Book selected: Dutch and Flemish 16th and 17th Century Paintings from the Shipley Collection
New title: Pomona's Crown
I used as a starting point for my altered book the two brightly coloured apples in the painting 'The Temptation of Adam and Eve' by Joachim Anthonisz Wtteewael on the cover of the book; but instead of the biblical Eve I wanted Eve to become the image of Pomona, the Roman goddess of fruit trees, with her own paper crown garland of apples.
It was my interest at looking at the origins of customs that helped me understand why we celebrate our present traditions and from where these traditions have started. The pages of the Dutch and Flemish 16th and 17th Century Paintings from the Shipley Collection were first separated and then each page was cut into the shape of an apple. The pages were then folded and cut as you would when making Christmas streamers, which when opened makes the flatness of a piece of paper expand into three dimensions.
It's this magical surprise when you open such a book that I enjoy and even though the long process is done all by hand, the finished book has then evolved to become something else, much like a tradition from the past.
email : kristinesteele@hotmail.com
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