Fuck Yeah, Book Arts!

wryer:

This is my final art A2 piece, responding to the theme ‘Storyteller’.

I decided to tell my own story of self harm/food problems through visual means: a self portrait/collage in which I am trying to show that I have now recovered and moved on from what was a really horrible time in my life. 

I think I took a risk by including torn-out diary pages from my second relapse in 2010, as a lot of people at school (and now the internet) will see this, and after all it is a very personal thing, when I wrote this I never intended it to be read by anyone other than myself. I decided to include the pages because it is my own way of coming to terms with the fact that this is how I once felt, despite being so far from those feelings now. I think it is better for me to face up to these pages, rather than pretending these feelings never existed. The diary in which they were stored was still sat in the box by my bed, and these words were lying stagnant in the air in my room, and I decided it was time to put them to use or at least get them out of my room as they are no longer relevant of helpful to me in any way. It was very satisfying, almost therapeutic, to tear them to pieces, I felt as though I was killing those thoughts so that they could never return. I stared at them in disbelief as I stuck them down - I can’t believe it was my hand that wrote these words, they seem alien to me now. 

The collage coming from my mouth - the story - might not be as aesthetically pleasing or as nicely arranged as I had hoped it would be, but for the first time ever I realised I cared more about the message and meaning in my piece than how it was visually presented or how ‘pretty’ it looked. I hoped that it wouldn’t look too contrived, but I just wanted to portray self injury through small objects and items, where before long butterflies - hope, recovery, redemption, safety - start to emerge, and then take over. I wanted it to represent how I was once so caught up in self hatred and self denial that I thought I would never recover or never even want to recover, but then after much time I did see the light and everything started to fall into place, and I got my life back. Today as I assembled the piece, I realised the last time I had opened a box of razors had been in 2010, and the fact that I have come so far made me feel proud. I included such graphic items and horrible words because they are still a part of me and my story, but I have since risen above that and since realised that I am better than that.

I don’t know if anyone will have read this long description, but if you have done and you are also struggling with self-harm or an eating disorder or know someone who is, know that there is still hope yet. For years I was so low and so hopeless and remember thinking that I would never get better so I might as well take my own life. I am so glad I didn’t. I am admitting all this now because I have transformed and now see all the beauty in life and I am truly, truly happy. When I was 13 I didn’t see how I could ever not want to hurt myself, and at the age of 17 I know that recovery is possible, and recovery is beautiful.  I don’t know exactly how to go about recovering, but I do know there is always the possibility of finding a way out. You just have to find it.

“Storyteller: Recovery” by Kate Powell
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forwardfitting:

I can’t live without my notebook. I keep it open on my desk at the office and scribble dozens of random numbers/thoughts/tasks on it throughout the day - from wire transfers I have to send to doodling while I’m on the phone with my grandmother for 30 minutes without having a chance to say a single word. It’s the type of tool that can’t be replaced by my iPhone’s notepad…

When I saw this post by Gaws I knew I had to get something like that printed. Unfortunately, I couldn’t figure out how to get this done easily in a single edition, so I went for the next best thing - a notebook slip cover in a standard Moleskine size. I sent the photo to http://www.engraveyourbook.com/ and ordered it on one of the natural covers as just the engraved phrase along with my initials on the back. A few weeks later and this is what showed up at my door. Even though the black leather would’ve looked more appropriate given the tone and dryness of the title, I decided for the natural tan leather for its future color and marks. I can’t wait for the light brown to wear in and darken with age, it’ll proceed to look better and gain character, and not disappoint.

(Source: )

Tumnus’ Journal by Joshua Brunet

A handwritten memory journal belonging to Mr. Tumnus’ the faun, illustrating his encounters within the world of Narnia.

The Great Diary Project has been set up to provide a permanent home for unwanted diaries of any date or kind. The collection now contains over 2000 diaries, and is adding to this resource as extensively as possible. Once part of the collection, all diaries are housed according to up-to-date conservation standards. All diaries will be catalogued for the Project database, the contents of which will be made freely available to researchers and interested readers, who can consult the originals in Bishopsgate Institute reading room in London. Both Stephen Fry and Boris Johnson are patrons of the ever-expanding project, and anyone who has old or unwanted diaries can be sure that the Institute will take them in gratefully and look after them.

Diaries are among our most precious items of heritage. People in all walks of life have confided and often still confide their thoughts and experiences to the written page, and the result is a unique record of what happens to an individual over months, or even years, as seen through their eyes. No other kind of document offers such a wealth of information about daily life and the ups and downs of human existence. The Project’s idea is to collect as many diaries as possible from now on for long-term preservation. In the future they will be a precious indication of what life, in our own time, was really like.

DIY Calendar Journal (by WitandWhistle)

A calendar journal includes a card for each day of the year. Everyday you write down the year and one thing you did that day. 

thevictorianlady:

His list of favorite poets includes “myself” and his favorite occupation is “reading my own sonnets”.

Oh Oscar.

(Source: lord-dandy)

The Lost Sketchbook of Guillermo del Toro:

Filmmaker Guillermo del Toro put all his ideas for `Pan’s Labyrinth’ in a notebook — then lost it.

The heavyset man ran down the London street, panting, chasing the taxi. When it didn’t stop, he hopped into another cab. “Follow that cab!” he yelled. Guillermo del Toro wasn’t directing this movie. He was living it. And it was turning into a horror tale.

The Mexican filmmaker keeps all of his ideas in leather notebooks. And Del Toro had just left four years of work in the back seat of a British cab. Unlike in the movies, though, Del Toro couldn’t catch the taxi. Visits to the police and the taxi company proved equally fruitless.

Del Toro’s films — “Chronos,” “The Devil’s Backbone,” “Blade II,” “Hellboy” — typically feature magical realism. Fate was about to return the storytelling favor.

The cabbie spotted the misplaced journal. Working from a scrap of stationery that didn’t even have the name of Del Toro’s hotel (just its logo), the driver returned the book two days later. An overwhelmed Del Toro promptly gave him an approximately $900 tip.

The sketches and the ideas in that misplaced journal — four years of notes on character design, ruminations about plot — were the foundation of “Pan’s Labyrinth,” a child’s fantasy set in the wake of the Spanish Civil War.

The director, who at the time wasn’t even sure he’d actually make “Pan’s Labyrinth,” took the cabbie’s act as a sign, and plunged himself into the movie.

(Source: Los Angeles Times)

The Diary of Frida Kahlo

(Source: goodreads.com)

likeafieldmouse:

The Diaries of Dieter Roth

(Source: likeafieldmouse)

DIY Vintage Postcard Calendar Journal (by designsponge)

Growing up, I kept a daily journal. I always enjoyed looking back at previous entries to see what had changed over the course of a year. These days, I can’t seem to find the time to journal, but I do try to jot down a little note from each day on my perpetual calendar/journal. The idea is very simple — flip to the current date and at the end of the day, write down something that happened. Some days it is big things like “Annie took her first steps.” Other days it is small, like “needed more than one cup of coffee this morning.”

The first year is the least rewarding, but I imagine that in 10 years, it will be a daily treat to be reminded of what happened on that date over the last decade. I think these would make great gifts this season, not only for adults but also for older kids, baby showers, retirement parties, wedding showers and more. Enjoy!