Edizioni Punctum – A Maximum Gatefold

Edizioni Punctum – Guy Tillim’s Roma, Citta di Mezzo

While I was researching Guy Tillim’s 2009 Roma, Citta di Mezzo, published by Edizioni Punctum, I came across a really awesome image, above, that was posted on photo-eye that I feel elegantly illustrates the complexity of this gate-fold photobook. No mention of the photo credit for who conceptualized this illustration, but I am guessing that it came out of the creative photographic studios of Marco Delogu in Rome.

Yes, if you follow the single white line, you should find that it is one very long, continuous and extensive gatefold, as I tried to vainly illustrate in this earlier post. Truly, a gate-fold to the max.

For those with a roll feed on their inkjet printer, one long continuous gate-fold might not seem like such a big deal. But this photobook was printed on a commercial four-color (minimum) off-set, sheet feed printer and then the sheets (multiple pages per sheet, OR you could say that the book has only two pages, the front and the back of the single gate-fold) were bound seamlessly to create this book. A beautiful testimony to the craftsmanship of both the printer and bindery shops located in Italy (Verona, I believe, as I am traveling right now and will have to confirm when I return to my studio). Even when I knew where to look, it was almost impossible to detect the glue and splicing of this monster gate-fold. Then add in the numerous creasing steps that allow this gate-fold to provide the two-page spreads for each photograph and all of this in commercial quantity, e.g. over 300+ copies. A daunting task even for a hand made artist book of one to ten copies.

This book is already on my short list for innovative and creative photobooks for 2010. Even though it was printed and bound in 2009, I only recently became aware of it this year.

It remains to be seen how durable this gate-fold book will be, but it has held up very well so far in my globe trotting travels the last couple of weeks. Which was the same trip that I tore the belly band of my Hornstra 101 Billionaires, and slightly frayed the corner of Isturbide’s Le Banos de Frida, and the previous trip I ripped the corner of my outer wrap of Goldberg’s Open See. Yes, although I collect photobooks, I also use my photobooks and have only a few qualms about carrying them about with me.

So expect my book review of Tillim’s Roma, Citta di Mezzo (Rome, Media City) in the near future.

Best regards, Douglas

Graciela Iturbide – El Bano de Frida

Copyright Graciela Iturbide 2008, courtesy Edizioni Punctum

It is always interesting for me to compare how two photobook publishers manage the design and layout of the same photographer’s body of work. In this case, it is the publication of Garciela Iturbide’s bathroom of Frida Kahlo by ROSEGALLERY titled El Bano de Frida Kahlo and Edizioni Punctum title El Bano de Frida. In June of 2009 year I reviewed Itrurbide’s project published by the ROSEGALLERY and recently acquired the Edizioni Punctum publication while in Italy this month.

On the surface, Itubide is using a documentary style to reveal the private bathroom of Frida Kahlo, the Mexican artist who also was the wife of Diego Rivera, also a renowned Mexican artist. How these two publishers curate their respective photobooks provides subtle differences in emphasis and how we might read Itrubide’s project as a whole.

As described in my ROSEGALLERY review, their book is actually two books in one, part literary, and part photography. From one side you encounter the photographs of Iturbide, and then you flip the book over for the short fictional novel by Mario Bellatin. There are 21 black and white photographs, which may be the entire project and provides a broader perspective of Kahlo’s bathroom environment.

The Edizioni Punctum photobook is entirely the photographs of Itrurbide without the literary story by Bellatin, with an introduction by Cristiana Perrella and afterword by Giovanna Calvenzi, both essays are in Italian and English. This book contains only 11 of her black and white images. For my taste, the 11 photographs selected are a tighter curatorial edit of the bathroom and the devices and articles that Kahlo depended on, both in her private sanctuary and for her public persona. There are few visual distractions in reading the intent of these medical devices, to see them as they are, to potentially understand what the function was and what it might mean to be the person who had to endure it.

As a result, I found that the Edizioni Punctum photobook provides a more succinct metaphor about how our outward appearances’ can contrast with our private conditions.  That we can construct elaborate masks for of our public person, yet we may be concealing inside a lot of pain and suffering. That underneath our façade, there are the back braces, the artificial legs, supportive railing, and the complicated enemas, but we manage to keep it cloaked and private, essentially the walking wounded.

Resolving one issue I had with the ROSEGALLERY edition, the Edizioni Punctum hardcover book is the same height, but 2 ¼” wider, allowing the interior square photographs to be displayed larger. The interior photographs of the Edizioni Punctum book are 5 ½” x 5 ½” versus the 4 ¹/₈” x ¹/₈” in the previous book, which for me improves the readability of the photographs.

Also of note, the Edizioni Punctum hardcover is a glued sheet on thick boards, which creates a nice effect by increasing the books heft, but this is a delicate layering. The corners and edges can become easily damaged and frayed, thus requiring careful handling.

The Edizioni Punctum was curated & designed by the publisher, Marco Delogu.

by Douglas Stockdale

Pond Press update – Horenstein

I just recevied a nice note from Bill Hannigan, the publisher of Pond Press that they are launching a new Henry Horenstein book, SHOW, with press release and book details here and here. The book is a chronicling of the neo-burlesque explosion of the last decade.

What is interesting is Bill’s note about this books availability, potentially an indication of how the small book publishers are rethinking the distribution of photobooks, which is as follows;

This is a very different release. We are doing an Artist’s Edition of only 600 copies. The book officially releases next Monday. We have already sold a quarter of the print run in pre-sales. We are not selling this through a distributor, only via our website and independent booksellers.

Best regards, Douglas

Hyunjin Kim – Even Your Ears

Copyright Hyunjin Kim, courtesy Farewell Books

Similar to the previous Farewell book that I recently reviewed of Noriko Takazawa’s Sensation, Kim Hyunjin’s Even Your Ears is a study in contextual minimalism, with the book’s title as the only clue for the accompanying photographs. This book does not have an introduction, artistic statement, captions or accompanying essay. I read the books title as being somewhat similar to Stefen Heyne’s The Noise, that the accompanying photographs are the equivalence of visual “noise”.

The book is a progression of black and white photographs, one per page, of places that could be close to home. The photographs seem to be of locations that could be a common everyday experience; the front entrance of a dwelling, the interior living room and a tight detail of a kitchen, room windows with curtains or plants on the window sill, and someone doing something at a desk. The other photographs are related to experiencing one’s life; traveling in an urban place, at a sporting event, meeting someone at a restaurant and events that occur on the street as we pass by. Maybe not a common experience is a baby lying in a hospital bed with a protruding Intravenous Vein (IV) set, but there are unfortunately experiences of a hospital environment while a family member or friend was ill and needed extensive care.

Hyunjin is exploring what goes on beyond the surface of what was heard while making these photographs, as to the memory of related events. These are photographs that Hynjin created, but I can only surmise what was heard while the event was photographed. That requires tapping into a personal memory bank of visual events with a linkage to the sounds that were occurring. A reminder that experiencing life is to also experience a canopy of sensory inputs; touch, sight, sound, smell, and taste.

Like the previous Farewell book, this book is also better thought of as a booklet, as the 24 pages are saddle stitched (stapled) with a soft cover (same cover stock as the interior pages), the pages are a medium weight, thus a bit fragile and susceptible to ear marking and fraying damage.  The photographs are printed in Black and White by offset printing. The matte paper does not provide really deep blacks to the photographs, giving the images a smaller contrast range.

by Douglas Stockdale

Noriko Takazawa – Sensation

Copyright Noriko Takazawa 2009 courtesy Farewell Books

Noriko Takazawa’s recent book (booklet), Sensation, published by Farwell, provides only the one word title to create a context to understand this body of photographs. Thinking that I knew the meaning of the word and what it might signify, I did a quick sanity check; Sensation, meaning “a physical feeling or perception from something that comes into contact with the body; something sensed.”  Sensation could also mean “a widespread reaction of interest or excitement”. Okay, so that provides a couple of plausible connotations for this body of photographs.

The photographs as a collection are an enigma, a riddle constructed of clearly delineated photographs mixed with those that are very ambiguous, bordering on abstract. The photographs that have a recognizable subject matter are a combination of interior, exterior and reflective landscapes, all of them tightly framed. There images of a hanging curtains, the side of building beyond a fence, and a field of tall grass with a slightly obscured rectangular shape.

The photographs that contain reflections also have hints of someone centrally located within the frame, possibly the photographer. The most clearly delineated photograph is also located in the very center of this book, a somewhat pivotal location. It is a complex photograph with multiple reflections and layers, creating the impression of looking in while looking back. The complexity of this photograph is increased by the presence of the photographer located in various planes and locations with the frame, some discernible, some abstract. The person’s reflection in the center of the image is defined enough to establish that this is the photographer, but due to the quality of the printing/image, the features are not salient and clear.

It takes a moment to discern that the center-most reflection of the photographer is really a double reflection, with a ghostly outline around the more sharply defined figure. There is a suggestion of three-dimensional space and perhaps a little more elusive, an element of time. To me it represents the multilayer-ed aspects of the complexity of life, such as who we were, are now and might be. The mostly delineated photograph of the book also has some of the most abstract qualities.

The other more ambiguous images with the book have subject matter that is indeterminable, vague and mysterious. These images have mostly broad areas of middle gray tonality with intermittent areas of either darker or lighter values. There are hints of texture and a few details that fall in and out of focus. There appear to be cast shadows throughout the pages, but what is casting these shadows is unknown and contributes to the mystery.

I will acknowledge that these images are curious and seem vaguely related to the book’s title. I think of the senses as something that creates clearly perceived feelings, making enough of a connection as to be consciously recognized. I think these photographs create a very subtle connection with my senses, which are barely recognizable. Takazawa’s photographs are gray, flat, muted, indistinct, soft and not very substantial, more of a whisper of a touch, which I will admit is still a sensory reaction.

The textures in this series of photographs may bring back the memories of a past sensation.  Made somewhat visible is the sense of hardness and rigidity of a wall, the softness of a curtain, the faint smell of summer grass, the uneven and bumpy pebbles and rocks on the ground. Looking at what appears to be a pillow with the latent impression of a head might bring back a feeling of being enveloped in the warmth of the covers while listening to the sounds of the night.

This book is be best thought of as a booklet or a zine, as the 24 pages are saddle stitched (stapled) with a soft cover (same cover stock as the interior pages), the pages are a medium weight, thus a bit fragile and susceptible to ear marking and fraying damage.  The photographs are printed in Black and White by offset printing. The matte paper does not provide really deep blacks to the photographs, giving the images a low contrast and middle gray appearance.

The only information about the book is the book’s title; it does not have an introduction, artistic statement, captions or accompanying essay, very minimalist. The photographs are either full bleed across the spread or a three quarter bleed positioned on the top half of the page, with the adjacent photographs butting into to each other. In the spirit of this book, I can also say that the sensation of holding this flimsy booklet is one of lightness, and it does not feel very substantial.

Note: I am sorry, but after re-reading my initial published review, I found that it was insufficient, incomplete and generally lame. So I yanked it and now have published this second version, above.  I hope that you will find it more appropriate.

Thank you for your patience, Douglas Stockdale

Farewell – update

Copyright Farewell Books

I recently received my first two Farewell books from Mårten Lange, and news that Mårten is relocating his publication operation from Gothenburg, Sweden to the U.K. this month. So if he is not responding immediately back to your inquires, understand that his is probably a bit distracted at the moment.

Expect to see the details of these two books over the next couple of days.

Best regards, Douglas

Rob Hornstra – 101 Billionaires – Crisis Edition

Copyright Rob Hornstra 2008 courtesy of Rob Hornstra

In 2008 Rob Hornstra successfully self published his photobook 101 Billionaires, which was well received and the first edition was sold out in early 2009. Economic fate dealt Hornstra a very nice lead-in for his slightly revised second edition. The world’s economic crisis in 2009 substantially reduced the amount of Billionaires in Russia to 49, thus was born Hornstra’s Crisis Edition. By the way, and it is probably not a secret, but his subject is not about those who were the 101 Billionaires, or even the 49 remaining billionaires in Russia.

Russia went into a steep economic and social decline in the 1990’s, especially outside the edges of Moscow. With Putin now in charge, it could be argued that Russia might not be in as steep a decline, but it is far from being healed. The real subject is about those who are attempting to eke out a living and survive in the aftermath of the post-soviet 90’s, and to state the often used quote for this book; “revealing the other side of modern Russia, the raw reality that lurks behind the façade of the power elite”.

This book is a lively combination of visual and written narratives. The 101 photographs within the book are segmented by sections; Cement Town, Credit, The Sweet taste of champagne, Paradise lost, Death of a junkie, Frontovik, Firmly behind Putin and Lyubov’s children. Each section has a brief two page introduction providing a contextual map for the following photographs and each section includes one spread providing extended captions for select photographs from the section (see last image below).

I found a three part dis-harmony running through the book; the environmental context, the old and aging and the youth. The non-Billionaires are found far away from Moscow, out in the vast territory that Hornstra labels the hinterland. The Urals and Siberia account for probably 75% of the territory of Russia and here Hornsta mined the cities of Asbest, Angarsk, Irkutsk, Verkry Tagil, Nizhny Novgorod, Novozhilkino, Kirovgrad, and Chelyabinsk.

The urban exterior environments of the homes and apartments are not appealing and pretty. The housing and apartments within the cities are drab and gray, appearing to be run-down, with some appearing to be abondon and very depressing to view. Multiple apartment homes appear to be rising up in the darkness or lurking within a hazy landscapes and it is not known if this is natural fog or a thick industrial haze.

Hornstra’s photographs of the interior conditions within these living spaces do not fare much better. The paint is visibly flaking off the walls and ceilings, appliances in disrepair, furniture appearing to be the barest of necessities with the kitchens having only rudimentary cooking equipment. For the homes of the drug addicts, with the drugs being brewed on the stove or the table tops littered with needles and other drug paraphernalia, the photographs appear even grimmer and depressing.

Within these living conditions, Hornstra found a wide breath of humanity. There are the older stoic elders who attempt to put on the good face, while the youth appear not to care about hiding their disdain or boredom. The aging adults are stiff and proudly festooned with medals and ribbons from days of past glories, appearing to be in a time warp and struggling to adapt. Hornstra usually photographs them standing in a formal pose, probably one of their own choosing, wearing their best attire, frontally facing the camera, direct and unflinching.

In direct conflict are the photographs of the youth, who are seen partying, playing, drinking, dancing by themselves or in groups, carousing, and romancing. Some of whom experienced the 90’s as teens have become the fringe society, now addicted to drugs, dying from AIDS, buying and using drugs, perhaps selling themselves in the process (e.g. basic hourly rates, which does not limited oneself to a single customer) to obtain the money for drugs.

The very young appear relaxed, joyful and seem to be unaware of what maybe their limited future. As they become young adults, they appear to be more guarded, closed, suspicious, weary, or if caught unaware, bored with too much time to waste.

I also find a subtle humor running a delicate thread throughout the book, especially with the selection of the paired-up photographs across facing pages.

A pair of photographs, each with two “birds”, while on one side are the two available dancers perched on a couch and on display while the other photograph has two stuffed birds perched on a rock within a display. Both set of heads are facing similar directions, creating a mimic effect between the facing pages.

Another pair of photographs, the semi-nude we are informed is one of 15 participating in “The Best Striptease from the Urals”, holds a cloth strategically over her groin. The facing photograph is an much older, tired man, sitting at a sparse kitchen table who has his joined hands on top of his lap, echoing the same hand pattern as the dancer. The young and tartly is faced off against the old and tawdry, representing the current and present with a gloomy glimpse of the future.

Two young guys, dressed in similar black clothing are out ice-skating together, with big smiles. The facing photograph has three dowdy older women, one with gaping teeth, also wearing similar patterned clothes and head scarf’s, but joined together within a living room, the table before them is littered with dirty plates and bottles of wine and spirits in the process of being consumed. Each age group is finding their common ground and comfort zone. A subliminal message about how the adventurous and playful youth will over time soon become sedimentary and confined.

From an interesting and enlightening 2008 conversation that Joerg Colberg had with Hornstra and this project, Hornstra states:

“Documentary photography is the use of images to tell a story based on real events, from the perspective of the photographer. Documentary photography bridges the gap between photojournalism and independent art photography.

I believe that documentary photography is a form of art. Just like ‘autonomous photography’ (I don’t know how you call this in English). By the way, there are many overlaps between these forms. Somebody wrote that one of the most general explanations of art is that art is an expression of the human soul. That is exactly what documentary photography is. Otherwise it is not documentary.”

I believe photojournalism is something else. Not better or worse or more difficult or easier or whatever. I do not believe that journalism is independent (you know everything about that in the US), but I believe that the goal of the photojournalist should be to focus objectively on what is happening at a certain moment and not what his/her opinion is about it. That stands in contrast with making a documentary where the most essential part is your opinion. However, I realize that being independent for journalists is almost impossible. I think inside every journalists there hides a (small or big) documentary maker.”

All 101 of the original photographs are still in Hornstra’s photobook (to take further advantage of the 101 count, I had monentarily thought about making this review the 101^st on the The PhotoBook), but the 16  gatefolds have been eliminated (see this example from Andrew Phelps blog Buffet) to make this book a more “Crisis” sensitive and economical book to purchase. Potentially making this book perhaps as collectible as the first edition, the belly band has been modified with a cross out of the 101 text, with additional text on the wrap around stating that there are now 49 Billionaires as of the 2009 second edition printing. This is an interesting and creative marketing ploy.

The small size hardbound book is nicely printed and bound, a delight to hold and read.

by Douglas Stockdale

Marco Delogu – Punctum Press

Marco Delogu photo by Douglas Stockdale

While in Rome this month, I had an opportunity to meet with Marco Delogu, photographer, organizer of the Rome FotoGrafia Festival and Capalbiofotografia, and as importantly, the creative spirit and publisher of Punctum Press. I was very fortunate to carve out some time in his busy schedule. The conversation was wonderful and we quickly ran a wide gamut, ranging from our respective photographic backgrounds, other publishers, the future of the distribution of fine photographic books, book publishing and printing and of course, to photobooks.

It did not take long while inspecting a few of the Punctum Press books to see that there is a lot of respect for the photographers and the desire to produce a high quality photobook. The Punctum Press books are all printed in Italy and the resulting photographs are crisp, clean and beautiful. Delogu is very interested in creating a book that reflects the photographers intent and doing so, he is pushing some publishing boundaries. As example (see the two photos below), Guy Tillim’s Roma, Citta Di Mezzo is essentially one very long and continuous accordion fold. If you have the length of space, the entire book can be displayed. This book would have made it to my short list of Innovative Books for 2009 if I had acquired it sooner. But it is better to acquire it now than not at all, eh?

As a photobook publisher, his inquisitive spirit extends will beyond his own publications, as he has an extensive collection of photobooks, and as he noted, in addition to what I saw at his offices at Punctum, he has even more at his studio.Regretfully, I did not have enough time to spend, but there is a good chance that I will be back in Rome within the next couple of months, so I hope to have the opportunity to continue this conversation.

So in the very near future I will be reviewing a couple of books that feature Delogu’s photographs, both Noir Et Blanc (Black & White) and I Trenta Asssassini (The Thirty Assassins), and a few of Punctum Press photobooks; Guy Tillim’s Roma, Citta Di Mezzo, Claudia Jaguaribe’s Quando Eu VI and the Punctum Press’s edition of Graciela Iturbide’s El Bano De Frida.

Best regards, Douglas Stockdale

John Duncan – Bonfires

Copyright John Duncan 2008 courtesy John Duncan and Photoworks/Belfast Exposed Photography/ Steidl

In John Duncan’s latest book, Bonfires, we see that he is continuing to investigate the urban environment being built around his native region of Belfast in Northern Ireland. It is a region that is in flux, with acute memories of adversity, turmoil and unrest.

In this book, John Duncan’s documentary style photographs of the transitional structures erected for the Eleventh of July bonfires in Northern Ireland provide a variety of readings. For those living in the greater Belfast region of Northern Ireland, there are the underlying passions of politics, economics, prejudice, history, animosity, and pride, tied up in a seemingly complex religious bundle. A European context is that these bonfires are tangentially related to the Battle of Boyne in 1690, a battle in Northern Ireland which was “not a religiously motivated one, but part of a complicated political, dynastic and strategic conflict. From my perspective in the United States, not knowing the history or the reason for these structures, these are photographs of an interesting series of non-artesian built sculptures.

The books introduction by Karen Downey and David Chandler ask the open ended question;

And, then years after the Belfast Peace Agreement – with the cessation of violence and the feverish reconstruction of the city – (Duncan’s) Bonfires contributes to the increasing important question of how Northern Ireland’s contested past and conflicting identities will be inter-graded into its planned future.

Nevertheless, the photographs themselves are cool recordings of man-made structures, edifices that appear to be in the progress of being erected. Photographed on overcast days, the color is not deeply saturated with a lack of deep shadows or bright highlights. The flat lighting provides a clinical, dispassionate and a matter-of-fact distant viewpoint. It could be argued that photographing these structures that appear only at this time of year, the overcast lighting is the normative for this region, thus the flat light lighting is perhaps not a stylistic intent, but an environmental and cultural factor.

There are a few people seen within the photographs, minor characters in relation to the structures and found on the outer edges of the pictorial frame, which links these photographs to the topographical traditions of Brend & Hilla Becher, Candida Hoefer, Ed Rusca, Robert Adams, Walker Evans and Eugene Atget. Like the urban photographs of these photographers, the people may not be seen, but their presence is made palpable by the disarray of the man-made materials, looming structures in progress and the urban locations.

The man-made sculptures fashioned out of locally found materials have an Andy Goldsworthy sculptural aspect to them, each reflecting the sensibility of the builder in-charge. Duncan has photographed them in their various construction states, centering the primary structure within in the middle ground of the pictorial frame. The serial details of the structures can be compared and contrasted, as well as being evaluated within the urban environmental context.

The photographs are also mysterious and threatening with structures that appear to rising up from this troubled urban land. We can not be absolutely sure about the reason for their existence and what will happen to them. We see signage, text, flags and other elements festooning these structures, but may not understand the intended message. These photographs may instill a sense of celebration or a feeling of rage, or a range of feelings somewhere in between.  We do not know what will become of them, thought we suspect that they will soon be consumed and become part of history, folklore, and memory.

The photographs are indications of a cultural story and temporal situation in which there exits a certain order that has been framed and preserved by Duncan.  Similar to the New Topological photographers, Duncan does not appear to push an agenda, “without glorifying or condemning these structures (built environment), assembling a survey without a unifying narrative.”

The essays by Colin Graham & Mary Warner Marien provide a wider external context to the photographs and discuss the political, economic and cultural backgrounds for the existence of these structures.

By Douglas Stockdale

Photo-eye lists: Best PhotoBooks of 2009

Photo-eye News Blast: Welcome to the Best Photobooks of 2009. Continuing where photo-eye left off last year, they’ve expanded this long photo-eye tradition to include top 10 photobook lists from a group of prominent photographers, bookmakers, editors, publishers and critics (NOTE: This wonderful list includes yours truly, Douglas Stockdale this year!). Below you’ll find a complete list of the contributors, each linking to that individual’s list. The range of books selected for 2009 is vast — spanning continents and genres, and together they form a powerful survey of contemporary photography.

BTW Kudos to Melaine McWhorter at photo-eye for pulling this whole list together, awesome job Mel!! – Douglas

THE BEST BOOKS OF 2009

SELECTED BY:

Marco Delogu

Lesley A. Martin

Paul Schiek

Antone Dolezal

Melanie McWhorter

George Slade

Daniel Espeset

Ron Jude & Danielle Mericle

Alec Soth

Tricia Gabriel

Jeff Mermelstein

Douglas Stockdale

Richard Gordon

Eric Miles

Ed Templeton

John Gossage

Laura Moya

Sara Terry

Todd Hido

Martin Parr

Jennifer Thompson

Anne Kelly

Andrew Phelps

Erik van der Weijde

Jeff Ladd

Markus Schaden

Michael Wolf