Staff Pick of the Week!

Susan Estelle Kwas is a Milwaukee artist known for her vibrant illustrations and whimsical artist books. Her 2015 publication, A Collaborative Drawing Book is no exception as it invites readers into a visual conversation between Milwaukeean Fred Foss (1898) and Kwas (2015) over one hundred years in the making.

Kwas found Foss’ copy book in an antique shop and was so delighted by his graphite drawings that she decided to pair them with her own. Sometimes tucking characters into Foss’ scenery, other times superimposing them, Kwas’ colored pencil and watercolor contributions are nothing short of charming.  

Kwas rebound the book in montage sur onglets form (with pages sewn on stubs to release them from the confines of the gutter) in buffalo leather, preserving the original orientation of each page. The cover decoration was created by blind tooling inset leather strips and is complimented by marbled endpapers.  

View other staff picks here.

– Jenna, Special Collections Graduate Intern 

Today's #ToolingTuesday is LJS 439, one of two known manuscripts of the Arabic original of the Book on the configuration of the orb. Written in 14th c. Seville, binding is modern morocco with earlier blind-tooled morocco covers laid on new covers

Online:

THE FAIR GOD; OR, THE LAST OF THE ‘TZINS by Lew Wallace (Boston/New York: Houghton-Mifflin, 1897)

A Tale of the Conquest of Mexico

WIP God of Arepo - sadoeuphemist/ ciiriianan/ stu-pot (read the whole story here) graphic novel - slightly-awkward-sunshine (read the graphic novel here)

Same set up as the one before, but this time I ditched the colouring. Only genuine gold foil for the smoke and flower petals and diluted black acrylic paint for the rest.  I actually like it better that way. The colours did not come through as I’d hoped the last time. I think the plain black gives a better contrast and is still subtle.

Also, this time I did not blind tool the gold design ahead and gild it later, but went for the design and gold foil right away.

I’m also really crappy at drawing things, so I used details from the graphic novel slightly-awkward sunshine had already drawn so much better than I could have

Is he pointing? Is he giving the bird? You decide

I am thinking about. Jamie and the Second Doctor.

Because out of all the incarnations of the Doctor, Two is arguably the one who uses manipulation and disguises the most. He thrives on using people's intelligence against them, on tricking people, on bluffing and his bluffs working. He has a different disguise every story pretty much and is constantly playing some kind of role.

And then you look at Jamie, and some of Jamie's most front and center traits are his loyalty and his honesty (and protectiveness, but less applicable). Jamie is loyal to a fault and extremely trusting of the Doctor. He's honest and straightforward and deeply caring.

And Jamie is the one who sticks by the Second Doctor for as long as he physically can--and you'd look at those two characters, one who is manipulative and cunning, and one who is loyal to a fault, and you'd think the Doctor would easily be able to take advantage of Jamie, that Jamie would just be a tool for him but he's not, they're on equal footing. Jamie pulls the Doctor down and reminds him what being human is all about.

from todays 8path aggie session <333

Decided to screenshot the two drawings I did in the Magma/Aggie hosted by @ejsuperstar

(I am so sorry I draw so big)

The second one I did like hours after everyone left. rip.

I follow tons of disability/chronic illness/mental health tags and I keep seeing memes or infographics without alt text or image IDs. This is not okay for content of any subject matter, but its beyond ridiculous for these spaces in particular. You can’t call yourself an advocate if you are declining to use accessibility tools like this. There are absolutely no excuses, especially with the technologies we have now. Most devices can read and copy the text out of any image, for example.

Basically if it’s not worth including everyone, it’s not worth posting. Make it accessible or don’t post it. Thank you

Some very stupid recent doodles hehe

You can get Keening at Level 1, all you need is:

2 Standard Potions of Rising Force

1 Apprentice Lockpick

ACOK Sansa II my beloved. In her chambers, sees an unsigned note, goes into panic mode thinking it's a trap, tries to keep herself calm and ignore the note but her need for home, for Winterfell is so strong that she just can't help but go to the godswood.

She has no one to trust, if she gets caught she's probably going to get beaten again, but for even the slim chance of getting to go home she'd rather risk everything against her instincts then stay and lose the chance.

She goes and instead of meeting a gallant knight, someone brave and strong to save her or hell, joffrey's man to trick amd trap her, it's Dontos. A scared, drunken fool, who nearly died a just a while ago. Who is only alive because of Sansa, and the fact that an 11 year old girl was brave enough to try to save him opens his eyes to the truth of his job and his life so much that he's willing to risk his life to bring her to safety. This is, perhaps, the first time Dontos decides to act like a true knight.

Sansa does not understand it yet, but her sincere intentions for people to be safe and happy inspires morally grey characters to protect her to their limited ability. She's frustrated that Dontos is a drunken fool, and she quite literally gets threatened day and night by Sandor, but they are the only ones who make her life just a little bit easier.

We also see that from Ned's death onwards, Sansa is forced to abide the rules, trust no one, and get better at lying. Sandor and Sansa's dialogues are always a delight, the last sentence of Sansa II summarizes King's Landing the best: "Everyone is a liar, and all better than you."

Hi there, i have a story where 1 MC is blind. I dont want to fall into any bad tropes so I was looking at your blog and I wanted to ask your opinion. my character went blind young but she sees a shifting mix of color, it cant imply distance or details however, at the start of the story she is gifted a tool that helps shape them into rough outlines, my plan is for her to stop using it as her character grows more confident (use it as a plot point for her development). Do you have any thoughts?

It sounds like this might be a possible accessibility tool, so I don't think she would abandon it completely. She might become less reliant on it as she develops her other senses to be more helpful, but in situations where she needs a little extra help, maybe she'd dig out that tool. New environments, meeting important people where she has to make a good impression, moments where she's in danger, those would all be useful and relatable reasons to use additional accessibility devices.

The goal of orientation & mobility and life-skills classes isn't to become Daredevil-levels of confident in your remaining senses. The goal is to make you an expert in all the accessibility devices at your disposal.

A personal weakness of mine is that I am not proficient at screen reader with my phone. I would be much more powerful if I would take the time to master it because I'd be able to use my phone in any situation without trouble. As it is, I struggle to use it in my low-vision settings and it takes me a lot longer to finish tasks (texting, google search, opening/navigating apps) and a lot more eye-spoons.

If I got good at it, I would probably use a combination of screen readers and my remaining vision to get things done.

I'm going to open the comments to all disabled readers and ask: is there an accessibility tool you used for a while and then phased out of your tool-kit?

there isn't one single word about the current ICJ hearing on the front pages of major french newspaper websites... you literally would not know it's even happening if you trusted those websites to inform you it's crazy

Exclusionism is addicting. It's addicting to have an enemy, to have something to really, properly hate. I know this very well, because I used to doomscroll through exclusionist blogs when I was a kid like it was entertainment, feeling the rush of getting angry and reveling in how these exclusionists I looked up to affirmed that anger and hate. It's addicting because hatred is addicting, anger is addicting, it feels so good to get pissed about something and have other people agree with you and joke with you and rage with you. It's much easier to hate someone and reject them than to hate someone and still work with them. It's easier to get angry at someone or a group of someones and throw your hands up and be done with them than it is to grapple with that anger and know that you have to work together if any of us are to achieve anything. I've seen a lot of exclusionist-type people champion intersectionality and solidarity, but when you devote yourself entirely to feeding your anger and hatred without leaving space for compassion and openness to temper it, solidarity becomes much harder.

Because solidarity and intersectionality aren't just "everybody stands hand in hand around the globe and we all get along," it's not that easy. We disagree and we argue and we say and do hurtful things, personalities and traumas clash, we piss each other off. To stand in solidarity you have to be prepared to get pissed and have people be pissed at you, but know there is a greater goal we are working towards. That's how unions have to work - you may not like all your coworkers, but you still need to work with them in order to have a functioning union.

Exclusionism gets you addicted to anger, as do radical feminism, white supremacy, all types of fascism, etc. etc. It gets you addicted to the Us vs. Them worldview, that you are a part of the brave few who are speaking out against the corruption, the destruction, the invasion of the vulnerable spaces you care for. And it feels good, but it doesn't actually help anything.

Anger isn't morally bad, no emotions are. Rage can be fuel for change, it can push you to keep fighting. But you can't live on rage alone. You'll starve yourself of the things you need to be a full being, and you need to be a full being in order to keep fighting and not burn yourself out while you do it. You need connection, and compassion, and willingness to change yourself and let things change.

A continuation of your all tomorrows headcanons?

👀

👉👈

SORRY THIS TOOK SO LONG I FORGOT TO ANSWER LMAOOO

i said I would do these yesterday but it's like 12 am so it still counts #slay

also lemme know if u want me to rewrite/clarify any of these I'm typing all that comes to mind

also I wouldn't mind writing more of these lmaoo. this one got a teensy bit long

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🌌 Bug Facers had a bartering/trade system rather than a cash system. This trade system was highly complex; people who tried to pass off their goods as being more high-quality than they really were were punished severely. They also had a monarchy, with the Queen being 25% larger than the other people. Her citizens were taxed and the best food went to her. Her function was the same as that of an ant's queen. Actually, more to the point, I picture their monarchy as being similar to that of ant's. However, after their invasion, the monarchy was dissolved and turned into a democracy.

🌌 Despite their relative immobility, the Temptors actually developed some form of culture. Males would spread ideas between females, who rued the fact that they could not meet other members of their species. I also feel that the males could talk, though their enunciation wasn't really that good. Based on the sharpness and shape of their beaks, it's possible they were all-purpose feeders who preyed on insects, nuts, and other worms. The females required three times the amount of food as males in order to provide enough energy for their brains.

🌌 The Lopsiders actually experienced some sexual dimorphism. The reason for this is because their designs remind me of anglerfish. Females were markedly larger than males, and the males depended on the females for sustenance. This was slowly phased out as they evolved, as the species would cannibalize others for food. They had no trade system; they operated under a "it's yours if you're fast enough mentality."

🌌 Because their experience became so automized, the Tool Breeders actually evolved away from actually having blood at all! As a result, their flesh became more gelatinous. While a drought would have slowly but surely dehydrated the species' flesh and caused the end of the species, they learned how to make water from seemingly thin air. They have a capitalistic system that constantly pushes new inventions.

🌌 Much of the Titan's mythology focused on figures who were more mobile; ie., those that had two legs. When a Titan was born with two limbs, they were hailed as a god. They were seen as prophets and harbingers of good luck. They emphasized an ideal that the species could no longer go back to.

Since they lived in a savannah, they also grew thick skin on their bodies to account for the insects and the spikes on their favorite plants. They also transferred to a more vegetarian diet, consuming foods similar to those that giraffes and African elephants eat.

🌌 Hand Flappers had mating dances similar to those of birds-of-paradise. Had they developed sapience, Hand Flappers would have pioneered acting as an art form, using their wings to emphasize their stories. High-class Hand Flappers wore bracelets of precious metals that surrounded their wings. Wing care became an important social aspects; to groom someone else's wings was tantamount to declaring your love for them.

🌌 Satryiacs had fairly short lifespans, which accounted for the amount of parties that they had. As a result, their minds matured remarkably quickly: by their first birthday, their minds were already fully developed. Their bodies followed soon after, and six months later, they were already considered adults. They had very loose views on monogamy; as a concept it simply did not exist. They had relationships with whomever they wanted, whenever they wanted.

🌌 Despite their lack of sapience, the Blind Folk actually had fairly defined parental relationships, mirroring that of humans on Earth. Blind Folk babies were born helpless and unable to do much of anything. A cry from a baby would inspire all the adults in the surrounding area to come to their aid, a fact that was occasionally exploited by predators.

🌌 If put on Earth's atmosphere, Spacers would get crushed underneath their own weight. Also, since they have such modified internal systems, they do not need to eat. However, they need to sleep for fourteen hours in a day to recuperate enough energy to move.