This Kickstarter is to help fund an artist book project to be made during my residency at Minnesota Center for the Book Arts in June 2012. If funded, this Kickstarter will help pay for high-quality, archival paper and binding materials, photopolymer plates for letterpress printing and housing during the three week residency. Funding raised above and beyond the goal will contribute to additional books printed in the edition.

More images at my website:

http://redthreadletterpress.com/home.html

[Large image above is an aesthetic example of what the book from this project will look like.]

Artist Statement & Proposal

My current line of work focuses on destruction. Using repetitive and geometric forms, the space becomes abstracted through this destruction. What or who is being destroyed is not clear. The destruction of the text and imagery on the page tells the story of the breakdown of this information through digital means.

In my residency at MCBA, I would like to continue to investigate this destruction through the use of only text and language elements. Everyday our society’s ability to communicate is breaking down. The clarity of our thoughts in the digital environment has taken a backseat to the speed at which the information is received. Text messages, blog entries and status updates are the preferred method of communication. Often times, it takes longer to decipher these quick, poorly written messages than it does to understand a well-written sentence with obscure or seldom used words.

In this project, I will be using found fragments of these communication methods and abstracting them through digital means and printing techniques.

Using language as a primary visual element, the text in my work becomes abstracted through various digital processes. Cutting, masking, and layering techniques in Illustrator are used to destroy and manipulate it digitally. [Image at the top of the page is an aesthetic example of what the book from this project will look like.] Printing, overprinting, and subtleties in ink are used to create a visceral, delicate surface on the page enticing the viewer to decipher the message. Is the language or message within the text important – and if it is important, why obscure it or make it difficult to read?

Project Specifics:

• Approximate bound book size: 10” x 11”
• Approximate book length: 8 - 12 printed pages
• Approximate edition size: 25 – 30 books
• Printing technique to use – photopolymer letterpress using a Vandercook
• Binding technique – TBD, possibly drumleaf or a sewn technique

Backing will fund...

• High-quality, archival printmaking paper to print the imagery on
• Davey (book) board to make the hard covers for the book
• Photopolymer plates to create unique imagery for letterpress printing
• Travel and housing during my three week residency