in August and because I caught the flu in September I didn't get to the paper until a couple weeks ago. When I tore it down I was really disheartened. It had been severely dinged all over the sheets from poor handling en route. It was too late for me to return the paper. Originally this paper was to go into books for a January gallery sale. While the paper was still suitable to work on and make up into books, it wasn't suitable to be sold. (I would be mortified to have someone open a book I'd made, see all these dings and think that I manhandled paper like this.)