monotype printing and pop-up bookbinding
Pop-up books are commonly associated with children’s stories involving fantasy and imaginative scenarios, bringing narratives into a three-dimensional space where imagery plays a central role. The technique requires very few materials, allowing a wide range of possibilities using only paper, scissors, glue, and a few images or drawings. Pop-up books can be created through folding or by gluing elements together, gradually forming structures that guide the reader through different layers of a narrative. Sometimes the story precedes the book; at other times, it emerges through the making process. Most participants had no prior experience but drew on childhood memories of books or a curiosity about translating ideas into three-dimensional, sculptural forms. The workshop introduced two main pop-up techniques, which participants could combine or explore individually. The finished books were assembled using a three-stitch binding technique.
Similarly, monotype printing is a technique that requires minimal instruction and materials. The basic idea is to reproduce a drawing or painting using ink applied to a surface such as acrylic, glass, or rubber. Various tools, including fingers, brushes, or wooden sticks, can be used to create shapes and images. Once the composition is ready, a sheet of paper is placed on top and pressure, usually applied by hand, transfers the image. Traces of ink often remain on the surface, allowing multiple prints from the same composition, although no two are ever identical. With each impression, the image becomes progressively more abstract, forming a series of evolving variations, also called “ghost copies.” In our sessions, we primarily worked with acrylic and rubber surfaces, exploring the different visual effects each material produces while observing how a single image could change in appearance and meaning.
These workshops were part of a broader series developed in 2025, where each month focused on the combination of two or more techniques, always pairing one bookbinding method with one printing process. Participants were young people aged 6 to 27, and the project aimed to teach artistic techniques that could be used autobiographically, encouraging self-publishing within the group.
Art mediators: Daniela Herig & Alicja Khatchikian
Design: Clara Juliano
October 2025, Bona Peiser e.V.