as i head off to palm springs today i leave you with this short documentary about paulus and his journal making workshop at penland. the man is a complete DELIGHT. (thank you susie for sharing it with me!)
he says in the short film:
making a book is like building a nest…so i think we learned how to make books from the birds.
and
someone asked me once what love was and i said, ‘oh to pay attention!’
Soul’s Kitchen from TOTM Film on Vimeo.
Hi from a very new subscriber/fan. First, what a treat to discover you and your blog. I’ve spent every evening for the last week exploring your site, feeling happy and sad and so very inspired! Then last night I followed your link to Paulus – OH what a wonderful video! Thank you so much for posting that link. It was hard to go to work today – I just wanted to stay home and make paste paper and journals!
Hi! I;m the editor of the film and the director told me to have a read of the comments you have all left. I am very touched by the positive response you’ve had to the film. It was a very moving , life changing experience making it. x
Thank-you ! That was great!
Mary Ann,
Teesha Moore shared this video on the Artstronauts site after someone recommended it to her via your blog. I’ve been meaning to watch it for days and tonight I did. I’m now quite emotional – tears and all (which is so NOT me) – because I felt the beautiful soul of this man and his passion for his craft. I think someone above said they wanted to hug Paulus – me too. I want to sit with my arm around his waist, my head on his shoulder and just listen.
Thankyou for sharing it and thank you internet for sharing it around so I finally saw it – one of the true joys of out online arty community is sharing gems like this.
Kass
What a wonderful inspirational video. Thank you for sharing with us.
Thank you so much for sharing this video with us.
Nice. Thank you.
Gorgeous wee movie, and such beautiful people! Thanks so much for this,I hope you don’t mind me sharing it on my blog – couldn’t not share!
What a wonderful film about a wonderful artist . . . thank you so much for passing it on.
Mary Ann I found this film so touching; especially when the young man was speaking about the journal being a place to come and release and relax in. It brought tears to my eyes as this is how I feel about my journal practice…it is meditation for my soul.
This left me so relaxed (also watched the other videos thee). These videos remind me of the Craft in America videos on pBS; I have learned so much about a wide variety of crafts and always come away feeling inspired.
What a wonderful video! There are so many talented artist here in WNC. I am fortunate to live quite near Penland, I hope to do a residency there in the next year or two.
OMG! That was amazing to watch! So sweet and tender! There’s a line about sitting at the table with your questions…. Such grace. He made teaching bookmaking a spiritual process. Thank you for posting this. Made me cry.
A delightful little film. Thanks for sharing. Let’s all head out to Penland School of Crafts when you return from P.S.
I, too, have been making this whole journaling process too difficult — and thereby missing the point. This was like a mini-vacation for my soul, watching and listening to this gentle man. Thank you so much for posting this.
I have never had a successful journal practice and now I think that I know why. I have always purchased books for a journal. A book you make has so much of you in it to begin with-it is already an old friend with which to share when you open it . And if all you are doing is sharing bits of your thoughts, your day whatever–it must be ever so much more natural.
What a great little film. Thanks to you and Susie for sharing it.
Thank you for this wonderful video! Absolutely inspiring; and what a beautiful man Paulus is.
Thank you Mary Ann and Susie for sharing this delightful video with us. It’s lovely to watch, and so inspirational! Years ago I belonged to a group that shared paste paper recipes, and then we swapped swatches of the finished papers. It’s fun to do and can become quite addictive.
Goodness, I am speechless. It is like he was talking just to me. Off to share this on my own blog if you don’t mind.
Wonderful thoughtful presentation. Thanks for sharing this find with us!
Very enjoyable! Lots of food for thought and creativity. 🙂
You’ve done it again. I want to go and just sit in his presence … and then make a journal!
Forty years ago when I started to learn ceramics, the first book I bought was Paulus Berensohn’s “Finding One’s Way With Clay”. It was quite spiritual in its viewpoint of working with your hands and is still on my book shelf. It reinforced why I was so driven to learn that art form and it ignited my unfulfilled desire to spend time at the Penland School of Crafts. What a beautiful film, a beautiful man, and a beautiful philosophy of creating. I think this film just told me “it is never too late…” Thanks Mary Ann for sharing. Just pulled the book off the shelf and found a chapter at the end called “An Aesthetic of Humanness, Notes, Stories, and Quotes from My Journal”. This is going to be a good morning reading it!
What a great gift to have before the art-full weekend! Loved his phrase, the journal allows oneself to answer life’s questions
Have a great splash in the pool of art supplies!
Have an awesome, wonderful and relaxing weekend and I’m glad I listened to the not so tiny voice in my head that told me you’d enjoy this little video. It most certainly is one to be shared.
Thank you SO MUCH for posting this video. What a beautiful man, what a beautiful life practice. Gives me a whole new feeling about journaling and book making.
Have a wonderful artful weekend!
Aaahhhhh… after watching that I feel so relieved and relaxed. What a beautiful little film. And it is always reaffirming when you hear envisioned what you feel about something. He put into words how I feel about my journaling and my books. The whole film had the feel, the sound, the softness of it all like the pitter patter of the rain falling and the paper blowing in the breezes and the owners cradling their books. Isn’t that just how you feel about each and every one of them. Thank you for posting this Mary Ann. I hope you have a fabulous weekend away. I hope that returning to the working world hasn’t been such a jolt to you and your creativity…
OMG…that was a great clip! Now I want to make paste paper and tiny book garland. Thanks for sharing.
oh my, I learned a lot from this wonderful film. I have been completely wrong about art journaling. I have been making it much harder than it has to be. Paulus’ book are filled with life, words simple pictures on the page. I have not tried the coptic stitch but I have been making journals for the past six months using the very basic stitch and I love each one of the books. Now I know how to use them and cherish them. Mary Ann, have a safe and enjoyable retreat.
Thank you! A beautiful man, and a beautiful place to live and to have workshops!
Ohhhhh I want to join those people.
I envie him having all journals the same size. I could never do that! But it looks so neat in the bookshelf.
Wonderful. And your comment too! Have fun!