Family Album Pop-Up Bookmaking.1 @ Queens Library 4/4/2023

 QUEENS PUBLIC LIBRARY

"Creative Aging: Virtual Family Album Pop-Up Bookmaking"

Tuesday April 4, 2023


Spica and I are thrilled to be working again with Madlyn and her colleagues at Queens Public Library presenting a series of 8 virtual classes teaching older adults how to make a pop-up book inspired by their family photos. This virtual format fortunately allows me to log on from Sydney, Australia to join Spica in Manhattan, Madlyn in Queens, and students from their homes in the many boroughs of New York.  

 

This was the first time Madlyn tried a “hands-on” project as a screening, inviting East Flushing Library to join so that anyone who was physically in the library during our class could use the materials provided there to work with us. We had 21 participants join our class today. 

 

A physical warm up gets us focused and ready to begin. I led the group in “popping up our body”, stretching up our whole body then our necks, heads and arms and faces. Hands and fingers require special attention because we will be using them in art making and to help dexterity, we focused on stretching them.

 

Spica presented a short history of the mechanical and pop-up book and shared a few examples made through the ages. Next, we outlined the materials needed for our class and shared our own examples of pop-up books inspired by HOME which we have made.

 

Spica demonstrated how to make the base page, which is the basis for every page of the book, then how to make the house, which will be the first pop-up. For inspiration, I shared images of different types of homes pointing out how basically each is a collection of shapes. Participants then sketched their home then looked at examples of how to use collage to create windows doors chimneys fire escapes etc. 

 

Pat’s house featured green windows, a dormer window over the black rectangular door and a black chimney. She outlined her beige colored house with a dark brown trim. Beth collaged her house in bold shapes of red and green. She added shutters on the windows which opened out, using a flap device of her own making. Spica and I love it when our students have an idea and are willing to give it a try! 

 

The tabs or feet of the house are the mechanism which, when glued into the base page at the correct angle, engineer the pop-up. To hide these tabs, participants cut a slit in their base page and fed the tabs through, gluing them down on the other side of the base page. 

 

2 hours flew by, and we were thrilled to read in the chat, “thanks, the class was awesome”. Many thanks to all our participants and especially Madlyn and Willie who so expertly hosted our session. See you all next time when we make our second page.

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