Tunnel Vision

I have been preparing for a group show at the Chapel Gallery that opens on March 4^th. It is a celebration of the tunnel book.

What is a tunnel book?

Tunnel Books (also known as a Paper Peepshow or Theatre Book) have a long history and there are examples in the V & A museum dating back to the 19^th Century. I recommend checking out the selection on the V & A’s website. Tunnel books create an optical illusion of a world that recedes away before your eyes. They are in fact layers of images that are held in place by a concertina of paper on either side. Popular in the 19^th Century as souvenirs they then fell out of favour to be re-introduced in the 1950s as paper theatres for children. Artists have taken the idea of the books and put their own stamp on the original construction. I put together a selection of ‘books’ on Pinterest and they range from the traditional to full scale room sized installations.

I think the format is magical and together with Rose Cowles, we decided to get together a group of artists and challenge them to create their own take on the tunnel book. The work that I have seen this group producing is inspiring, whimsical and imaginative and I am grateful that they were brave enough to depart from their usual creative work and take on the challenge.

I have posted some images of my journey in constructing my books – it took some figuring out – especially choosing which paper would tolerate watercolour and not be too difficult to cut. I also had to work out how to display the books because the paper makes them quite fragile. This led let to me constructing boxes for them to give them a sturdy base to allow them to be shown on a plinth.

If you are interested in having a crack at making your own book I recommend checking out this guide from the V & A: Make Your Own Paper Peepshow.

They are a lot of fun and can be as simple or as complex as you want to go. I will be sharing more about the show in the next couple of weeks.