Bookbinding & triple fold

Hardback binding
Aside from one tutorial with Bill Bragg I hadn't ever done bookbinding before. But with an intricate arrangement of clamps and heavy books I bound them reasonably well. I made a fairly messy job of the hardback covers but was happy overall with the way they worked out. I know where I went wrong so when I next do it, I'll improve.




Triple-fold

To chart the journey each book imparts, I wanted to find a way of including the locations linked to the contents of each page without interrupting the individual page layouts and designs. By triple-folding the edges of a French-fold book I could bury the information in the V-shape this forms, so that it is accessible but not intrusive.

Final Outcome: MARKED TERRITORY

The final three books have turned out well. Through a combination of specially-chosen photos, written passages, illustrations and typography, they demonstrate the psychogeographical differences between regions of London, evident in the marks made on the environment by those who inhabit it.

Three Hours From: HACKNEY

The third journey took me around areas of east London, some familiar and some unfamiliar to me. I live in Bethnal Green but don't usually venture much further north from my home in Roman Road. This trip took me up from Mare Street in Hackney up to Dalston, then sent me straight back down to finish in Brick Lane, which is familiar territory to me.

So far this project has seen each outing reveal a theme or underlying trend to the specific journey. This trip around east London didn't immediately throw up any common points but I did notice eventually that a large number of details I was registering were concerned with obvious physical marks that people had made on the streets, ranging from the deliberate (stickers, posters, graffiti, political slogans) to the marks made by people simply living in the particular locations. With such a high immigrant population the area bears the characteristics and marks of the people who live there. Therefore the shops, language, signage and people themselves help paint a picture of the community and those that make it.

Diary for a Madman (a.k.a. The Final Insult)

After days of excruciating RSI, wasted paper, and Fox's Golden Crunch biscuits, the diary's finished...but I messed it up with gold letraset that seemed like such a good idea at the time. Bugger. Otherwise, I'm pretty happy with the outcome.

Blog of a madwoman

After 72 hours of almost continuous laying out, printing, screwing up, re-printing and trimming the pages of my Diary for a Madman, every page is done and awaiting binding.

I have printed all the pages on ivory, slightly glossy paper that matches those of my own 2007 diary and have made every effort to make the transition from 'normal' diary structure to disjointed and illogical/nonsensical as gradual as possible.