Presidential Button Art
Martha Leone
If you haven't already guessed, I like to cut up books and turn them into wall art. Lest you think that I wander through my house, cutting up any book in sight (would never do that!!), here's what I consider before taking scissors to book: If a book tells a fascinating story with images and text AND hasn't been opened for a very long time AND would be more fully enjoyed on the wall, then I'll consider it.
This small 5x5 book celebrates the design evolution of political buttons from 1840 to 2008. Earlier button design was more ornate. With each decade came a bolder use of color, typography, and illustration.
The book has been hidden away in my box of paper samples for the past few years. Finally, we're enjoying the content much more as it hangs on the wall in our basement. It's sparked a few conversations with the kids about political elections so I guess you could say we're using it as a teaching tool!
How I got there: 1. Went to IKEA's "As Is" section and purchased a desk top for $5. That's much cheaper than purchasing a large canvas and works just as well.
2. I then cut out the desired pages and began to arrange them on the board. To get a basic idea of placement, I used blue Sticky Tak to temporarily adhere the pages. In this case I wanted the images to tell a story so the pages needed to be in order, from the 19th century to the 21st century.
3. Just before gluing, I held it up and discovered that I liked the slightly crooked placement and really liked the pops of white of the board. So, no glue... just sticky tack. If we grow tired of it, we'll swap out the images for something else without much effort.
