Insomnia Drawings by Louise Bourgeois

I thought as Insomnia seems to be a frequent topic on my blog at the moment, I'd post some of Louise Bourgeois's Insomnia drawings. I know there are more artist who have created a collection of work thanks to the inability to sleep, but I seem to be unable to find them, I'm pretty sure there are some books on them in my college library, but I wont be able to check that until college starts. For now these will have to do.

"I am an insomniac, so for me the state of being asleep is paradise. It is a paradise I can never reach. But I still try to conquer the insomnia, and to a large extent I have done it; it is conquerable. My drawings are a kind of rocking or stroking, and an attempt at finding peace. Peaceful rhythm. Like rocking a baby to sleep."

-Louise Bourgeois

~

*The Book*

Louise Bourgeois: The Insomnia Drawings

Insomnia has been a lifetime companion of Louise Bourgeois' night hours. Between November 1994 and June 1995, she has committed to paper whatever thoughts, memories, and images surfaced during her long sleepless nights. The resulting 220 drawings are the quintessence of all the impulses, sources, and motifs inspiring her work. "The Insomnia Drawings" show the artist's mind at work: drawings and sketches alternate with poems and aphorisms in both French and English, interspersed with notes referring to the hustle-bustle of everyday life. The series is a unique mirror of an extraordinary woman's life and work: beautiful, disquieting, passionate, inquiring, and imbued with a quirky sense of humor. As soon as the artist agreed to entrust "The Insomnia Drawings" to the Daros Collection, it was clear that this extraordinary work should be presented as a book. The result is a handsome slipcased two-volume publication, edited by Daros Services, Zurich. The first volume contains facsimiles of both the recto and verso of the 220 drawings. The second volume provides the reader with valuable background information on this complex and exhilaratingly beautiful work of art. Marie-Louise Bernadac, a leading Bourgeois scholar, places "The Insomnia Drawings" in context of Bourgeois' oeuvre, providing biographical references for many notes, and pointing out the leitmotifs of Bourgeois' imaginary universe.

Sketchbook. August 28, 2011

These are the first two insomnia drawings I did about two weeks ago now.Don't really know whats going on in my head when I am doing these, the one below was the first and is a bit mad.

Sketchbook. August 27, 2011

I wish I felt more Human..

I was looking at how individual the hounds are, they are all different, their faces holding such character. They are so human in there own way.
The hound above is one of my favorite bitches called Heather. I wanted to give her a face, a human face. She reminds me of the thin librarian type, not strict, just happy and in her own world. I couldn't get the face right, so it ended up being a mask. I had been looking at a lot of Leanora Carrington's work also, so I wanted it to be sort of ghostly and surreal.

This is something I would like to come back to and work on further.

Polaroid, August 27, 11

'Brothers and Sisters,
Here, in this Place, We are Safe.'

Polaroid



'I Sail Along the Forest Floor.'

I am proud to present my first Polaroid photo, taken with my new Fuji film Instax Mini camera. I have to say it is very cool. I always loved Polaroids and have been dying to get my hands on a Polaroid camera. The photo is half the size of the original Polaroid. Even though the photo is small it is just as intriguing, and adds a bit of character. I'm looking forward to spending more time with this camera.

Sketchbook. August 24, 2011 (Insomnia)

Sketchbook. August 21, 2011

A portrait of a hound puppy called China.