I had several book ideas percolating in my brain for a while but the cat was too helpful, my desk was too messy and life just kept getting in the way. Three days and three nights away were perfect for getting things sorted out. I prepared the supplies I thought I might want for two major projects and several smaller ones, took everything I thought I might even possibly want and away I went. It was creative heaven.
This accordion book was one of those projects. I chose to work on 140lb watercolour paper. I tore the paper into 5.5" strips and pieced them together until I had enough panels for my book. Each panel is 7.25" long. I cut a 2.5" diameter circle out of the center of each panel being careful to make sure that the circles lined up exactly in each panel.
I didn't take a camera with me so I don't have steps of the process, just the finished product. The next step was to make a template where I divided the circle into even segments. I used this to prick holes in the watercolour paper for stitching.
My hope was to create a progression of stitches from simple to complex, that could stand alone in the accordion, but could be cumulative when viewed as a codex. If everything aligned properly, the stitches should overlay and created a complex pattern.
It worked. Unfortunately, my photography doesn't do the final overlay justice (without my fingers being in the picture I can't hold it flat and let the light shine through so the final iris doesn't quite centre as it should)
Cover in cork cloth
a sample of panels showing progression
Showing the panels lined up. (the final iris would be centred if I'd held the panel tighter)
The following are the panels in order:
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