This and That

I'm trying to finish a couple of little projects for the First Friday Art walk this Friday. It's in conjunction with the book arts group and it "shouldn't" be a big deal. But, for some reason I seem to make things more complicated than they need to be. I LOVE making books! The whole process is fun and there are so many variations, types of paper, materials etc. But I have a real problem then actually putting stuff in them. It's like I feel like once I've made it, it has to house something phenomenal. So it has to be fantastic, with tons of layers of meaning, really profound or hysterically humorous. None of which seem to be within my ability - so I end up with all these lovely little empty books that "someday" I'm going to fill with fantastic, profound, meaningful "stuff". The irony here is that most of the artist books I really like are pretty simple, and straight forward. Yeah.
So, when we had a little workshop back in the spring and were provided with some nicely sanded Altoid tins to use as a base for a book, shrine...etc. we all agreed to come up with at least two to put in this show - way off in the future in October. I had gathered a few little images and things and started to put something together that night. That's as far as it went until last week. You see where this going right? Anyway, I took my little plastic organizer with my basic book making supplies and was prepared to work on the one already had started after school. When I opened the organizer I realized I had left the one tin I'd started at home. So I started on a second one. Without belaboring the topic any further I'm going to post what I've come up with for it so far.
I actually can't remember why I decided to do something that dealt with genetic inheritance. I had been thinking about our family reunion up at the coast and the next thing I knew I was thinking about all the genetic health issues that have some real genetic implications in my family.( Most specifically on my mom's side of the family) and there are actually quite a lot.

The little book actually only addresses 4 of them celiac disease, asthma, Perthes (digeneration of the ball of the femur) and Mitral valve problems - because that's how many fit on the paper comfortably and for which I could find images I wanted to use.


I worked out the paper part on the computer and have blood cells and and veins screened down as the background.

The outside images are done with marker and colored pencil.

It's made so that it will hang from the wall and the book/folding paper will hang from the strings and the pages fan out below.

The little 3-d dealios I made out of sculpey and represent:
a section of bowel, a heart and a femur. Dramatic stuff eh?
So, now all I need to do is finish the other one that I started that has a sort of travel, seashore theme.

I'll post some pictures of that when(if) I get it done....