Interview for Cass Arts Blog

To celebrate World Book Day, which was last Thursday, I was approached by Cass Arts for an interview for their blog. Here is a snippet of the interview, to read it in full, go to http://www.cassart.co.uk/blog/world_book_day_su_blackwell.htm

World Book Day Interview With Book Sculptor Su Blackwell

World Book Day; when children and adults alike dress up as their favourite book characters, celebrate their favourite stories and dig out their best books to read again. And we all know that art and books go together beautifully - a piece of art preserves its own story, meaning and piece of history, just as the published book does.

Some artists take the marriage of art and books even further. Su Blackwell, an RCA graduate and artist who works primarily in paper, makes book sculptures and installations out of second-hand books. She has been commissioned to make work for several publishers and magazines, and well-known brands like Crabtree & Evelyn and Volvo.

But it's World Book Day, and we wanted to talk to her about her page-turning, story-telling inspiration that comes from the beautiful book itself. 

Happy World Book Day Su! Before we talk art – do you have a favourite book of all time?
It's hard to choose one above all others, but I could pick out some of my favourites...Alice in Wonderland, Wuthering Heights, The Snow Queen by Hans Christian Andersen, Bram Stoker's Dracula, and most recently The Crane Wife by Patrick Ness. I love the fantasy elements in these stories.

Betty in Cloudland

Can you tell me how you got into making Book Sculptures?

I studied mixed media textiles and sculpture at the Royal College of Art, and during a trip to South East Asia, I was introduced to paper folk art for spiritual ceremonies. On returning to my studies, I began experimenting with paper, and this led me to cutting things out of books. It has been a progression since then, as I began sourcing books as materials to work with.

http://www.cassart.co.uk/blog/world_book_day_su_blackwell.htm

Alistair Grim's Odd Aquaticum

Last year, I was commissioned by the publisher's 'Disney Hyperion' to create an art-work for a book cover for a middle-grade book, titled 'Alistair Grim's Odditorium' by Gregory Funaro. 

The book was a hit, and has received rave reviews. 

Fast-forward 12 months, and I've just finished working on the cover for the sequel (again with London-based photographer 'Colin Crisford'), 'Alistair Grim's Odd Aquaticum'. 

I read on the author's blog http://www.gregoryfunaro.com/odditorium that he plans to write more books in the series, so there may be more cover-art to come too!

Here is the final cover, and some photographs of the paper model (pre-post production) that I sent to the designer at Disney for approval.

Alistair Grim's Odd Aquaticum will be published next Spring.

Below: photographs of the model (pre-post)

 

 A detail shot of the sea-serpent

The cover artwork for the prequel 'Alistair Grim's Odditorium'.

 http://www.amazon.co.uk/Alistair-Grims-Odditorium-Gregory-Funaro/dp/1484700066

Livea Pop-Up

Occasionally I’ll take on a project, which is outside of my comfort zone. This was one such project. It was commissioned by a friend in Jakarta, who I worked with a few years ago (on a music video). He came to me to ask me to design a pop-up for a brochure for one of his clients, 'Livea', (an Indonesian Boutique Property Development Company). The pop-up will be in the middle-page spread of their brochures. 

The proposal was to create a simple, striking pop-up design, which demonstrates the company’s ethos. 

After experimenting with different paper weights and fibre optics (for the butterflies), we came up with this design. It's a simple house/gift box design, with cut-out butterfly shapes creating a filigree pattern at the top, fastened with a ribbon bow.

   The aim was to create a delicate, aesthetically pleasing pop-up design.

 

Due to the mechanisms of ‘pop-ups’, they tend to be rather clunky. The challenge here was to create a refined design that produces a flutter of gold butterflies when the gift box is opened. 

Last Chance to see this Exhibition

Closing on Thursday, 26th February

'In Fairyland' features new work by Tessa Farmer, 

  and contributions from Su Blackwell, Sverre Malling, Annelies Strba 

and The Cottingley Fairies

 http://catrionamcara.com/2015/01/15/tessa-farmer-in-fairyland/

  My Contribution - The Tree in the Oak House, 2015 (detail)

In the Studio today -

 photographs of work-in-progress for a new commission.

  

  

 

more to come soon...

New Work for 'Dwelling' Exhibition

The Tree House, 2015  

 

For my upcoming exhibition, I have been exploring the notion of dwelling, be that a shed, a wood-hut, a lighthouse or a tower. 
I am particularly drawn to tree houses. As a child I pestered my dad to build me a tree house. My pleads fell on deaf ears though, because I didn't get the tree-house I desired. Instead, I looked on enviably at other kid's tree houses, and wished we had a big tree in the bottom of our garden to build such a palace. 
So, when I came across a tree house in some communal gardens in St Leonards on Sea recently, it re-captured some of my childhood longing.

On completing this work, I received a lovely email from one of the residents in St Leonard's who commissioned the original tree house.
Here is a copy of some of his email.

''We commissioned the tree house from a local designer and his social enterprise wood recycling company a few years ago.

It's a great hit with all the kids but perhaps not so much with some of the residents on the road. :)

Unfortunately it is also on occasion a venue for others in the surrounding neighbourhood to hang out in uninvited.

So it is such a delight to see such a delicate and meditative creation of a familiar place.  Your piece really captures the intent and spirit of the treehouse and space we are so lucky to have in front of us''.

Illustration for Intelligent Life Magazine

Illustration to accompany the writer Robert Macfarlane's musings in Intelligent Life Magazine. In the current issue, Robert explores 'Lolita' by Vladimir Nabakov, published in 1955 and questions the landscape paintings of that time, particularly paintings by Edward Hopper. 

My accompanying illustration above, makes reference to Edward Hopper's painting 'Gas' from 1940.

 

Gas by Edward Hopper, 1940