Flag Book

Background
The Flagbook is a kinetic concertina* structure invented by Hedi Kyle. As you will see, she has created many concertina book structures! The first slide below is one of hers, made from mica! Other artists featured in the slideshow are Sarah Matthews (D.C.), Susan King (CA/KY), Dea Fischer (Canada), and Karen Hanmer (IL). Flag books lend themselves to many variations. Try cutting out portions of the spine or attaching flags to both front and back of the accordion, or experimenting with other alterations. (See Julie Chen’s Invented Landscape.)

Concertina*
The concertina book structure utilizes a narrow folded accordion spine that has flags, cutouts, or signatures attached to either the valley or mountain folds using adhesive or stitching.

Materials
  • Concertina accordion paper strip 7 and 15/16ths"x 12"
  • 2 Pastedown Endsheets 5" x 7 and 15/16ths"
  • 20 double-sided paper strips for flags: 1 and 7/8ths" x 4.75"
  • Cover boards: 5" x  8"
  • UHU glue, book paste

Examples in ASU Rare Books & Collections ​
Guidelines
  • Fold the concertina accordion paper strip into twelve 1” sections for five mountain folds and two tabs for attaching to cover boards.
  • Fold flag strips in half and glue together with UHU glue
  • Glue two flags onto the left side of the first mountain fold, lining the first one up to the top of the concertina accordion, and the second to the bottom.
  • Glue a third flag to the right side of the first mountain fold, centering it between the first and second flag. There should be about 1/16–1/8 of an inch between the flags.
  • Continue to glue the rest of the flags to each mountain fold, gluing two in one direction on one side of the fold, and one in the opposing direction on the other side of the fold.
  • Cover your two boards with either book cloth or paper each individually. 
  • Attach the 1” end tabs to the cover boards with PVA, one at a time, and carefully center onto your covered book board.
  • Glue your end sheets in with PVA, trimming paper if needed ahead of time. Press book in nipping press or under weight at home.
Artist Examples & Class Demos