Books, Blurb, and Bourriaud

Progress, Brothers! Ok, so we're not on the Potemkin, but progress is still happening. I've started to do page layouts for my book by Blurb and I'm really pleased with the visual rhythm of the book so far. My photos have a combination of black and white backgrounds, so I'm trying to use background colors as a way to prepare the viewer's palette so to speak. I'm going to take my older photos (photos with the white background) and edit them in Adobe Lightroom to create more aesthetic continuity among the photos in the book. I'll start by experimenting with one and see where that leads me. I'm thinking the book will end up being over sixty pages once I add attribution pages, and index, and my other photos. My models are all lined up to be photographed this week and next, so I'm hoping to capture some more gorgeous images both for large prints and to bring into the book.

©Hillary Rogers

I also did some reading about other photographers and their bookmaking endeavors as well as the influence of conceptual art on photography. Photography After Conceptual Art, edited by Diarmuid Costello and Margaret Iversen, explains how the shift of art's overall focus has affected the photographer and they way they present and document their works. Much of what resonated with me had to do with the way photographers dealt with text that accompanied their works as well as the artist's consideration of context. Ed Ruscha, even though much of his work revolves around capturing the truth of everyday life, has a similar approach to mine when it comes to the book as an object. He considers greatly the experience of the viewer looking through a book and how that is different and should be treated differently than viewing the art on its own and out of context. George Brecht's consideration of context was more focused on making his books appear interactive and echo reality through his use of text and graphic design. Overall, the combination of all these influences gave me an impression of documentation and context that was very similar to the need for art historians to contextualize pieces. This may have convinced me to include quotes from my Classics professor regarding the individuals that I end up using in my book.