The librarian of the Artists’ Books Collection, Larissa Beringer, travelled south this February to attend the LA Art Book Fair, put on by Printed Matter Inc. She picked up a slew of new titles for the collection, and came back with a bag full of business cards and pamphlets with the names of exciting artists and publishers to investigate in the future.
Out this work, I was most charmed by the four titles from Issue Press. Issue Press is an independent publishing operation run by George Wietor in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Using strictly a Risograph Digital Duplicator they produce artists’ books, posters, and various other types of printed matter. In addition to special projects with specific artists, Issue Press offers printing/publishing services by hire and provides detailed information and resources about Risograph printing on their website. Their publications are soft, slim, and affordable with a cohesive aesthetic which comes as a product of the printing method. Highlights from Issue Press now held in the Emily Carr Artists’ Books Collection are Close Encounters by Hannah K. Lee and Cabin-Time 4: Wilderness.
Close Encounters by Hannah K. Lee
Detail
Hannah K. Lee is a Korean American artist from Los Angeles, living in Brooklyn, and teaching at Parsons. She is an illustrator, who’s practice incorporates typography and design, and who synthesizes these interests within the form of the zine or artist’s book. Her fifth zine, Close Encounters, combines playfully configured captions with two-toned imagery. Lee’s drawings walk the line between abstraction and representation, using non-figurative imagery to illustrate words and phrases that imply human interaction or awareness. Each pairing echoes with a profound simplicity. The text is universally evocative and the images just shy of graspable, which creates a work that offers something new each time it is read.
Cabin-Time 4: Wilderness
Detail
Cabin-Time 4: Wilderness is a publication which resulted from the 2013 Cabin-Time artists’ residency in Wilderness State Park in Michigan State. Cabin-Time describes themselves as a “roaming creative residency to remote places”, and hosts an annual camping excursion where the crew plus creative residents live, work, and play together for a week — responding and adapting to the natural environment. This publication serves as a “field guide” to the residency experience and attached exhibition. It is comprised of a description of the residency, a short piece of writing/bio from each of the participants, and drawings/photographs/recipes related to the work that each artist made during the time. The images showcase the distinct and emotive qualities of Risograph printing, and leave you with a sweet sense of this temporary creative community.
BIBLIOGRPAHY of all new titles acquired at the LA Art Book Fair ’16, with Issue Press titles listed first: **Artist Book numbers and links to catalog to come once they have been processed
Issue Press:
Brown, Carson Davis, Sarah Burwash, Kristen Degree, Amy Flaherty, Todd Freeman, Ryan Greaves, Geoffrey Holstad, Ali Reid, Mary Rothlisberger, Zach See, Nick Stockton, Martyna Szczesna. Cabin-Time 4: Wilderness. Grand Rapids, MI: Issue Press, 2013. Print.
Damron, Drew. Her Pichers: The Life and Work of Gert Van Houten. Grand Rapids, MI: Issue Press, 2015. Print.
Darnell, Sarah, Geoffrey Holsted, Ryan Greaves, Isabella Martin, Miles Mattison, Colin McCarthy, Mary Rothlisberger, Cabin-Time 3. Grand Rapids, MI: Issue Press, 2012. Print.
Lee, Hannah K. Close Encounters. Grand Rapids, MI: Issue Press, 2015. Print.
Other:
Bonajo, Melanie. Matrix Botanica – Non-human Persons. Vol. 1. N.p.: Experimental Jetset, 2015. Print.
Critton, Benjamin, and Heidi Korsavong. Pools. Los Angeles, CA & New York, NY: Norma, 2016. Print.
Florentinus, Astrid. The Road. Nijmegen, NL: Knust (Extrapool), 2014. Print.
Henrot, Camille. Elephant Child. London, UK: Koenig Books Ltd., 2016. New York, NY: Inventory Press LLC, 2016. Print.
Keefe, Josie, Phyllis Ma. Lazy Mom presents Lazy Chow. New York, NY: n.p., n.d. Print.
“LA Art Book Fair Catalogue.” New York: Printed Matter, 2016. Print.
Lee, Austin. Spheres Publication: Austin Lee. Philippe Karrer, 2015. Print.
Mueller, Kristen. Language to Cover a Page. Motto Books/ & SO, 2014. Print.
Nelson, Richard and Sharon. Easy Field Guide to Common Desert Cactus. Phoenix, AZ: American Traveler Press, 1996. Print.
Nodland, Kai. All Connected By Invisible Strings. Nijmegen, NL: Knust (Extrapool), 2015. Print.
Peyton, Elizabeth. Da scheinest du, o lieblichster der Sterne. New York, Ny: KARMA, 2014. Print.
Pruitt, Rob. Rob Pruitt’s EBay Flea Market. Ed. Francesca Rumiato. Venice, Italy: Bruno, 2015. Print.
Reynolds, Victoria. Pattern No. 2 Victoria Reynolds. Portland, Oregon: Ampsersand Editions, 2016. Print.
Ruckhaberle, Christoph. Pattern No. 1 Ruckhaberle. Portland, Oregon: Ampersand Editions, 2015. Print.
Ruiz, Guadalupe. Klein Fotoenzyklopadie. Biel, Switzerland: n.p., n.d. Print.
Schauwecker, Alex. Whales, Ghosts, and Other Stuff. Baden, Switzerland: Kodoji Press, 2015. Print.
Spierenburg, Veronika. In Order of Pages. Baden, Switzerland: Kodoji Press, 2013. Print.
Springer, Anna-Sophie, Dora García, Chris Kraus, Mark Von Schlegell, Charles Stankievech, and Jacob Wren. Traversals: Five Conversations on Art & Writing. Berlin: K. Verlag, 2014. Print.
Temporary Services. Self-Reliance Library. Chicago, IL: Temporary Services, 2013. Print.
Thomson, Marie Boye. Art Prison #9 DYNAMIC TOPOLOGY. Nijmegen, NL: Knust (Extrapool), 2014. Print.
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