Pop Up Imagination

Consider this the post where I talk a little about pop up cards.

I love pop up anything and collect alot of pop up books. Not only as reference for my own Crankbunny work but mainly just to enjoy! I've never being formally trained in paper engineering, I look up to Robert Sabuda and Matthew Reinhart. Each of them are pop up gods and they've brought back the art form in many fresh new ways. I love love love how all their enthusiasm for the 'pop up arts' spills out with each page turn. Each book seems to get bigger and more complicated and amazing. They sometimes teach classes at Pratt Institute and run their business in NYC with a gazillion little paper cutter gnomes running about (ok, its a small staff of gnomes).

Here is a wonderful movie I recently found of both of them going through a recently finished Fairies pop up book (it's awesome - see I'm loving fairies now!) and also holding one of my favorite books that they did with Tomie DePaola called "Brava, Strega Nona!".

Inside the Pop-Up Studio from paul b on Vimeo.
The fairy book is called "Encyclopedia Mythologica: Fairies and Magical Creatures"

There's also a wonderful interview / article that Babble did on them.
Excerpt from Robert: "....that's why pop-ups I think have survived and are really being embraced because it's magic without electricity. You know what I mean? When you turn the page of one of our books, you think, "Oh my god. How is that even possible?" and it's between two boards that make a book and that's a rare thing in our lives today to feel, very rare...."
Here's a link to it -- click here --! I highly recommend reading it.

Also here are some pictures from : Brava, Strega Nona!: A Heartwarming Pop-Up Book







Their studio also has a blog which is fun to read - http://popupstudionyc.blogspot.com/
Most of their staff write the blog posts, so its interesting to see their work as it progresses on projects and also their outside interests too! It's not all about pop up people - it's about imagination!



In this video both of them describe their process and how their work has evolved. What I love most is when they start talking about the interactive experience behind the pop up book. How again, its almost magical yet so simple, and there's no electronics involved.

Drastication abound!

See! That's it, please commit yourself to cave woman speak for the rest of this blog post.

Because of all my latest distractions (or drastications as so coined above) - the oh so many things I've been meaning to blog about keep getting pushed into the horizon of the 'to-do' list which now amazingly has its own sublists. Great- Love it when that happens. All of them are very exciting I assure you. One of them though is the latest popup card I've been working on.

Here is a sneak!! I can not disclose the nature of this "bird" related card because that would frankly spoil all the fun. This card will come with fun accessories though - so it can be used for many different occasions (we are big into "multi-purpose" here at Casa Del Crankbunny).


There will also be a new summer puppet on the horizon too. It's going to be part of a Etsy Virtual Labs Craft night in early June - so that means I'll be doing a little tutorial virtually on a special night and supplying a free puppet template with instructions for everyone to have and enjoy! More news to follow (it's on my list)!

mo' betta horizons

After a nasty time prolonged flu, a heavy animation workload, and my main computer finally kicking the bucket last week (don't worry kids, I got other puters to get by with) .. I can only see spiffy things in the horizon! The weather here is a good sign - it's finally warm. A nice 80F, thank you very much.

To celebrate my 1st real day off - sans work, sans sickness, sans crappy cold weather - I decided to go see Rob Ryan's work up at the Earnest Sewn store in the upper west village here in NYC. His installation/temporary store called Ryantown USA there is only up till May 17th. I am a huge fan (hello duh- its paper and it's cut). It was amazing to see so much of his stuff in one place. It's a totally different experience in person.

These are some pics from my adventure:

*these pictures taken by brian ewing with his amazing camera.

I scored a really nice foldout 2009 calendar that is still knocking my freekin socks off because it is totally awesome and was only 5 dollars!

He uses alot of laser cutting for his mass produced stuff which is pretty much the only way to get those small super tiny iddty bitty cutouts. The installation stuff was cutout by hand. Oh the obsessiveness that I can't help but to adore!

Luxury American denim label, Earnest Sewn, has partnered up with U.K artist, Rob Ryan, to create two installations that will host collaborative work between the brand and the artist. So far, there are limited edition printed t-shirts, bandannas, customized denim patchwork teddy bears and hand embroidered cushions. The installation will come in the form of pop-up stores in two locations, one in New York and the other in London. For the pop-up store in New York situated within Earnest Sewn’s store in the Meat Packing District, Ryan replicated his East London Shop, Ryantown, for a store-within-a-store concept.

Ryan is known for his signature paper-cut pieces and has already worked with companies like Paul Smith and Liberty. The pop-up store was launched on April 2 will be running through May 17, so be sure to drop by and check out the limited edition knick-knacks.

Rob Ryan - etsy store
Rob Ryan - website
Rob Ryan - blog

Earnest Sewn
821 Washington St Map
New York, NY 10014

Flying Monkeys before Fairies

There is something painfully wonderful about starting your day before the rest of the world wakes up. I, for one, get a bunch more work done and have somehow an amazing amount of energy to run around like a wacked headless chicken in my office all day (but those spanish genes summon up a small siesta around noon or so...). Was that chicken metaphor too grotesque? Alright, my Russell Brand knob gets turn back down to the usual 2.4!

I'm not particularly fond or hateful of fairies. Maybe it's a cultural thing, but more likely its a case of "haven't gotten around to it -- I'm still noseying around with vovelles". BUT - in the bookstore a month back or so, I ran into this amazing popup book about Fairies and was blown away! (Apparently the publisher has a few out! Woo!)



How to Find Flower Fairies by Cicely Mary Barker

It's so detailed and intensely illustrated that I had to STOP working on my top secret flying monkey puppet to take a few pictures! They went to town with this series. Love the hidden little areas and use of paper depth.





Looking forward to sitting down with this book and getting all the juicy popup bits in also.

Feel free to also view the amazon.com pictures for the book - which show some of the other pages. I listed the other books in this Cicely Mary Barker series too which all seem to have the "Look Inside" feature to wet your appetite.

How to Find Flower Fairies
Flower Fairies Magical Moonlight Feast
Return to Fairyopolis (Flower Fairies)
Fairyopolis: A Flower Fairies Journal
Flower Fairies Paper Dolls - Paper dolls!

Pop Up Cookbook?!

The only reason I know how to make pancakes correctly is because of Kenny Shopsin and his book "Eat Me". Until then I was shy and sort of fumbly about it, but I didn't get the book because I wanted to learn how to make freekin pancakes.



See I love NYC alot but honesty I pretty much live here cause of the food and Shopsins is sort of a dietary(triplecorinary)staple here. It's a family restaurant that's changed locations a few times and run by Kenny Shopsin n famila (the 1st and 2nd was featured in the documentary 'I Like Killing Flies' - check your Netflix people!). It's got rules, set ways that are irrationally flexible, amazing food, most people hate it or love it and you can leave if you don't like it... ahhh "the city".

Anyway - Kenny Shopsin put out a cookbook/instructional about his thoughts on food, certain main ingredients, life, and some of menu items in his restaurant. Just a few cause the menu has about 400 items (or something ridiculous like that) and he changes them alot. One of his daughters designed the book (she's an amazing graphic designer) - and KUDOS to her for doing a pop-up book cover and not something boring and plain.

So it's not entirely a pop-up book about recipes with foods and spoons spilling out all over and out the pages (ala Reinhart & Sabuda...seriously though...not a bad idea -Hear that pitch out boyz!) - but the cover is and that counts!



**If you are wondering what that other book is - that's Shadow Puppets & Shadow Play by David Currell which I highly recommend also. See! There's something puppet related too! Be sure to check out the "Look Inside" feature on amazon to get a little noisy inside the book.

Prints are boring! Puzzles are not--

The Pescado Grande Puzzle is the first of a series of puzzles that reference old star constellation maps, nautical sea maps and numbers in the cuban charada (lottery). Number 10 represents a big fish - pescado grande - which in this case is a large Crankbunny.


This puzzle is designed, glued, cut, detailed with ink and subtle glitters, varnished, and handmade by my lovely marshmallow fingers and a crank press called Maxy. Because every puzzle is cut and detailed with additional artistic materials (ink, paint, etc) - each puzzle is unique, special, and no two,three,four,etc are the same. The puzzle when assembled is 9 1/4"w x 7 3/4"h and is packaged unassembled in a decorative paper gift pillow box (also handmade by me).

It looks pretty darn sexy too when easily framed for a unique display of artiness.




*This puzzle can be bought at both the Crankbunny stores now! Click here & here!

**What is this "charada" you speak of?
Charada is a simple numerological system of dream interpretation used for the divination of numbers to play the lottery in Cuba. Numbers from one to one hundred have a name assigned to them; if you dream about a snake you play 21. I am Cuban, therefore these numbers have their own additional meaning for me... that leak always into the stuff I make. To learn more about the numbers in la charada - click here

Both shops are open!

Etsy shop is now open after being closed from March 2nd to 7th because there was a huge need to fly around in a big metal bird for some work related activites - but now both shops are open!

Stay tuned this upcoming week for blog posts on new items up for sale too (along with the typical randomness of paper trivia that must be cataloged on this blog). Real nerdy information awaits you!

Hello Sun!

Daylight savings is upon us and that is great news! During the winter - things get a little ruff when there is about 6 hours of sunlight to be used... and don't get me started on kelvin color temperature and how it's not even really good sunlight.

Winter light is plain weak - it just don't cut it!

In celebration of daylight savings this sat night/sun (and missing my flight thus having to sit around the airport for another.. lets say 8 hours GETTING MY PARTY ON) you can receive a free gift with purchase when placing an order at the Crankbunny shop!

Crankbunny orders over 30 dollars will include a fun Crankbunny Jigsaw Puzzle to put together! Some quick fun to keep around for bored desk slaves and kids - or easily framed for a unique display of artiness.



No airport security threat level Orange to deal with either!

Metamorphic Trade Cards!

I learn a new name or term for a particular type of card technique - especially antique ones - every week . Apparently "pop-up" cards doesn't cover it all. Also, cards that move and do fun things have been around for a really long time. It's one of my obsessions to procrastinate and research this sort of stuff on the internet.

This week I added "mechanical cards" and "Metamorphic trade card"(?!) to my vocabulary. Mechanical cards is basically the old way of calling something a 'pop-up' card. A search will lead you to float around in google-space (which currently is the 6th dimension) looking at really cool old valentine cards from the 1940s, 30s, victorian age.



Metamorphic trade card sounds like and is a really old term. Trade cards in general are something that were huge back in the day (way back.. like 80+). If you sold anything, there had to had a trading card for it. Cigarettes, tobacco, liquor, the mail, piggy banks, cars, a can of beans... there was a card for it. It was usually small (business card sized) and pretty much took the place of the real object if you were too poor to own it (and that most likely you were). They were beautiful, colorful and an artist was usually allowed to go to town with the design.

Metamorphic trade card was one that would transform/foldout/move or to us futuristic beings in the 21st century - 'pop up'.








(scary!)

If you'd like to know more or see more - go to this site.

Benny talked.

I love stupid things.. especially stupid random things that make no sense. Big surprise huh?

So when I finally saw this string of commercial TV ads (seriously folks, I watch 2 channels at 2am in the morning and it's all DVR) I almost kicked myself. Especially since it was for Superbowl, which I don't follow - but I should - and why? - because I work in advertising.... technically. Norma gets a D-.

NANNERPUSS IS SO GREAT.



I kinda like this more, because I would want my pancakes to look like that.

Tony Sarg and his marionettes

Ofcourse somehow neurotic norma (who is a seperate entirely split personality living in my brain... long story, no way of making it short) added into my delicious list an entry about a Tony Sarg book that can be read on google books. For free. How fantastic.

This book is very fun and nerdy to read if you are into anything that deals with puppetry mechanics. And ofcourse I am. I am not a huge fan of actual real marionettes - but I do know how they work and how they are tied (which is one the reason I'm not a fan of them.... all those strings knotting up at a blink of an eye really freek me out). I am a firm believer you can learn alot from things you don't like. Probably alot more than things you do like.

Anyhoozal, Tony himself (read more about him here) included alot of his own secrets in this book.

The Tony Sarg Marionette Book
By Frederick John McIsaac, Anne Stoddard
Published by B.W. Huebsch, inc., 1921
Original from the University of California
Digitized Nov 30, 2007 57 pages

Caught up in constellations

Don't ask how, but it was probably the righteous path of google image searching 'vovelles' at 1am in the morning... and leaving a ton of images open for me to look at later on today when there was a well needed "mental health" moment.

Constellation Cards!
by who better than --- Jehoshaphat Aspin!
Apparently the Library of Congress has his stuff on their "High Demand" list. Go figure. They are lovely though... so it's time to share.





Not sure if that's a wig or a hairy octopus or what?