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The Most Mesmerizing Video on the Internet: “The Art of the Marbler”

Here’s a gift for your Friday, all thanks to the internet—this film made for Douglas Cockerell & Son marbled papers, a company founded on marbling paper for bookbinding. The backstory of Cockerell Marbling is actually quite fascinating: Started by Douglas Cockerell, the hand marbling company was founded “to restore ancient and valuable books and other documents.” It also seems that the Cockerell family had a long lineage of creatives and artists, including Douglas’s brother, a curator and good friend of the “grandfather of the Arts & Crafts Movement” John Ruskin. 

The video shows marbling expert William Chapman in the 1970s pulling some astonishing tricks out of his hat:

We’ve also taken the liberty of making some gif highlights for your viewing pleasure:

And in case you’re wondering where to find these papers, sadly it looks as if the Cockerell marbling studio shut down in 2012 after over 100 years of hand production. Thankfully, its legacy still lives on through this awesome demo film. 

http://www.core77.com/posts/50215/The-Most-Mesmerizing-Video-on-the-Internet-The-Art-of-the-Marbler