A reading rainbow | Ad Libs | Rebecca Wallace | Palo Alto Online |

Local Blogs

Ad Libs

By Rebecca Wallace

About this blog: I grew up in Menlo Park and have long been involved with both local journalism and local theater. After starting my career as an editorial intern with The Almanac, I was a staff reporter for the Almanac and the San Mateo County Ti...  (More)

View all posts from Rebecca Wallace

A reading rainbow

Uploaded: Oct 8, 2013
If life gives you self-help manuals, make a quilt. Well played, artist Lisa Kokin, who found a bunch of said manuals at a recycling center and gave their spines new life as the finely stitched 2010 work "Fret." My detail photo also offers a taste of her flair for color.

"Sometimes the spines remain partially or wholly intact, but sometimes I sacrifice the titles to make cheery shapes like flowers and leaves, which I hope will create eternal happiness for the viewer in five days or less," writes the East Bay artist, whose portfolio of work includes button works and sculptures.

Kokin also creates altered books and book collages, which makes her a fine fit for the Palo Alto Art Center's current show, "Bibliophilia," where "Fret" is now on display. I had written a preview story about the exhibit focusing mainly on the book works by Emily Payne, and yesterday I got to see the full show, which contains art by 15 people overall.

Another highlight was the section of oil paintings by Scot Velardo. Old and discarded books are the canvases for him to paint scenes of street life in San Francisco, New York, Milan.

Seen here: a book called "The Wonderful World of Music" revamped into a slice of life on Harrison Street in San Francisco. Beautiful how the texture of the book title blends with the new painting, and how the conductor's arms open to the new sky.

To read this blog in its entirety, go to Ad Libs.
Local Journalism.
What is it worth to you?

Comments

There are no comments yet for this post

Follow this blogger.
Sign up to be notified of new posts by this blogger.

Email:

SUBMIT

Post a comment

Sorry, but further commenting on this topic has been closed.

Stay informed.

Get the day's top headlines from Palo Alto Online sent to your inbox in the Express newsletter.

Analysis/paralysis: The infamous ‘Palo Alto Process’ must go
By Diana Diamond | 6 comments | 2,380 views

Common Ground
By Sherry Listgarten | 3 comments | 1,965 views

The Time and Cost Savings of Avoiding a Long Commute
By Steve Levy | 6 comments | 1,707 views

Planting a Fall Garden?
By Laura Stec | 5 comments | 1,184 views

 

Sign-up now for 5K Run/Walk, 10k Run, Half Marathon

The 39th annual Moonlight Run and Walk is Friday evening, September 29. Join us under the light of the full Harvest Moon on a 5K walk, 5K run, 10K run or half marathon. Complete your race in person or virtually. Proceeds from the race go to the Palo Alto Weekly Holiday Fund, benefiting local nonprofits that serve families and children in Santa Clara and San Mateo Counties.

REGISTER