Books as art

On a writer's forum, I read that this is the last year of The Best American Erotica series. I have mixed feelings about this. Generally speaking, it's sad to see an anthology market disappear. On the other hand, I see new erotica anthologies almost every month. I don't think it's a death toll for the erotica anthology market.

So I was reading Susie Bright's interview about this, and something she said caught my attention:

The art of bookmaking, rare and precious bookmaking, is hot. Books are too sensual to go away. The book as objet d'art, as something you long to hold in your hands— as well as to read— is the future of the physical book.

Books as art...it's not an original concept, but it gave me an "a-ha" moment. In another random article (I've forgotten where) I read that a lot of graphic novelists are creating books with hand-made binding and special details. In order to survive the fickle market, you need something different from the average book.

I don't think e-books are the future of reading. Despite the convenience factor, I don't like staring at a screen. However, I do see the appeal of meticulously-crafted books. Of course the writing is the most important thing, but what about the packaging? The book as an object of art...it's something to think about. I need to look into this subject.

Latest purchase

Yesterday I went to the Vinyl Toy Network show. I don't know a lot about vinyl toys, so it was a learning experience. It was cuteness overload, and I saw lots of great artwork.

I bought an original painted magnet by Luke Feldman:


Mine is a ninja figure dressed in silver. I also entered a drawing to win a limited edition print. I had never heard of Luke Feldman before, but his artwork really spoke to me.

Inner artist

In the last few weeks, I've been to a few art shows. The Murakami exhibit @ MOCA blew me away, and I think I'm going to make a return visit. I've also been to openings at small, indie galleries. I've seen some interesting works and some stuff that makes me scratch my head and wonder, "that's art?" I don't mean to sound like an art snob, because I'm not. I know what I like, and I know what I don't like. I don't "get" some art.

After seeing different works, I yearn to make my own art. (I do consider writing to be a form of art, but I'm talking about visual art.) When I was a wee youngster, I was really into painting and drawing. I dreamed of making cartoons. I used to love my art classes in high school. I wasn't great at it, but I wasn't bad. I gave up at some point because I was convinced that there are other more talented people in the world. They're the "real" artists, and I was just a poser.

I've been thinking about how I would start. There are all these things that I want to try. I don't have formal training, and I've never been to art school. I've been thinking of taking art classes. That would be a start. All I know is that I want to creat art. Maybe it's my creative ADD. I get so restless sometimes that I need another avenue to burn off this energy.

Photography is cool but I'm not that interested in taking pictures. I would love to be crafty, but my fingers are too clumsy. I'd probably injure myself if I learned how to knit or make jewelry. I want to learn how to draw and paint. I want to create a cutesy character. I want to make a comic book or an animated web episode. I've been wanting to do this for a long time, and I'm thinking about it more and more. It's time to start acting instead of just thinking.