the book has arrived! Seascapes: Vivien Blackburn :>)

front and back cover of the book - Seascapes: Vivien Blackburn

My book arrived today! I'm very happy with it apart from a couple of small silly errors that I'd made - very minor ones like forgetting to change the font on the back page so it doesn't match the title page. So once I've put them right I'll make it available for those who have emailed to say they would like to buy a copy.

so - if you'd like one - watch this space :>)

I can definitely recommend blurb. The one thing I don't particularly like is the payment system - a bit like imagekind, where they don't pay out until a certain sum is reached. Blurb are fairer though, they pay monthly (for anyone interested) but don't pay until the money owed to the author is over £12.50 and they charge a £3 admin fee for sending it. That's £3 for sending payment for 1 book sold or 100.

The colours are true and the quality and binding is good.

I will definitely make some more, including one on sketching with more text. This one is more a catalogue with over 40 paintings and just a little text.



.

Comments

Chris Bellinger said…
Hi!
How interesting...seems quite quick from when you orferd to when you receved....
Chris
12:23 pm
Casey Klahn said…
Wow! You're happy, then?

It takes a while to sink in that you've made a book of your own wonderful art. And the seascape niche is wonderful.

Congratulations.
1:34 pm
Casey Klahn said…
And the Blurb widget is a nifty bonus. I admire that!

How do you feel about the square format? Do the other ratio images look OK?
1:36 pm
vivien said…
Yes Chris it took 10 days, and as it was coming from abroad I though that was pretty good - though I was dying to see it and it felt like ages!

I've ordered some more copies now :>)

Casey yes I am happy with it - the programme is a bit temperemental on my elderly laptop and it pays to log out and in again occasionally as it slows down - I was using a LOT of high res images though.

Yes, I think the square format works well - some long thin images I let bleed off top and bottom or left and right depending on orientation, I use a square format a lot so a lot of images sat perfectly, some I used the full page bleed and others I kept smaller.

The black can show fingerprints a little as you suggested, but they wipe off easily! It does work with my paintings though and creates a 'look' that matches my blog :>)
2:20 pm
annie said…
I'm trying to order book but it is fighting with my Google account. What do I do now?
:)
3:37 pm
vivien said…
Annie it SHOULD (and I do hope it is!) be as simple as clicking on the little blurb advert on the top right of my blog and then choosing from there - you can choose softback or hardback. It works like most other buying-on-the-internet things where you select what you want and then go to the checkout - that's how I ordered mine.

Let me know please if it still creates problems as I'll have to find out what is happening :>(
8:01 pm
vivien said…
Annie it SHOULD (and I do hope it is!) be as simple as clicking on the little blurb advert on the top right of my blog and then choosing from there - you can choose softback or hardback. It works like most other buying-on-the-internet things where you select what you want and then go to the checkout - that's how I ordered mine.

Let me know please if it still creates problems as I'll have to find out what is happening :>(
8:01 pm
Lindsay said…
Congrats! I can't wait to order. I just wondered, I sent you something by snail mail. Has it arrived?
Now I'm off to blub...
6:06 pm
vivien said…
Lyndsay THANK YOU! your snail mail surprise was waiting for me when I got home from teaching today - you are so generous - the Root River painting that I thought was gorgeous - and it's even nicer IRL - It made my day! You've really mastered the graphite/oil pastel mix, it's really lovely and I'll treasure it.

I look forward to the exchange of books when we both get enough work done (well you've done far more than me now) on the waterways project.

blub here!
2:52 pm
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Hedges silhouetted agains the snow, winter light: watercolour and Derwent tinted charcoal pencils in Stillmand and Birn Beta Hardback sketchbook

Image
 Detail  I have always liked the calligraphic tangle of the hedges when they are sihouetted against the sky.   Recent snowfall meant even more opportunities with amazing light and the landscape simplified and hidden by the snow, throwing hedges into relief. Above is a detail of a double page sketch in the lovely Stillman and Birn Beta A4 hardback sketchbook.  This paper is so forgiving and the watercolour works beautifully with it.  It allowed me to work through wet washes with charcoal pencil - something that tears many papers, leaving holes.  Some of the hedge is paint, some tinted charcoal. First snow, more on the way, winter light: silhouetted hedges in watercolour and Derwent tinted charcoal in a Stillman and Birn A4 beta hardback sketchbook The earlier warm golden glow of the low sun is covered by clouds, threatening more snow to come.   The spiky calligraphic marks of the hedge and the underlying form of the bank, w...
Read more

The Eye, Urban/Rural exhibition

Image
Vivien Blackburn's work in the Urban/Rural show We've just hung a group show at the The Eye Project, Urban/Rural show.  If you want to come and see it it's on for a month - well worth seeing, 11 lovely artists and some fabulous work. Those large canvasses are 40 inches square. There are rural landscapes, flowerscapes, intriguing textile work including a large knitted building, abstracts .... something for everyone. It's in the gallery below the cafe in the Adult Education Centre at the top of Wellington street, Leicester, opposite Fenwicks.  Meet the Arttists day is Saturday 1st April 10-2.  Come and have a chat with us?
Read more

looking at non traditional composition and quiet vs busy areas in paintings

Image
Paul Klee I thought I'd look at non-traditional composition - where the rule of thirds isn't the key but the painting relies on different compositional methods. in response to an excellent series of posts on the various ways of looking at composition by Katherine (link at end). These alternative considerations or breaking of rules - but making it work - appeal to me more than too heavy a reliance on the rule of thirds. The painting above, by Paul Klee is a 'field' painting' - the composition is overall, the eye travels around enjoying the glowing colour that he creates by juxtaposing complementary colours, subtle greyed greens enhancing the oranges/reds/pinks. Most of the image is composed of the various greens, greeny browns and khakis, with accents of the warm colours. When working this way it's important that the balance is unequal and that the accent colours are placed carefully to keep the eye moving in the way the artist wants. A couple of the brighter...
Read more