I have to admit I often feel frustrated when visiting a museum or gallery. Viewing art requires you to stand a few feet away from the piece; spend a few seconds or a few minutes staring at it; read the label and the text (optional), and move on to the next piece. As an introvert, I feel overwhelmed after looking at a room full of artifacts. For each work of art my mind rushes to study the color palette, composition, personal expression, trying to find tensions and similarities, and put it in an historical context. How I wish I could touch the canvas, feel the texture, hold it closer to me in search of more intimacy! I struggled for years to solve this issue in my own practice. I tried photo installations where the work was three dimensional, but it was just another way to present my creations. The day my print making instructor directed the class to make an artist’s book I knew I had found my calling. Now I create vessels or spaces that reveal a tactile story. Each artist’s book needs to be discovered, opened, felt and/or heard. It’s an intimate experience where the reader uncovers his or her own unique relationship with the subject matter. Each artist’s book is created as to guide the reader in her/his discovery, introducing sensual elements to enhance the flow of the story or bringing discomfort to add tension. Each book starts with questions that form a concept, such as: – Are we resilient as the clouds changing forms and adapting to the weather? [“Tempus Fugit.”] – Can water be an object and still flow like water? [“The Bernoulli Equation.”] – How does it feel to collect our memories or to forget them altogether? [“Forgotten, Lost And Found.”] My abstract answers will evolve into tangible prototypes, most of the them in paper or wood until it becomes obvious that the book will offer readers a distinct visual, auditory and/or tactile journey. Then they are handmade in a limited edition. An artist’s book is the only art form that requires an interaction. They are my answer to creating art that can be experienced, but they also fulfill a deeper existential quest: Do humans share a common reality? Each book becomes a new experiment that tests the answers to this question. |
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Each book starts with questions.
