Moth Marblers ~ California
(Ingrid Butler)

Ingrid Butler: "It all began in my Grandfather Kirkpatrick’s grand old library, dark wood, sliding ladder, and many ancient books that had marbled end papers.

I was smitten by the beauty and visual mystery of these papers beginning and ending each volume. I was ten, and I never forgot the swirls and fine patterns. ...

"Finally, in San Francisco in 1983, I took a marbling class taught by a German woman, Anna Wolf, who had studied with a Turkish marbling master. She influenced my future life.What joy and excitement I experienced that day. I was consumed by a desire to master the traditional techniques and images of marbling and make them contemporary. ...

" Process: I float color prepared with ox gall on water thickened with caragheenan. Next the colors are teased into patterns, using a variety of tools. Once the desired pattern is achieved, I lay a piece of acid free paper upon the image floating on the water and then withdraw it. The design is transferred to the paper permanently. The marbled sheet is washed and hung to dry. For the next paper I begin the procedure anew. On a good day, I can create about 36 decorated papers.Then I go home to my 'white room' and collapse."

A Tasty Enchantment
or Poetry and Paper
By Ingrid Butler
Sausalito, California: Moth Marblers, 2009. Edition of 18.

4.25 x 5 x 5"; 96 unnumbered pages. Marbled papers tipped in. Handbound in cloth and covered boards with marbled paper sample on front board. Black grosgrain ribbon ties.

Ingrid Butler: "This quirky book is full of haiku poems, marbled and decorated papers, figurative drawings, and charming ephemera. Most everything in the book, I have created. Some images were found and included. Each time you view the book, you find something new and thought provoking."
$225

Twenty Years of Marbled and Decorated Papers
By Ingrid Butler
Sausalito, California: Ingrid Butler, 2009.

The second variant in an initial series of 6. Each variant has 41 paper samples (not counting the end papers and covers). All are similar in format, but differ in the particular paper samples included and in the binding.

14 x 5.5 x 1.25"; 47 leaves. 41 samples of marbled papers tipped in on handmade white paper from Amalfi, Italy. Handbound in quarter leather and cloth with marbled paper sample on front board.

Introduction: "This book ... record[s] twenty years of marbled and decorated papers by the artist. It is intended as an inspiration and a resource to other decorative paper and book artists. The papers are timeless and one of a kind. The sequence in the book is not chronological. The patterns range from the subtle to bold, traditional to contemporary."

Ingrid Butler: "Process: I float color prepared with ox gall on water thickened with caragheenan. Next the colors are teased into patterns, using a variety of tools. Once the desired pattern is achieved, I lay a piece of acid free paper upon the image floating on the water and then withdraw it. The design is transferred to the paper permanently. The marbled sheet is washed and hung to dry. For the next paper I begin the procedure anew. On a good day, I can create about 36 decorated papers. Then I go home to my 'white room' and collapse."
$650

Twenty Years of Marbled and Decorated Papers
By Ingrid Butler
Sausalito, California: Ingrid Butler, 2006. Edition of 18.

17.125 x 6.5"; 32 leaves. 28 samples of marbled papers tipped in. Bound in cloth covered boards with marbled paper sample on front board.

Ingrid Butler: "This book is volume thirteen of a series of fifteen that record twenty years of marbled and decorated papers by the artist. It is intended as an inspiration and a resource to other decorative paper and book artist. The papers are timeless and one of a kind. The sequence in the book is not chronological. The patterns range from the subtle to bold, traditional to contemporary."
$350 (Last Copy)