I’m very excited. I’m making a piece of box art for my friend’s 30th, which is all about her and how great she is, but the project has rather ground to a halt because I reached that point that happens with almost everything I ever make from inside my head, which is basically the appearance of a big thick wall that I’m not sure how to get around.
And then I was pootling around the net looking at craft blogs, and happened upon the names Joseph Cornell and Leo Kaplan. (I’m sure there are more but these are the two that came up.) Both were artists who produced great box art (or assemblage) using small and found objects, and box frames. Here’s one by Cornell from 1948:
There is something very appealing about miniature versions of things, and box art allows you to take full advantage of that. Both artists used miniature versions, like in Cornell’s ‘Pharmacy’:
…and also found objects, like this box by Kaplan:
By using found objects, the final piece seems to elevate them from everyday things to mysterious treasures, which together can tell a story. Here’s a gorgeous Cornell box:
This site is great; it tells the story of Joseph Cornell, and there are also downloads you can use and pictures to print off.
I can’t show my friend’s box yet just in case, but after January 27th I’ll try and remember to stick a picture up. In the meantime, I’m planning to scale the wall and find inspiration from these two artists to help me finish my project.
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