But we shouldn't forget the old, black and white manuals - and it's still worth scouring the secondhand bookshops and library "withdrawn for sale" shelves to find these hidden gems. They may not be as visually exciting as their modern counterparts - but they often include forgotten or sidelined information which can send your work in a new direction.
This is a lesson I learned from one very special book:
Back in 2002, in the first year of my Craft degree, I was actually taking joint honours with Fine Art. I'd loved printmaking on my Foundation course, and took the opportunity to spend a lot of that first year in the print room. It was during that time I dug out a book my Mum had bought for me in a library sale: Etching, by Leonard Edmondson. You wouldn't think it (I mean, it's a book on printmaking), but this book is almost solely to blame for the fact that I cast glass!
My focus was the collagraph technique, and there's a great chapter in Edmondson's book dealing with all the possibilities this technique offers. It suggested that you didn't just need to stop at simply printing your plate: you could also try casting the collagraph in latex rubber, plaster and/or resin. My initial plaster prints made me realise that I was actually creating a mould which (with minor modifications) could be used to form glass. Well, that kept me busy for the rest of my degree...
So, while I'm still drawn to glossy books with great layouts and beautiful pictures, I won't walk past a secondhand book stall without having a nose. Do you have the same obsession with books (old or new) - and, if so, which books have inspired you?
