dis·card
verb
/diˈskärd/
—get rid of (someone or something) as no longer useful or desirable.
Hey! I’m Matthew.
I grew up in a small town in the middle of Minnesota. I remember Scholastic book fairs and trips to the local library as one of the highlights of my growing up (still is actually…). In early 2019, our small town was consolidating their school libraries and I suddenly (by total accident I’m sure) found myself quickly amassing a collection of Discarded library books. I wasn’t sure what they would become (or even why I kept stopping and picking up more…) but I was drawn by the term “discarded.” I am taken by the life of a book that is at it’s end… Or maybe it’s beginning… I love that the book’s past becomes an essential element of the journal’s future. It’s a second life. Books continue to take me on journeys through learning, grieving, imagination, growth & change. If I can return that favor in the smallest way, then that is worth the time & effort.
I primarily work as an Actor/Facilitator. Through my years of practice I’ve found journaling to be an essential element of my process and my growth. I have also noticed that I surround myself with like minded artists/humans. There is something about the translation that happens from the mind, to the hand, to the page that is awe-some to me.
A Journey Into Bookbinding
Behind the scenes of creating a casebound book/journal.
I was a Moleskine ADDICT. 100%. It was only a matter of time before I was going to try to figure out how one was made.
Have you ever taken a book apart?
I certainly had not. There is a really beautiful artistry in the process of book creation. Bookbinding is a form of art that has evolved in so many ways and yet remains the same. I am fascinated by it. For me the binding of a book is a meditation. It’s not just the act of binding a book, but the act of binding some part of myself into the new book. Hopefully not literally, though I’m not opposed to bleeding for my art. I see the humanness in each book, in the thread & glue that holds it together. There is a reason we call it a spine.
My mother, Penny, has always been creative. My whole life I’ve watched her sew, build, cook and make. My Grandmother, Ruth, was an eclectic artist who turned some of the strangest odds and ends into unique pieces of art. I think she would have loved these books. They feel like her.
Each journal/sketchbook is handmade—stripped, built, & bound—by me, Matthew. I do so with care & interest. I sign and number each book because it helps me finish & let go. I also love the idea of meeting someone some day who has a journal in their hand or on their shelf that I can track back to my shelf & my hand.
Each piece is unique. Each piece has it’s own journey.
The hidden spine of a casebound journal w/ recycled paper from the original book.
In my natural habitat…
You’ll always know where to find me.... I can’t imagine a world without a used bookstore to get lost in.