The Heart of the Labyrinth-Kim's contribution to Lisa's Book

From ancient Greece...




in an age of myths and legends...





From a time when there existed mythical beasts...




fair maidens...





and heros ...





comes a tale of deceit and forbidden love.












Enter the labyrinth...





and beware of what dwells within.

Lisa's book for the Pulp Redux collaboration is themed Labyrinth. I must admit the theme sparked off so many ideas I had trouble settling on just one, so in true women's fashion decided to do two! After all two must be better then one right! Right! LOL!


The first part of my contribution outlines the ancient Greek story of the Labyrinth and the Minotaur.


The sea God , Poseidon sent to King Minos of Crete, a beautiful white bull to be sacrificed in his honour. Minos however on seeing the beautiful animal decided to keep it and sacrificed another in it's place. Poseidon was so angry with Minos that he cast a spell upon Minos wife, Pasiphae which caused her to fall in love with the bull. Pasiphae unable to resist the spell mated with the bull and the offspring of their union was the Minotaur. The Minotaur grew to be so ferocious that Minos ordered a prison to be built to confine the Minotaur, and so Deadalus his servant, constructed a labyrinth which was so complex that none who went in were able to find their way back out, and the Minotaur was cast inside to remain forever.





Many years later, the Athenians who were at war with King Minos, killed one of Minos' sons. As punishment to the people of Athens, Minos called down a plague on the city. Only by agreeing to send to Crete each year seven youths and seven maidens would Minos lift the plague from the city. The youths and Maidens sent to Crete were cast by Minos into the labyrinth and there were devoured by the Minotaur.

In the third year of the tribute, the Athenian Prince Thesius, determined to end the slaughter of his people, and volunteered to go as one of the sacrificial victims where he vowed to find the Minotaur and destroy it. On arriving in Crete, Ariadne, the daughter of King Minos and Pasiphae saw Thesius and fell in love with him. She provided Thesius with a ball of string and bade him to tie one end of the string to the entrance to the labyrinth on entering, and in so doing he would be able to find his way back out again. Thesius did and within the heart of the labyrinth he found the Minotaur and killed it, fleeing Crete and taking with him the youths of Athens and Ariadne.




The tale although tragic ( I always feel sorry for the Minotaur!) is an interesting one and I rather liked the idea of it's being a part of the book.

Here's a look at one of the pages as it appears in the book.

The pages are constructed using black velvet and a heavy matching furnishing weight fabric.





I rather like the dark look all that black added to the tale!

So that's the first part of my additions. The second section is entirely different and sets quite a different mood entirely!
More on that soon. Some things just take ages to dry properly!

Lisa J's contribution to Deb's Book

For the past month I've been working away on Deb's brilliant and imaginative book "through the looking glass." Along with her amazing artwork, Deb has composed a charming love story in the form of a journal entry written by Maude to accompany her book.

Maude's story begins in January 1896 with her leaving London to meet up with her secret lover Damien in the city of romance. Her husband has recently passed away leaving Maude a substantial fortune. With this inheritance, she purchases an eye glass and sets off to see the world with Damien. Maude's pretentious husband never would have married her had he known of her impediment. What Maude sees on her journey is up to us...

For my part, I've created a page inspired by Victorian style that portrays passionate devotion between soon to be united lovers...

photos of Maude and Damien

reveals a removable calendar from 1896

and a secret desire...

her locket...

her desire...

letters..travel plans..more secrets?

Debrina's Contribution to Alicia's book...

January 02, 2010

Latest updates!

Hester in her youth...

The barn that burns down and Hester's daughter..

Just some badges that I'm working on...

The starfish that brings out love...this will be suspended with white thread from the hole frame...

The story unfolds...

Hans...

2009 Update

The compartments and their tell-tale findings...

Well, if you know me well, you'll know I like to launch myself into any new project with speedy aplomb.  So, without further ado, let me introduce to you the start of the next instalment of Alicia's Pulp Redux book, The Museum of Forgotten Things. 

I've picked up where Alicia left off.  Hester, our main character, has shut herself away in her house after murdering her husband (this part of the story is Alicia's invention and is told so well by Alicia using various invented documents in her book - you'll see these in due time as you each get a turn at the book).  Thus, Hester's house, like her mind, has become something of a museum and a prison...there are things in it she'd rather forget but can't.  However, although Hester has become a recluse, this does not prevent her from taking many a secret lover!  So, although a part of Hester's life is lost forever (Paradise Lost) she has gained a new one - albeit tainted with grief and guilt but also coloured with secrets and passions.

Now a bit about what I've been up to.  Well, as you can see in the picture immediately above, I have made good use of an old Cigar box that I purloined from the Sanson market for only two bucks (!) this weekend.  Perfect!  It fits the format and size of Alicia's book perfectly.  I love the fact that it's Jamaican and that one of my favourite stories in the whole wide world is Jean Rhy's Wide Sargasso Sea.  Hester reminds me of the mad woman in the attic (Rhys' story is a spin on Jane Eyre - from the point of view of the first wife).  In Jane Eyre, the mad woman in the attic tries to burn down the house. In Alicia's story, Hester uses fire as a means of dispatch.  Of course, I'll say no more here, lest I give the whole story away!

The front of my page looks like this - I've used crackle paint (Ranger's Black Soot - thanks Alicia for sending me a bottle!) and a range of metallic paints.  Heavy duty watercolour paper was used to get a really awesome thick texture that I then took to with my red colouring pencil.  The result is pretty specky if I say so myself.  A secret hides under the door and the black void of the front cover will contain an illustration.

The book opens from right to left to reveal a hidden compartment.  The lid of my cigar box (the right flap) still needs work and I plan on putting a vignette on it. To the left is the lid of the compartment.  Let's open it up, shall we...

Crap photo this one, but it gives you an idea.  Little compartments will be carved out of the book I have placed in the compartment.  The book, as mentioned earlier, is Paradise Lost, though I'm still deciding about that.  I may yet just make a series of frames for the compartments.  Anyone got any tips on how to carve nice little boxes out of the book?

I'm really proud of this paper lining the box! I hand dyed it myself and I love the way it has come out all marbled like that.  This is the secret compartment area.  Like I said, I'm still undecided about how I'm going to frame the forgotten artifacts I have.  Nor have I gotten any closer to a solution as to how I'm going to allow book binding to happen, since the box opens right to left instead of left to right.  Give me time, I might do the whole book within a drawer thing yet.  Lisa S - that video you sent us needs to be up here.  I love the whole idea of a book within a drawer within a box thing!

Alicia's book arrives!  I open the box to find...

Now, just a quick little post about the receipt of Alicia's book in the post.  Here are the photos I took.  Hopefully I haven't conveyed some of the trembling excitement I experienced when opening the box.  If the shots are fuzzy or shaky looking, at least you know why! Lol!
 

I feel like Howard Carter as he opens Tutankhamun's Tomb!

What is this???

A book is revealed!

Is there a story contained within?

Ooooh, a couple of diary entries and an obituary. Hmmm....

More exciting reading...

The blank contents of my part of this wonderous book.  (Go to first picture of this posting to see what I've done so far...)