Books can be noted as one of our earliest forms of physically distributing knowledge. Even though we now seek most of the answers to our questions and entertainment from the internet in an ever increasingly digital existence, many people still find that certain books hold immense sentimental and personal value. They represent a materialisation of memories and stories that we can hand down when we are no longer around to pass them on to ourselves, which is why it is important they are maintained and restored.

My project "ReBound" is an installation exploring bookbinding and the psychological restoration that takes place during the binding of sentimental books. "ReBound" is a personal project about material and process, it is a series of chronological books from segments of my life from the age where I was first learning to hold a pencil right up until recent years. Each book is bound with love by my Bookbinder parents, beginning with folded scraps from their workshop to hold my childish scribbles and progressing to beautiful handmade sketchbooks embellished with hand printed marble paper.

Each cover of the book tells a story within itself, in being stitched together the rebound concertina installation represents the new story of self-reflection that has emerged. Each book represents a chapter, and how each one is linked to and supports the next. The process of this project was also important to its development. Whenever I felt lost, I would visit the comfort of my parents’ workshop and together we created protective slip cases for my collected sketchbooks, reminiscing about each stage as we crafted. These four slipcases stand as a strong anchor at the beginning of the installation, as a symbol of the skills my parents have handed down to me, and the psychological repair from including them within the project.