Author: Julie Filatoff
Sarah Maker
Rachel Evers—Marbled
Kris Stewart—A Round of Applause
Karyn Murphy—Exploring Geometric Nets
Karyn Murphy—Dragon Scale
Jennifer Verbit—Red
Jennifer Verbit—Pieces
Fran McReynolds—Songs for the Moon
Denise Stephenson
Angela Batchelor
Susan Lowdermilk—Eadem mutata resurgo. Though transformed, I will remain unchanged.
Click on any image to enlarge. Click again to close. Artist Statement Eadem mutata resurgo. Though transformed, I will remain unchanged. The title is a quote by 17th Swiss mathematician, Jakob Bernoulli. These words are also engraved into his tombstone.…
Continue ReadingSusan Lowdermilk—Evening Grosbeak
Click on any image to enlarge. Click again to close. Artist Statement North America has lost almost three billion birds since 1970. “Decline of the North American Avifauna,” published in Science, 2019, was the first-ever widespread avian population assessment. My…
Continue ReadingSusan Lowdermilk—American Kestrel
Click on any image to enlarge. Click again to close. Artist Statement North America has lost almost three billion birds since 1970. “Decline of the North American Avifauna,” published in Science, 2019, was the first-ever widespread avian population assessment. My…
Continue ReadingRobin Feinman—Line Drawing
Click on any image to enlarge. Click again to close. Artist Statement This is a collaboration between me and my mother, who wrote the short poems. Each poem is four lines, accompanied by an abstract line drawing meant to convey…
Continue ReadingAnne Sobbota—Inspired by Grace: Freddie’s Gloves
Click on any image to enlarge. Click again to close. Artist Statement Bringing emotion and sparking a conversation through combining the arts of printing, glass fusing, and book binding are inspiring to me. The gloves pictured in this image were…
Continue ReadingAnne Sobbota—Whisper Ribbon
Click on any image to enlarge. Click again to close. Artist Statement I love to experiment with different methods of forming and displaying fused glass. Because the glass is fired, finding ways to include paper and the element of communication…
Continue ReadingRoberta Lavadour—Spirit Guide
Click on any image to enlarge. Click again to close. Artist Statement This work grew out of thinking a lot about appropriation, and how materials, techniques, and imagery hold cultural weight. I’m fascinated by the New Age to white supremacy…
Continue ReadingRoberta Lavadour—Love, Punky
Click on any image to enlarge. Click again to close. Artist Statement My earliest memory is of walking to church on a maple-leaf stained-sidewalk in Bremen, Indiana, my Aunt Marie berating my Uncle Dewey for the black grease still embedded…
Continue ReadingCat Monroy—1996
Click on any image to enlarge. Click again to close. Artist Statement I thought I was pretty special, creating a book out of paper bags! I remember loving the sound of the paper and the texture of it. I wanted…
Continue ReadingCat Monroy—2006
Click on any image to enlarge. Click again to close. Artist Statement This book was created in 2006, 10 years after my first book (1996, the paper bag lunch book). It was made during a time when I was moving…
Continue ReadingCastle Danz—A Voyage to Arcturus
Click on any image to enlarge. Click again to close. Artist Statement Recently Ingram announced they were discontinuing distribution of mass market paperback books (MMPBs). Many large publishers responded to the lack of distribution by discontinuing production of the format.…
Continue ReadingKris Stewart—Northwest Haiku
Click on any image to enlarge. Click again to close. Artist Statement This project is very close to my heart. It’s a collaboration with my mother, who wrote the haiku. Some of her poems are inspired by my artwork, while…
Continue ReadingKris Stewart—Unfurling Box
Click on any image to enlarge. Click again to close. Artist Statement This was such a fun project for a Type A person like myself. I didn’t have a model or instructions but thoroughly enjoyed figuring out the precise measurements…
Continue ReadingKris Stewart—Leather Art Journal
Click on any image to enlarge. Click again to close. Artist Statement This journal is part of a series I created using circles in various ways. In this case, the stitching on the spine subtly reinforces the strong circular closure…
Continue ReadingJudilee Fitzhugh—Maple and Mandala
Click on any image to enlarge. Click again to close. Artist Statement I first became aware of the shadow prints of leaves on Portland sidewalks after the fall rains. India Flint’s book Eco Colour gave me a method of transferring…
Continue ReadingBrenda Gallagher—Dreaming in a Field of Stars
Click on any image to enlarge. Click again to close. Artist Statement This book is made up of freehand painting exercises inspired by dreams. The pages were created using watercolor, watercolor pencil, Conte crayon, water crayons, stamps, colored pencils, and…
Continue ReadingBrenda Gallagher—Southwest Desert
Click on any image to enlarge. Click again to close. Artist Statement This book was a practice for designing with multiple kinds of leather techniques. The binding was also a practice for learning a new binding structure. The inspiration for…
Continue ReadingBrenda Gallagher—Resistance is Futile
Click on any image to enlarge. Click again to close. Artist Statement This book is a celebration. We are what we are and to resist what we are is futile. This work is a celebration of pride with rainbow top…
Continue ReadingAnne Sobbota—Gather in the Garden
Click on any image to enlarge. Click again to close. Artist Statement Translating the art of handmade books into a medium that is not traditionally used to construct multi-page items is the challenge I wanted to explore in this work.…
Continue ReadingAbigail Merickel—Pear Orchard
Click on any image to enlarge. Click again to close. Artist Statement The Hood River valley in Oregon where I live is full of apple and pear orchards. During harvest these tall ladders swing and clang through the orchard as…
Continue ReadingErika Taketa—Biáng
Click on any image to enlarge. Click again to close. Artist Statement Biáng is a Chinese character that forms part of the name of a Shaanxi noodle dish, biángbiángmiàn. It is famously complicated to write and has an 11-line poem…
Continue ReadingChristy Turner—Sarracenia
Click on any image to enlarge. Click again to close. Artist Statement This piece is a roughly life-sized portrait of a North American pitcher plant, Sarracenia flava, from my own carnivorous plant garden. I’ve always had a deep interest in botany and…
Continue ReadingChristy Turner—Nest
Click on any image to enlarge. Click again to close. Artist Statement This linocut depicts a female Giant Pacific Octopus tending her eggs inside a long-abandoned human rib cage, contrasting the surprising maternal instinct of these incredibly intelligent creatures with…
Continue ReadingRhiannon Alpers—Ochre Color Experiments
Click on any image to enlarge. Click again to close. Artist Statement This multi-part, tiered-box artist book investigates ochre as both color and material trace. The work comprises two interrelated books housed within a three-tiered tray box with a magnetic…
Continue ReadingRosemary Rae—Restless Dragons, Enchanted Waves
Click on any image to enlarge. Click again to close. Artist Statement This wonderful and beautiful structure has its origins in China. I was first introduced to Zhen Xian Bao by Susan Joy Share and Paula Beardell Krieg during their…
Continue ReadingJanet Boyko—Sashiko
Click on any image to enlarge. Click again to close. Artist Statement A trip to Japan. A new practice. Sashiko is a handmade artist book holding a collection of practice squares, each one stitched in the traditional Japanese running stitch…
Continue ReadingJanet Boyko—Pretty as a Picture
Click on any image to enlarge. Click again to close. Artist Statement Plain as paint, or pretty as a picture? Handmade circular artist book dressed up in powder puff pink. Inside, vintage magazine advertisements promise transformation—perfect nails, smoother skin, a…
Continue ReadingJanet Boyko—Gone Digital
Click on any image to enlarge. Click again to close. Artist Statement Some things vanish so gradually you barely notice they’re gone. Remember when information had weight? Gone Digital is a handmade artist book collecting the ephemera of analog life—objects…
Continue ReadingRhiannon Alpers—Cicadoidea: Cicada Explorations
Click on any image to enlarge. Click again to close. Artist Statement Originally conceived as sculptural studies of cicada forms, this edition expanded into a broader exploration of origami, storytelling, cicadas, and handmade paper. Developed through an ongoing collaborative process…
Continue ReadingCat Monroy—2026
Click on any image to enlarge. Click again to close. Artist Statement Small but mighty. This little book was made on a whim. The covers were made from pages of the paper magazine Flow. I love this stitch because it…
Continue ReadingKristi Galbraith—Alternating Currents
Click on any image to enlarge. Click again to close. Artist Statement Alternating Currents is an electrically charged artist book featuring custom weavings, definitions, and stamped letters to highlight the range of words, feelings, and memories that are stirred up…
Continue ReadingPietro Accardi—Purple Chrysanthemum
Click on any image to enlarge. Click again to close. Artist Statement An unusual modern marbled pattern called “chrysanthemum.” My wife suggested that the pattern is also similar to a lotus flower. Materials and Techniques Silk and acrylic paint; marbled…
Continue ReadingJennifer Woodward—Mirroring
Click on any image to enlarge. Click again to close. Artist Statement This piece was created during a residency on a farm on Bainbridge Island, Washington. Plant fibers were harvested and processed locally. Materials and Techniques Handmade paper sculpture made…
Continue ReadingJennifer Woodward—SLOOOOOOOOW
Click on any image to enlarge. Click again to close. Artist Statement This piece was made as a reminder for myself and others. It’s okay to take it very, very, slow. Materials and Techniques Handmade paper sculpture made with recycled…
Continue ReadingSelene Fisher—The Neighborhood
Click on any image to enlarge. Click again to close. Artist Statement As I was building each little house, I started telling myself short stories about the people who lived there and their relationship to their neighborhood. I used my…
Continue ReadingRosemary Rae—Scattered Pieces
Click on any image to enlarge. Click again to close. Artist Statement Scattered Pieces is an assemblage of random imagery, paint, and words all stitched together to create spontaneous wonder. I enjoy creating paper landscapes where blue-sky-play blooms on perch and page, owls dance…
Continue ReadingErin Fletcher—Suspended Whispers by Roja Chamankar
Click on any image to enlarge. Click again to close. Artist Statement The poem in this book has been translated from Persian to French to English in an experiment to see what concepts and phrases are literally lost through translation.…
Continue ReadingJeri Oswalt—The Book of Calm
Click on any image to enlarge. Click again to close. Artist Statement The outside world was swirling and I could not settle to design a project. I began a daily stitching practice on linen scraps. They had no purpose. This…
Continue ReadingRaluca Iancu—Overpasses
Click on any image to enlarge. Click again to close. Artist Statement Overpasses are among the most familiar forms in contemporary life, especially within car-centric regions such as California, yet they are rarely examined beyond their utility. I am drawn…
Continue ReadingRaluca Iancu—Landslide
Click on any image to enlarge. Click again to close. Artist Statement Disasters are the perfect locus to observe the line where function and dysfunction bleed into one another. The illusions of control and privilege are irreversibly challenged. We discover…
Continue ReadingRaluca Iancu—たくさん富士山 (Takusan Fujisan)
Click on any image to enlarge. Click again to close. Artist Statement A playful interpretation of Mount Fuji. Materials and Techniques Japanese handscroll book with mokuhanga relief print.
Continue ReadingDuring the Conference
For campus non-emergency issues, please call Western Oregon University at 503-810-9591. For non-emergency dorm room assistance call 503‑932-3415. Use this number for lock‑outs, problems with your room, etc. In case of emergencies, call Campus Public Safety at 503-352-2230 or from on-campus phones…
Continue ReadingArriving on Campus
How to Get to Western Oregon University Registration and check-in for FOBA is in the Richard Woodcock Education Center at 601 Monmouth Avenue North, Monmouth, OR 97361. Please give this address to the transportation company or put it into your GPS.…
Continue ReadingBefore You Arrive
Important Things to Bring to FOBA Workshop Supplies: Review the supply list associated with each of the workshops you are taking and gather up your supplies. The list was emailed in your registration packet and is available under the workshop…
Continue ReadingFor Attendees
Now that you are registered for the 2026 Focus on Book Arts Conference, it’s time to figure out: How you are going to get here and if are you bringing all the right stuff:Before You Arrive What to do when…
Continue ReadingKristi Galbraith—F is for France, an ABC Book
Click on any image to enlarge. Click again to close. Artist Statement F is for France was created specifically for an ABC book exhibit called “Books as Art 4” that was held by the Northwoods Book Arts Guild in Fairbanks,…
Continue ReadingNaomi S. Velasquez—Challenged
Click on any image to enlarge. Click again to close. Artist Statement This artist’s book speaks to relationships affected by book banning in libraries. So many of the most frequently banned and challenged books represent marginalized voices sharing important narratives…
Continue ReadingCeleste Chalasani—In My Garden
Click on any image to enlarge. Click again to close. Artist Statement I worked In My Garden to stretch myself artistically. The question I posed to myself was, “Is it still stumpwork if your background fabric isn’t fabric?” I also…
Continue ReadingCeleste Chalasani—Wild Berries of the Pacific Northwest
Click on any image to enlarge. Click again to close. Artist Statement For “Wild Berries of the Pacific Northwest” I used stumpwork techniques to recreate the berries that grow wild in the redwood forests where we live. We love to…
Continue ReadingCeleste Chalasani—Clematis Journal
Click on any image to enlarge. Click again to close. Artist Statement Clematis Journal was inspired by a visit to the Rogerson Clematis Garden near Lake Oswego, Oregon. We had traveled from our very gray, overcast home to Portland in…
Continue ReadingHelen Hiebert—Weaving Album #1
Click on any image to enlarge. Click again to close. Artist Statement I launched my own 100-Day Project, creating 100 weavings over the last 100 days of 2013, at a time when I needed something to help me focus and…
Continue ReadingCindy Luxhoj—The Incredible Journey
Click on any image to enlarge. Click again to close. Artist Statement I made this art book project in a five-day “Hidden Worlds” online workshop instructed by Lesley Patterson-Marx through San Diego Book Arts. The miniature books were designed as…
Continue ReadingCindy Luxhoj—Tribute to Georgia
Click on any image to enlarge. Click again to close. Artist Statement My Name is Georgia by Jeanette Winter, published in 1998, celebrates the life of iconic artist Georgia O’Keeffe, my favorite creative. A Tribute to Georgia is my excavated…
Continue ReadingTammy Andrade—Field Notes from a Lady Botanist
Click on any image to enlarge. Click again to close. Artist Statement At heart I am a lover of things with a history. Family genealogy was once a great passion of mine, and I have collected many historical items, photos,…
Continue ReadingGenevieve Kaplan—minimum responses
Click on any image to enlarge. Click again to close. Artist Statement This floppy little book—and the poem it contains—was inspired by the desert landscapes and windscapes of southern California. Themes of fragility, attention, language, and scarcity are examined through…
Continue ReadingKit Davey—Bay Leaf Tunnel Book
Click on any image to enlarge. Click again to close. Artist Statement I gather leaves on my morning walk and use them in many of my books. Using natural materials in my bookmaking combines two of my loves. Materials and…
Continue ReadingKit Davey—Tetrahedral Japan
Click on any image to enlarge. Click again to close. Artist Statement I love books with surprises. This one has an unusual shape and a wee door hiding a triangular tunnel book. Materials and Techniques The tetradedran is made from…
Continue ReadingKit Davey—Fence Meets Leaves
Click on any image to enlarge. Click again to close. Artist Statement Natural elements make for rich page enhancements. Materials and Techniques Wooden fence post top used as front cover, mat board covered in craft paper for the pages; pages…
Continue ReadingTess Yinger—In Doctrine: No. 8
Click on any image to enlarge. Click again to close. Artist Statement This work builds on the long historical tradition of miniature religious texts worn around the neck. It was inspired by the recent rise in religious extremism that is…
Continue ReadingShawn Sheehy—42 Wildflowers
Click on any image to enlarge. Click again to close. Artist Statement This boxed collection of six bound books houses a total of 42 flowers, nearly all of which are US wildflowers. The engineering and development has stretched over 16…
Continue ReadingShawn Sheehy—Movable Metamorphs
Click on any image to enlarge. Click again to close. Artist Statement Movable Metamorphs is a study of repeating themes and unexpected changes. Materials and Techniques Paper engineering, cardstock.
Continue ReadingJulie R. Filatoff—In My Grandparents’ Garden
Click on any image to enlarge. Click again to close. Artist Statement My family immigrated to the United States from England in 1951, before I was born, and bought a house in a suburb of Los Angeles, California. It’s not…
Continue ReadingJulie R. Filatoff—Georgia O’Keeffe
Click on any image to enlarge. Click again to close. Artist Statement As an art student in college, I studied the contemporary painter Georgia O’Keeffe. Her work was significant to me because I’d recently visited New Mexico for the first…
Continue ReadingFOBA 2026 Sponsors
Thank you to our generous sponsors who help FOBA bring together students and instructors. Gold Leaf Sponsors New Morning Bakery(541) 754-0181https://www.newmorningbakery.com Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner, Dessert, and Anything In Between. A local landmark for over 40 years, New Morning Bakery is…
Continue ReadingProtected: Ride Share
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Continue ReadingSponsorship Levels
Contact Development Director Cindy Luxhoj at development@focusonbookarts.org for more information about being a sponsor of FOBA. Read to assist? Click here for a form.
Continue ReadingPricing
Workshop Pricing Housing Pricing See below for extra night (Sunday), which includes dinner Sunday and breakfast Monday. Bed linens and towels are automatically included in the room rentals. This linen package includes: a pillow, blankets, two flat XL twin size…
Continue ReadingFirst Timers Club
New to FOBA? You’re not alone! Join the First Timers Club and you can learn what to expect at the conference, make new friends, and get your questions answered.
Continue ReadingMeals at FOBA
You can download a .pdf of this page here. You can find various meal package pricing here. Please Note: Footnotes: 1 For those who have purchased the “All Meals” option2 For those who have purchased the “Lunch Only” options3 For…
Continue ReadingArt Exhibit Honoring Patty Grass
During the 2026 FOBA Conference we will honor the late Patty Grass with an exhibit of her work. Patty planted the roots of the Pacific Northwest book arts community. For almost four decades, she taught, shared, and created access to…
Continue ReadingOpen Studio Sessions
Have you ever wanted half of a day during the conference to work at your own pace, relax, and embellish your previous day’s workshop creations? Or wanted some low-stress time to get input from an instructor (or your peers) on a project you’re working on? Join this Half-Day Hosted Studio Session for just $55, and enjoy a dedicated space to work alongside other like-minded attendees at your leisure. Then, spend the other half of the day exploring Monmouth, taking the trolley to Independence to visit the shops and galleries, visiting one of the local wineries, or joining the non-hosted open studio session after lunch.
Continue ReadingErin Fletcher: Variations on Single-Signature Bindings
Books come in all shapes and sizes. Some may span only a single signature, while others become a thick tome. In this workshop, we’ll explore the former as we create a multitude of models with both soft and hard covers.
To help us punch all of the signatures for our models, students will begin this workshop by making a collapsible punching cradle out of binder’s board covered in Lokta paper. Then students will make a series of simple softcover pamphlets using a variety of sewing patterns before moving on to hardcover structures. All of these structures allow the book to lay flat and are perfect for artist’s books, chapbooks, presentation pamphlets, or short stories.
Continue ReadingRaluca Iancu: Japanese Stab Binding
During this one-day workshop, students will learn how to create traditional Japanese stab-bound books from beginning to finish, using traditional Japanese materials. The instructor will bring materials from Japan for this workshop (paper and covers). We will cover up to four basic bindings: Yotsume Toji (Four-Hole Binding), Kikko Toji (Tortoise Shell), Asa-no-ha Toji (Hemp Leaf), and Koki Toji (Noble Binding).
Continue ReadingRosemary Rae: Collage Boot Camp
In this Collage Boot Camp we will dive into the hands-on creation of mixed-media collages, integrating text using a variety of ephemera, papers, acrylic paint, and other markmaking tools. Discover your artistic voice and learn about color theory and how to create strong compositions.
Continue ReadingJudilee Fitzhugh: Contact-Print Portfolio
This workshop will begin by using the contact method (also called eco-printing or botanical printing) of transferring natural plant pigment material to paper appropriate for book binding. Students will prepare contact-printed papers dyes with real leaves to create a custom portfolio to hold precious papers.
Continue ReadingPietro Accardi: Fabric, Paper, and Metallics Marbling
During these three days, students will learn and practice all the basics of paper and fabric marbling. They will learn how to prepare metallic paint and create beautiful overmarbled paper/fabrics.
Continue ReadingPietro Accardi: Advanced Paper Marbling—More Patterns and Metallics
This workshop is designed to provide students with a space to explore more of the marbling universe. Further complex patterns will be demonstrated. This workshop is designed to provide students with a space to explore more of the marbling universe. Further complex patterns will be demonstrated. Students will learn how to make and use metallic paint. Students will execute some overmarbled paper, which are papers “printed” two times, creating complex visual patterns.
Continue ReadingPietro Accardi: Intro to Paper Marbling
In this introductory class, students will gain a basic understanding of the history, techniques, tools, and styles of Western marbling. We will talk about the color wheel and color theory to guide students’ creativity. Pietro will demonstrate how to execute the most classic patterns and how to create simple harmonic color combinations.
Continue ReadingRhiannon Alpers: Boxmaking Fundamentals
Boxes can be both elegant and deeply personal—beautiful containers for books, sculptures, or collections. But for many book artists, boxmaking can feel intimidating. This two-day workshop is designed to demystify the process and build confidence through hands-on practice with one of the most essential forms: the clamshell box.
Continue Reading