100 Objects for Making

A visual reference book for your next pattern, drawing, layout or paper project. Explore 100 Smithsonian collection objects, each paired with an observation, a making prompt and a suggested use by Kreateur Media.

$9.99 USD · one-time purchase

Buy the atlas — $9.99

One printable PDF · 118 pages · About 31 MB. Digital download only.

100 distinct objects organised into seven chapters.
An image, colour swatches, a creative prompt and source references for every object.
Six illustrated projects for repeats, posters, paper wraps, folding, edges and material boards.
Clickable contents, chapter indexes and museum-image links.

What’s inside

Repeat & rhythm: 18 textile and pattern references for spacing, motif and repetition.
Borders & frames: 16 studies in edges, bands, ornament and framing.
Colour & surface: 15 references for palettes, texture and the distribution of colour.
Drawing & observation: 10 studies in marks, light, layers and viewpoints.
Form & making: 15 objects for profiles, folds and paper models.
Type & composition: 14 examples of lettering, hierarchy and page organisation.
Space & structure: 12 references for frames, openings and spatial relationships.

How to use it

Start with the kind of work you want to make, choose a reference and try its prompt. Use paper and pencil or your preferred creative software. This is a reference and exercise book, with no fillable form fields.

Read in a PDF reader or print selected pages on US Letter at actual size; fit to page for A4. Colour is useful for palette studies, while written instructions and shape exercises work in greyscale. Save the file and use it offline.

Sources & Kreateur’s contribution

The source photographs are Smithsonian Open Access images marked CC0. They remain available free from their museum sources. Kreateur adds the selection, organisation, observations, exercises and composition sketches. Source photographs have not been retouched; they are resized and compressed for this download.

This is an independent Kreateur Media publication, not produced, sponsored or endorsed by the Smithsonian Institution. The exercises are Kreateur guidance, not museum instructions or reconstructions of historic techniques.

You may adapt the exercises and sketches into your own personal or commercial creative projects. The CC0 source images retain their existing permissions. Palette swatches are approximate selections from photographs.

Explore the original Smithsonian Open Access collections

Delivery & support

The complete atlas is $9.99 USD. Pay through Stripe, then return to your purchase-specific download page. Save the PDF and keep your recovery link private. No subscription or ongoing website session is needed to use the file.

For help with an order or file, contact info@kreateurmedia.com.