This workshop is currently cancelled and is being rescheduled. Sign up for our newsletter to get updates when we announce the new date!

Volvelles, paper structures with rotating circles, have been used in books since medieval times. They can be seen in a variety of books from manuscripts where they often depict astrological charts to modern children’s books where they can animate parts of a story. In this workshop we will investigate how these interactive elements can be utilized to create playful, emotionally resonant work that creates life in inanimate objects. Students will learn beginner paper engineering techniques for making volvelles. Including how to plan a volvelle, how to make a paper washer (the mechanism that allows the book to spin), and how to incorporate a volvelle into a larger book project using a paper facing or fold.

Every Month from February to June, the Art Department partners with the Philadelphia Center for the Book to offer free book arts workshops. For questions, please contact the Art Department at 215-686-5403 or by emailing erefart@freelibrary.org. 

About the instructor:

Hannah Moog is an artist and illustrator based in Philadelphia, PA. She graduated with a BFA in General Fine Arts and a minor in Book Arts from the Maryland Institute College of Art in 2021. Hannah works in a variety of mediums to bring her whimsical characters into the physical world. Often utilizing book arts and garments to do so. She makes humorous, intimate and interactive work with the intention of immersing her audience in her imagined world full of mysterious but caring characters. Her work is influenced by folk art, quilting traditions and hugs. She has been a studio intern at the Women’s Studio workshop, an apprentice at Bread and Puppet Press and at the Fabric Workshop and Museum. In 2023 she participated in residencies at Penland School of Craft, the Wassaic Project, and Arrowmont School of Craft, and taught the workshop "Books that Move: Volvelles, die cuts and fold outs" at the Women's Studio Workshop.

website: www.hannahmoog.com
instagram: @h_moog