https://content-object.com Content Object Design Studio Wed, 21 Jun 2023 17:39:17 +0000 https://content-object.com en https://content-object.com/End-of-Summer-2023-Wherever-you-go-there-you-are Wed, 21 Jun 2023 17:39:17 +0000 Content Object Design Studio https://content-object.com/End-of-Summer-2023-Wherever-you-go-there-you-are <img width="900" height="600" width_o="900" height_o="600" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/3f905b499f1f9d11413e9fbd56ade9bbbe63a9e1ebf052027ecf7c49a05b56c9/unnamed.gif" data-mid="182855139" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/900/i/3f905b499f1f9d11413e9fbd56ade9bbbe63a9e1ebf052027ecf7c49a05b56c9/unnamed.gif" />C/O studio in Los Angeles, detail of recently designed books, magnetic board with press tests, and essential mock-up tools C/O—End of Summer—2023 Wherever you go, there you are Hey pal! How do I get to town from here?And he said:Well just take a right where they're going to build that new shopping mallGo straight past where they're going to put in the freewayTake a left at what's going to be the new sports centerAnd keep going until you hit the place whereThey're thinking of building that drive-in bankYou can't miss it. And I said: This must be the placeOoo coo coo ooo. Golden cities. Golden townsGolden cities. Golden towns*&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; — Laurie Anderson, Big Science (1982) <img width="2500" height="1667" width_o="2500" height_o="1667" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/1829df1a5e363966a026d49ff2e195e88ec6607f45c64881ff9774a56a5a367e/unnamed.jpeg" data-mid="182855218" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/1829df1a5e363966a026d49ff2e195e88ec6607f45c64881ff9774a56a5a367e/unnamed.jpeg" />Kimberly Varella with partner and daughter, Robby and Juniper Herbst along with resident cat, Piano, on their back deck in Los Angeles. Ceramic tub by Michael Parker I’m excited to share that Content Object is moving to New York, just an hour north of New York City, to a town called *Goldens Bridge. There is a train station a moment’s walk from the studio door, a lush forest skirting the backyard, and the internet to continue connecting with you. The change of landscape from west to east is sure to bring its challenges, with perhaps an opportunity to get lost, but I gleefully look forward to this new chapter in my life and practice.Here I think about the story of Charles Fletcher Lummis—how he traveled across the North American continent (in the reverse direction), filling his suit pockets with the treasures he came upon along his way. These items, along with the wonder Lummis felt toward them, helped build the Los Angeles Public Library into the institution of inquiry it is today. In this vein, books themselves are the breadcrumbs marking the paths we find as we zigzag through life.Leaving L.A. isn’t easy. I don't take for granted the connections and friendships that have grown and blossomed here over the last 26 years. But, with that, I genuinely look forward to sharing my new discoveries through our conversations, visits, and by making new books together. <img width="2500" height="1667" width_o="2500" height_o="1667" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/b4f96ee62134d4c6fe17e982366b0e8263dc125167760ae0237f962135c4f67e/unnamed_2.jpeg" data-mid="182855304" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/b4f96ee62134d4c6fe17e982366b0e8263dc125167760ae0237f962135c4f67e/unnamed_2.jpeg" />Gabby sporting merch made for the Wardell Milan: Recent Work exhibition at the Benton Museum of Art, taken on her first day at C/O Additionally, and long overdue, I would like to introduce C/O’s new designer, Gabrielle Pulgar. Born and raised in the San Fernando Valley, Gabby joined C/O in December last year. She holds a degree from ArtCenter College of Design in Graphic Design. We just wrapped up our first book together, Hildur Ásgeirsdóttir Jónsson: Infinite Space, Sublime Horizons. In the six months we have worked together, I have witnessed Gabby’s extraordinary talent as a designer and admired her fierce sense of collaboration. Lucky for C/O, Gabby will continue on the team remotely during the summer and join us in Goldens Bridge this fall. We have a lot of exciting new projects on the horizon—east, west, and in between. If you’ve worked with us before, our process will be exactly the same, just on another coast, and if we haven’t worked together yet, we hope to hear from you. Much love, Kimberly Hot Off The Press Pedro Almodóvar: Installation/Instalación (Academy Museum of Motion Pictures) Hildur Ásgeirsdóttir Jónsson: Infinite Space, Sublime Horizons (Frederick R. Weisman Museum of Art, Pepperdine University) On Press John Waters: Pope of Trash (Academy Museum of Motion Pictures) Summer Wheat: Forager (Rizzoli Electra with the Mint Museum) Forthcoming Teddy Sandoval and the Butch Gardens School of Art (Independent Curators International, Inventory Press, the Vincent Price Art Museum, and the Williams College Museum of Art) Hello, Goodbye, Hello: The Lucas Artists Program at Montalvo Arts Center (Montalvo Arts Center) Barbara T. Smith (ICA LA) Jeremy Frey (Rizzoli Electra with the Portland Museum of Art) Digital Witness: Revolutions in Art, Design, and Film (LACMA) From the Ground Up: Nurturing Diversity in Hostile Environments (Armory Center for the Arts) Surveillance and Counterveillance (The Wende Museum) <img width="2500" height="1667" width_o="2500" height_o="1667" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/04fee8ddee0c5621186d5c996b1b5e1332b77081c1be445a636ab1dc25ab48d6/unnamed_3.jpeg" data-mid="182855669" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/04fee8ddee0c5621186d5c996b1b5e1332b77081c1be445a636ab1dc25ab48d6/unnamed_3.jpeg" />Piano, now six years old, is our fourth cat in a generation of kitties parading Council Street. He will be relocating, too. Wish him luck! All photography by Ian Byers-Gamber. Courtesy Content Object. https://content-object.com/Marking-Time-2012-2022-A-Decade-of-Bookmaking Tue, 31 Jan 2023 22:43:30 +0000 Content Object Design Studio https://content-object.com/Marking-Time-2012-2022-A-Decade-of-Bookmaking <img width="2500" height="1667" width_o="2500" height_o="1667" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/64dd79cc8d3a5b3c0eaf86b4a9d4195a564cc0fa8fb3428bef8575e4bfb76f52/IBG_2052.jpg" data-mid="166823731" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/64dd79cc8d3a5b3c0eaf86b4a9d4195a564cc0fa8fb3428bef8575e4bfb76f52/IBG_2052.jpg" />by Alison Knowles: A Retrospective (1960–2022)Edited by Karen Moss with Lucia Fabio; Currently on view at Berkeley Art Museum and Pacific Film Archive (BAMPFA) C/O—Marking Time—2012–2022A Decade (+) of Bookmaking Back in 2005, before Content Object (C/O) was even a thought, I designed my first ever art catalog for Glenn Philipp’s Marking Time exhibition at LACE. Albeit a small staple-bound book, its title turned out to be hugely prophetic to the development of my own practice. From centennials to surveys, to retrospectives, to exhibition catalogs, I have been marking time in a wild fabric of artists' and activists’ practices woven together in the most unexpected ways.Now on August 27, 2022, C/O has its own timestamp to celebrate: one whole decade!It also happens to be my birthday (and Alice Coltrane’s, too…but that's just luck). On a hot afternoon in August 2012, I drove to the Valley to register C/O’s name. The circumstances of exactly why this needed to happen on this day are hazy, but I can say for certain it was not intentional. But now, in retrospect, I'm glad it played out the way it did. It is a testament to my desire&nbsp;to hold a practice that folds art, life, and the means needed for living all into one.There are so many people to acknowledge that accompanied me along this journey and I am eternally indebted to all of you. To name just a few: Mark Allen, Anthony Elms, Naima Keith, Rebecca McGrew, and Jenny Watts were very early supporters at the inception of C/O. I believe that each of the books we did together compounded and exploded into what is now a roster of over 60 books (and counting). Design assistants Becca Lofchie, MJ Balvanera, Nikki Roach, and Sam Wagner added their unique flavors to each project they worked on, leaving a legacy of their talents. Without project managers Lisa Doran and David Evans Frantz this ship would have certainly sailed in another direction. And of course, my trusted co-pilot, Tony Manzella (Echelon) as well as printers, Verona Libri, Conti, and Permanent Printing have been key in bringing these books to life.The full list of acknowledgments for the past ten years is truly a tome. Happy birthday C/O and all of you co-conspirators, co-mrades, co-llaborators, co-inhabitants! So happy to be at this party with you!Much love,KimberlyBelow (and above) are a couple of recent highlights, plus a selection of books from the archive <img width="2500" height="1667" width_o="2500" height_o="1667" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/30d972be79c2f1ca777a93e5a985f01e199c432fc54e5e8fefc888b0e89c5ccb/IBG_0783.jpg" data-mid="166823722" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/30d972be79c2f1ca777a93e5a985f01e199c432fc54e5e8fefc888b0e89c5ccb/IBG_0783.jpg" />2022—Tala Madani: Biscuits Edited by Ali Subotnick and Rebecca Lowery; Opens at MOCA on September 8, 2022 <img width="1667" height="2500" width_o="1667" height_o="2500" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/c847d4a1da54d9df2129b5e3b139cf7b69c96070a016e786612170aca9e8ec69/1e73e84a-4aec-ead6-dce6-552d804218c8.jpg" data-mid="166824230" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/c847d4a1da54d9df2129b5e3b139cf7b69c96070a016e786612170aca9e8ec69/1e73e84a-4aec-ead6-dce6-552d804218c8.jpg" />2021— Isaac Julien: Lessons of the Hour (Isaac Julien Studio); Yesterday we said tomorrow (Naima Keith and Diana Nawi, Prospect 5); and Sadie Barnette: Legacy &amp; Legend (Rebecca McGrew, Benton Museum of Art and Ciara Ennis, Pitzer College Galleries) <img width="2500" height="1667" width_o="2500" height_o="1667" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/f944f8e7ac76cdb85aef742044f56eab790e9010d3c915a91473cb1aff99dcb0/IBG_9709.jpg" data-mid="166824485" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/f944f8e7ac76cdb85aef742044f56eab790e9010d3c915a91473cb1aff99dcb0/IBG_9709.jpg" />2020—To Bough and To BendBridge Projects (alongside two other books in the series) <img width="2500" height="1667" width_o="2500" height_o="1667" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/37ce0122b0f8290a8095d66e7cc13a604a948a4f5f0cf4d7f346c9874932c2fe/IBG_9715-02.jpg" data-mid="166824866" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/37ce0122b0f8290a8095d66e7cc13a604a948a4f5f0cf4d7f346c9874932c2fe/IBG_9715-02.jpg" />2019—Nineteen NineteenEdited by James Glisson and Jennifer A. Watts; The Huntington Library, Art Collections, and Botanical Gardens <img width="2250" height="2015" width_o="2250" height_o="2015" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/4ad10c2240a38a5fc0831d74265161c85d4557c2bfee138f8080c16de11a64bb/IBG_1838Front_Back_Cover.jpg" data-mid="166824963" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/4ad10c2240a38a5fc0831d74265161c85d4557c2bfee138f8080c16de11a64bb/IBG_1838Front_Back_Cover.jpg" />2018—Axis Mundo: Queer Networks in Chicano L.A.Edited by C. Ondine Chavoya and David Evans Frantz with Macarena Gómez-Barris; Part of Getty's PST LA/LA <img width="1200" height="1800" width_o="1200" height_o="1800" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/878a73e8a79fc40d086d2447f0ec88016e7165f7d97712488273d8cec228c69b/0b969fb9-ce89-4646-91d8-74d8d26471d4.jpg" data-mid="166824989" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/878a73e8a79fc40d086d2447f0ec88016e7165f7d97712488273d8cec228c69b/0b969fb9-ce89-4646-91d8-74d8d26471d4.jpg" />2017—Machine Project: The Platinum Collection (Live by Special Request)Edited by Mark Allen and Rachel Seligman; Tang Teaching Museum at Skidmore College <img width="500" height="400" width_o="500" height_o="400" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/a259f205bf36341af0c50a9368946c36f53bb6d0a4495fce9d0970a125d979d3/91201715-9599-42f3-c633-75e567cd67de.gif" data-mid="166824990" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/500/i/a259f205bf36341af0c50a9368946c36f53bb6d0a4495fce9d0970a125d979d3/91201715-9599-42f3-c633-75e567cd67de.gif" /> 2016—Experience: Culture, Cognition, and the Common SenseEdited by Caroline A. Jones, David Mather, and Rebecca Uchill; Center for Art, Science, &amp; Technology and MIT Press <img width="2500" height="1667" width_o="2500" height_o="1667" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/d9c6e819191ab26a8f5c784d8a236f2424cccf08bf59beb0a9dfd7884d644589/CH-Beauty-01-edit_15.jpg" data-mid="166825021" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/d9c6e819191ab26a8f5c784d8a236f2424cccf08bf59beb0a9dfd7884d644589/CH-Beauty-01-edit_15.jpg" />2015—Beauty—Cooper Hewitt Design TriennialEdited by Andrea Lipps and Ellen Lupton; Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Museum of Design <img width="2500" height="1667" width_o="2500" height_o="1667" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/2e8a4216f1af84503e4c1e56d11c1e3f96cbc0e239e7177388e9a0148a012417/SMH-Gaines-09.jpg" data-mid="166825139" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/2e8a4216f1af84503e4c1e56d11c1e3f96cbc0e239e7177388e9a0148a012417/SMH-Gaines-09.jpg" />2014—Charles Gaines: Gridwork 1974–1989Edited by Naima J. Keith; Studio Museum in Harlem <img width="2500" height="1667" width_o="2500" height_o="1667" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/ae07c62a049f7350a1dfefab800c70169a64a8667035620fa6a58b388640d288/SMH-Shadows-11.jpg" data-mid="166825145" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/ae07c62a049f7350a1dfefab800c70169a64a8667035620fa6a58b388640d288/SMH-Shadows-11.jpg" />2013—The Shadows Took ShapeEdited by Naima J. Keith and Zoe Whitley; Studio Museum in Harlem <img width="2500" height="1666" width_o="2500" height_o="1666" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/91f6b7df7d2bb8324bfa76322a3343807ad8602c0548d54b27be1e2fa6809dea/VB-Biannual-01.jpg" data-mid="166825157" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/91f6b7df7d2bb8324bfa76322a3343807ad8602c0548d54b27be1e2fa6809dea/VB-Biannual-01.jpg" />2012—Venice’s Beach Biannual 2012A collaboration by Lisa Anne Auerbach, Robby Herbst, and Kimberly Varella; Hammer MuseumImage credits: Selected books designed by Content Object from 2012–22. Book photography by Ian Byers-Gamber. Courtesy Content Object. https://content-object.com/Year-End-2021-Lessons-of-the-Hour-and-others Thu, 10 Feb 2022 19:47:43 +0000 Content Object Design Studio https://content-object.com/Year-End-2021-Lessons-of-the-Hour-and-others <img width="2500" height="1667" width_o="2500" height_o="1667" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/97acbcb93c09041de8c5a28be5c52ef867105888ba27e62bfdcbb8c0944da774/IBG_7937.jpg" data-mid="133110306" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/97acbcb93c09041de8c5a28be5c52ef867105888ba27e62bfdcbb8c0944da774/IBG_7937.jpg" /> C/O—Year End—2021Lessons of the Hour and others An amazing roster of titles came through Content Object&nbsp;in 2021, including:Isaac Julien: Lessons of the Hour, Frederick Douglass (Isaac Julien Lab)Hollywood Bowl: The First 100 Years (The LA Phil)Yesterday we said tomorrow (Prospect 5)Sadie Barnette: Legacy &amp; Legend (Benton Museum of Art at Pomona College)Otherwise/Revival (Bridge Projects) &nbsp; &nbsp; (See below for details on each project)We are so grateful to our collaborators which include [in no particular order] artists, curators, colorists, printers, binders, writers, editors, funders, educators, typographers, paper makers, glue makers, ship captains, courier drivers—and the list goes on!Love for books continues, even in the most difficult of times. Thank you all for making 2021 such a rich year. Respect,Kimberly Varella (Content Object) <img width="2500" height="1667" width_o="2500" height_o="1667" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/139b43ef58d3eaaba861c28925499dd0993d834e2b0fed1fbec5f3fd3f77ab3d/IBG_7876_1.jpg" data-mid="133111880" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/139b43ef58d3eaaba861c28925499dd0993d834e2b0fed1fbec5f3fd3f77ab3d/IBG_7876_1.jpg" /> Isaac Julien: Lessons of the Hour, Frederick DouglassIsaac Julien Studio, Memorial Art Gallery of the University of Rochester, The Frances Young Tang Teaching Museum and Art Gallery at Skidmore College, and Delmonico Books • D.A.P. "Lessons of the Hour is a poetic meditation on the life and times of Frederick Douglass, the ten-screen film installation proposes a contemplative journey into Douglass' zeitgeist and its relationship to contemporaneity. The film includes excerpts of Douglass' most arresting speeches and allusions to his private and public milieus." (Isaac Julien Studio)This lush and ambitious 272 page volume pays homage to the lessons of Frederick Douglass as interpreted by Isaac Julien. As an object, it captures the dual atmospheres of historical importance and modern context from cover to cover: tipped-in portraits of Douglass and the actor that plays him (Ray Fearon) are centered between the title, set in a classic treatment of Didot borrowed from the masthead of Douglass' antislavery newspaper, The North Star (1847) and Martin (Vocal Type), drawn from protest signage used in the Memphis Sanitation Strike of 1968. The book, like the artwork, weaves in and out of historical and contemporary contexts including richly illustrated essays, documentation of the installation at various venues, extended visual and textural experiences, and recurring object lessons in photography and representation.This book is accompanied by incredible scholarship by Kass Banning and Warren Crichlow, Celeste-Marie Bernier, Jonathan P. Binstock, Henry Louis Gates, Jr., Paul Gilroy, Cora Gilroy-Ware, Jennifer A. González, John G. Hanhardt, Kenneth B. Morris, Jr., Susan Solt, Vron Ware, and Deborah Willis. <img width="2500" height="1667" width_o="2500" height_o="1667" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/13299e70432e9149f68580aa2a05a59639b30ab94204416c2311ce98480f1678/IBG_9359.jpg" data-mid="133112157" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/13299e70432e9149f68580aa2a05a59639b30ab94204416c2311ce98480f1678/IBG_9359.jpg" /> Hollywood Bowl: The First 100 Years Los Angeles Philharmonic Association; Written by Derek Traub and edited by Julia Ward and Robin Rauzi The Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra and the Hollywood Bowl commissioned a publication in celebration of the iconic venue’s 100th anniversary (original D.O.B. 1921). In a nod to the Bowl’s earlier Streamline Moderne incarnation, the cover showcases a customized mashup of Futura (used for The Bowl’s brand, Paul Renner) and Bifur (Adolphe Mouron Cassandre) in a holographic foil treatment. Beneath the jacket, the Bodonian binding technique used exposes the spines of the signatures, giving a “behind-the-scenes” look into the construction of the book.Through the course of ten chapters, each focussing on a roughly chronological segment of the past, a story is woven from disparate threads of music, social causes, spectacle, and celebrity. The structure of the book alternates between the generously illustrated text and extended sections of images only, where documentary photography is juxtaposed with printed ephemera. Because each image section uses an intense color to backdrop the images, the structure of the book is legible just by looking at the fore-edge.The extensive research results in a beautiful anachronistic cacophony that only such a history can tell. The Bowl will be celebrating its belated birthday in 2022—so, Angelenos, keep an eye out for some exciting events! <img width="2500" height="1786" width_o="2500" height_o="1786" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/0ef52f8c5261da5acae645f5fde75ea027749cf2c39f67a924f5e122018c9a11/IBG_7716-1.jpg" data-mid="133112194" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/0ef52f8c5261da5acae645f5fde75ea027749cf2c39f67a924f5e122018c9a11/IBG_7716-1.jpg" /> Yesterday we said tomorrow Prosepct New Orleans and Rizzoli Electa; Edited by Naima J. Keith and Diana Nawi Prospect New Orleans is a citywide contemporary art triennial that was conceived in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, presenting site-specific artworks by local, national, and international artists that ask for a reconsideration of the past through social and political considerations of the present. The accompanying catalog—a rich collection of contributions from curators, poets, artists, and cultural critics—considers several key themes that animate the ambitious artist projects: history and haunting; landscape and the natural world; performance, ritual, and the public sphere; and intimacy, life, and death. The moody use of gold and black takes on this haunting in an effervescent tingle of a more hopeful and better future. On view until January 23, 2022. <img width="2500" height="1667" width_o="2500" height_o="1667" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/fe749b05d3920940db1a3e8b9d0761c73c96f9da475ddd97408a726d2add4fac/IBG_7946.jpg" data-mid="133112254" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/fe749b05d3920940db1a3e8b9d0761c73c96f9da475ddd97408a726d2add4fac/IBG_7946.jpg" /> Sadie Barnette: Legacy &amp; Legend Benton College of Art at Pomona College and Pitzer College Art Galleries The Benton Museum of Art at Pomona College and the Pitzer College Art Galleries partnered in 2021 to host a dual exhibition of the artist Sadie Barnette’s new work—showing a range of pieces, from life-size recreation of a living room resurfaced in glittering pink at Pitzer to a series of large scale drawings at the Benton, hyper-enlarged recreations from a recently discovered 500-page FBI dossier on her father, Rodney Barnette, a lifelong activist and founder of the Compton chapter of the Black Panther Party.The accompanying publication places that historical method at the forefront, using paper changes to separate the institutional essays, exhibition documentation, and the personal essays written by Barnette herself—accompanied by family photography, printed ephemera, and screenshots from the artist's Instagram feed—further blurring the lines between the personal and political. In the center of the book, a facsimile of the Eaglecreek Saloon zine (originally produced by Sadie Barnette in 2019) is reproduced at scale as a trimmed insert, recalling DIY modes of distribution used by community activists. <img width="2500" height="1667" width_o="2500" height_o="1667" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/f2e8c5e88605a5d06509507fabd35ba80ee1cc5145edbe1962cf575758866c2b/IBG_9638.jpg" data-mid="133112405" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/f2e8c5e88605a5d06509507fabd35ba80ee1cc5145edbe1962cf575758866c2b/IBG_9638.jpg" /> Otherwise/RevivalBridge Projects This publication accompanied Otherwise/Revival, a group exhibition that visualizes the impact of the historic Black church—specifically the Black Pentecostal movement—on contemporary artists. Inspiration for the exhibition is drawn from reflecting on the event of the Azusa Street Revival, and the publication itself borrows from traditional hymnals in it’s materiality and form. Sculptures, paintings, video, and performances celebrate the significance of music, praise, breath, and community. Exhibited artists reflect on their traditions, heritages, passions, and talents to cultivate a space where art thrives and expresses a unifying language for all. Included in the book are images and short essays for each of the participating artists, music and lyrics for hymns chosen by each artist, and longer essays by Ashon T. Crawley and Jasmine McNeal.<img width="1200" height="800" width_o="1200" height_o="800" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/6e2520289fa70b0cabd5263e0492d65c06775b4262c8edabfb61121ffee735ab/36b1b8f7-c15b-d72a-77bc-a83c69e7313b.jpg" data-mid="166826085" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/6e2520289fa70b0cabd5263e0492d65c06775b4262c8edabfb61121ffee735ab/36b1b8f7-c15b-d72a-77bc-a83c69e7313b.jpg" />Winners of 2021 Book CompetitionsRoy Lichtenstein: History in the Making, 1948–1960 was recognized in both Book and Cover categories of the AIGA's 50 Books | 50 Covers Competition. Additionally, it made an Honorable Mention for the AAM Publication Design Competition. To learn more about this book, please visit our website.Alia Ali: Project Series 53 was recognized in both Book and Cover categories of the AIGA's 50 Books | 50 Covers Competition. To learn more about this book, please visit our website.Congratulations to everyone involved; these books would not exist without you!ForthcomingWe are all guests here. (Bridge Projects)Sam Gilliam: Moving West Again (David Kordansky Gallery)by Alison Knowles: A Retrospective, 1960–2022 (BAMFA)Pedro Almodóvar: Installation (The Academy Museum of Motion Pictures)Tala Madani (MOCA)Just Above Midtown:1974 to the Present (MoMA)Nayland Blake: No Wrong Holes (ICA LA) Image credits: Selected books designed by Content Object in 2021. Book photography by Ian Byers-Gamber. Courtesy Content Object. https://content-object.com/Spring-2021-Sisterhood-is-Powerful Tue, 31 Jan 2023 23:13:53 +0000 Content Object Design Studio https://content-object.com/Spring-2021-Sisterhood-is-Powerful <img width="2500" height="1667" width_o="2500" height_o="1667" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/76013b06c89f0875c13b8e809b4e0ac493a0be968ea4e426787249253e8929ea/IBG_0804.jpg" data-mid="166826601" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/76013b06c89f0875c13b8e809b4e0ac493a0be968ea4e426787249253e8929ea/IBG_0804.jpg" /> <img width="2500" height="1667" width_o="2500" height_o="1667" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/85cc4ace1917bbc7a09ee5844e950c96e86fb7eaa8e1f8a95b64c8dacf2ac861/IBG_5645.jpg" data-mid="166826614" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/85cc4ace1917bbc7a09ee5844e950c96e86fb7eaa8e1f8a95b64c8dacf2ac861/IBG_5645.jpg" /> <img width="2500" height="1667" width_o="2500" height_o="1667" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/e766606f55b7ae5169947ce25841131751cb18c644aad0db3db0785487e40601/IBG_3501.jpg" data-mid="166826610" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/e766606f55b7ae5169947ce25841131751cb18c644aad0db3db0785487e40601/IBG_3501.jpg" /> <img width="2500" height="1667" width_o="2500" height_o="1667" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/1fad76ee282aa830aace9264a512b870550caba48efae605a12126c7804a94f2/IBG_2406.jpg" data-mid="166826617" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/1fad76ee282aa830aace9264a512b870550caba48efae605a12126c7804a94f2/IBG_2406.jpg" /> C/O—Spring—2021Sisterhood is Powerful As a gen-exer and an only child, sisterhood is a concept that I continually grapple with. I'm a true anti-essentialist and I have no idea what it means to have a sibling. However, when it comes to adopting the ERA, I never stop wondering, "what's the hold-up!?"Happy Women's History Month.In 2020, C/O designed eight new titles, all of which were either written by, edited by, and/or about women (and designed by one, too). Spanning generations from Margaret Bourke-White to Alia Alia, these books tell their stories. Each book is added to the Library of Congress, making a new and more accurately reflective we-story.Content Object is dedicated to producing distinct projects that tell stories—expansive and specific—about our histories, communities, and the human condition. Thank you to all of our committed clients and co-conspirators for making this happen. I feel extremely privileged to have partners like you who think expansively about the world in which we live&nbsp;and tell critical and&nbsp;unexpected stories about it. Spring is upon us and there is a new (yet cautious) hope in the air. I wish you and yours all the best for a safe and fulfilling summer.Take care,Kimberly Varella 2020 HighlightsDespite the current pandemic and political climate, 2020 was a curiously productive year. Below are some highlights. You can also visit our updated website for more details on each title. Abundant shout-outs to David Evans Frantz and Sam Wagner for their stellar collaboration on our new site. <img width="2500" height="1667" width_o="2500" height_o="1667" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/d639aa38287d4d724648fc49170a28d87c59b78c061116eacf73d954c8907fae/IBG_2408-02.jpg" data-mid="166826739" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/d639aa38287d4d724648fc49170a28d87c59b78c061116eacf73d954c8907fae/IBG_2408-02.jpg" /> Life Magazine and the Power of PhotographyPrinceton University Art MuseumThe first comprehensive consideration of Life magazine’s groundbreaking and influential contribution to the history of photography. Edited by Katherine A. Bussard and Kristen Gresh. <img width="2500" height="1667" width_o="2500" height_o="1667" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/76013b06c89f0875c13b8e809b4e0ac493a0be968ea4e426787249253e8929ea/IBG_0804.jpg" data-mid="166826601" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/76013b06c89f0875c13b8e809b4e0ac493a0be968ea4e426787249253e8929ea/IBG_0804.jpg" /> Alison Saar: Of Aether and EartheBenton Museum of Art at Pomona College and Armory Center for the ArtsAlison Saar’s work explores and complicates the binaries of body and spirit, earth and air, personal and universal. This survey of her work is published in conjunction with a joint exhibition at the Benton Museum of Art at Pomona College (Rebecca McGrew) and Armory Center for the Arts (Irene Georgia Tsatsos).&nbsp; <img width="2500" height="1667" width_o="2500" height_o="1667" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/e766606f55b7ae5169947ce25841131751cb18c644aad0db3db0785487e40601/IBG_3501.jpg" data-mid="166826610" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/e766606f55b7ae5169947ce25841131751cb18c644aad0db3db0785487e40601/IBG_3501.jpg" /> Alia Ali: Project Series 53Benton Museum of Art at Pomona CollegeAlia Ali: Project Series 53 presents three bodies of recent work by Yemeni-Bosnian-US artist, Alia Ali, whose work explores themes of diaspora, migration, and identity through the lens of Afro- and Yemeni Futurism. Edited and curated by Rebecca McGrew. <img width="2500" height="1667" width_o="2500" height_o="1667" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/85cc4ace1917bbc7a09ee5844e950c96e86fb7eaa8e1f8a95b64c8dacf2ac861/IBG_5645.jpg" data-mid="166826614" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/85cc4ace1917bbc7a09ee5844e950c96e86fb7eaa8e1f8a95b64c8dacf2ac861/IBG_5645.jpg" /> Sara Kathryn Arledge: Serene for the MomentArmory Center for the ArtsThe first extended monograph on Sara Kathryn Arledge, an under-recognized painter and innovator of mid-20th century experimental cinema. Contributions by Sasha Archibald, Terry Cannon, Johanna Hedva, Nicole Kelly, Sarah McColl, Sara K. Smith (Sara Kathryn Arledge), and Irene Georgia Tsatsos (editor).&nbsp; <img width="2500" height="1667" width_o="2500" height_o="1667" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/71de9ce171a4fa1e3c8d5539f9ce3257f04d0ffd0426d7dec5fde9325bb95382/IBG_5598.jpg" data-mid="166826868" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/71de9ce171a4fa1e3c8d5539f9ce3257f04d0ffd0426d7dec5fde9325bb95382/IBG_5598.jpg" /> Geralde Clarke: Falling RockPalm Springs Art MuseumThis survey brings together three decades of work by contemporary Native American artist Gerald Clarke (Cahuilla). Utilizing wit and humor to expose historical and present-day injustice, Clarke brings a decolonial perspective to urgent cultural and political issues facing our world. Edited by David Evans Frantz and Christine Giles.&nbsp; <img width="2500" height="1786" width_o="2500" height_o="1786" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/22cf22a2346c533fa644c88f2ce05d98578a6999cd4391b3e50bb354d23c4a32/IBG_9619_2.jpg" data-mid="166826912" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/22cf22a2346c533fa644c88f2ce05d98578a6999cd4391b3e50bb354d23c4a32/IBG_9619_2.jpg" /> Roy Lichtenstein: History in the Making, 1948–1960Colby Museum of ArtRoy Lichtenstein: History in the Making, 1948–1960, seeks to reconcile the Lichtentstein that we know—a Pop Art titan painting Benday-dots—and the earlier Roy whose path cycled through a provocative range of visual culture from fairy tales to folk art to Americana. To pierce the cloud of celebrity around him, the book creates an intimate portrait of the budding artist before he was Lichtenstein. Edited by Elizabeth Finch and Marshall N. Price.&nbsp; <img width="2500" height="1667" width_o="2500" height_o="1667" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/163b3b3b1374641e6d1979766233b9173b1bdd95530804ad26e450d92523dc4c/IBG_0818.jpg" data-mid="166826965" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/163b3b3b1374641e6d1979766233b9173b1bdd95530804ad26e450d92523dc4c/IBG_0818.jpg" /> A Composite LeviathanBridge ProjectsA Composite Leviathan was a two-part exhibition of emerging Chinese artists at Bridge Projects, the second incarnation of the show which was previously shown at Luhring Augustine Gallery in New York City. It is the second of three books in a set of small exhibition catalogues designed for Bridge Projects. Edited by Cara Megan Lewis, Linnéa Spransy, and Vicki Phung Smith.&nbsp; <img width="2500" height="1667" width_o="2500" height_o="1667" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/e0465883b976a5e33ca1b99427eda6556b8e348c2b8ef343114663ccd01abe29/IBG_9720.jpg" data-mid="166826969" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/e0465883b976a5e33ca1b99427eda6556b8e348c2b8ef343114663ccd01abe29/IBG_9720.jpg" /> To Bough and To BendBridge ProjectsIn To Bough and To Bend, artists explore ecological issues relating to trees and their relationship with humans. This publication continues the series of small exhibition catalogues initiated with the gallery, and completes the set of three. Edited by Cara Megan Lewis, Linnéa Gabriella Spransy, Vicki Phung Smith, and Michael Wright.&nbsp; ForthcomingWe are blown away by this roster of titles for 2021. Stay tuned.Hollywood Bowl: The First 100 Years, LA PhilIsaac Julien: Lessons of the Hour, Isaac Julien LabOtherwise/Revival, Bridge ProjectsSadie Barnette: Legacy &amp; Legend, Benton Museum of Art at Pomona Colllege and Pitzer College Art GalleriesTala Madani, MOCAYesterday We Said Tomorrow, Prospect New Orleans Image credits: Selected books designed by Content Object in 2020. Book photography by Ian Byers-Gamber. Courtesy Content Object. https://content-object.com/End-of-Summer-2020-Sustaining-Stories Tue, 31 Jan 2023 23:29:01 +0000 Content Object Design Studio https://content-object.com/End-of-Summer-2020-Sustaining-Stories <img width="2500" height="1667" width_o="2500" height_o="1667" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/f3880bc5f4490abdcf9a9c7aeac04315963283949bbf60c50fbf5ce210d765d0/a93897c4-927a-4b79-ac8a-200191f75459.jpg" data-mid="166829614" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/f3880bc5f4490abdcf9a9c7aeac04315963283949bbf60c50fbf5ce210d765d0/a93897c4-927a-4b79-ac8a-200191f75459.jpg" /> C/O—End of Summer—2020Sustaining Stories Content Object remains committed to producing distinct projects that tell stories—expansive and specific—about our histories, communities, and the human condition. We are privileged to continue working with a cadre of committed co-conspirators&nbsp;who think expansively about the world in which we live and tell critical and&nbsp;unexpected stories about it. These records are&nbsp;all the more paramount at this moment. History is never simply a thing of the past, and it has a funny way of sneaking up on you when you least expect it. As has been widely discussed, the current pandemic mirrors the Spanish Influenza of 1918 and 1919. I’m reminded of how Angelenos of that era marshaled public health to suppress that virus’s spread through face coverings and social distancing (how novel), as examined in Nineteen Nineteen, a catalogue I had the pleasure to design for the Huntington last year. When we worked on the book,&nbsp;this history particularly fascinating me—both obscure and distinctly of a by-gone past. Now, of course, it is again every day.I sincerely hope you and your loved ones are well and safe. With the world in a pronounced state of uncertainty, I send this update about the goings-on at our (now remote) studio to provide a small diversion from the new routines of your daily life.Wishing everyone a safe end of summer and a sustaining fall!Take care,Kimberly Varella <img width="531" height="361" width_o="531" height_o="361" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/7b9c435a3709ea5f90e801b4f441db28ac7c45d9ffe4b8b6f131263c6fdcce05/8ac03998-d9ca-4e6c-b09a-3cd91d071134.jpg" data-mid="166829758" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/531/i/7b9c435a3709ea5f90e801b4f441db28ac7c45d9ffe4b8b6f131263c6fdcce05/8ac03998-d9ca-4e6c-b09a-3cd91d071134.jpg" />Influenza Epidemic in Pasadena, California, 1919. Gelatin silver prints. Courtesy The Huntington Library, Art Collections, and Botanical Gardens Book Awards <img width="2500" height="1667" width_o="2500" height_o="1667" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/0a66f92bfa2bf62acace8d225aa751120582d8a9bc4d1fbc58f508a6a7ceb615/80d89bb2-a931-4733-8641-f204e9d4e06a.jpg" data-mid="166829796" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/0a66f92bfa2bf62acace8d225aa751120582d8a9bc4d1fbc58f508a6a7ceb615/80d89bb2-a931-4733-8641-f204e9d4e06a.jpg" />Though it feels odd to celebrate at this moment, I’m enthusiastic to share that two C/O designed catalogues won publication awards earlier this year.AIGA’s 50 Books | Book Covers recognized the studio for Nineteen, Nineteen, published by the Huntington, and Phillip K. Smith III: 10 Columns, the first in a book series by Bridge Projects.Additionally, Nineteen, Nineteen received honors from&nbsp;Communication Arts (CA) Design Annual and the&nbsp;Association of College &amp; Research Libraries (ACRL).ACRL's Leab Awards Committee&nbsp;about Nineteen Nineteen: "This beautifully-designed catalog is an innovative, fresh take on the 'anniversary celebration' model, setting a new standard for this kind of exhibition and catalog. This catalog celebrates a distinctively wide range of material, weaving narratives about the library's founders with broader sociopolitical events in surprising and compelling ways. The quality of the publication is high and the interpretation is remarkably interrogative and thoughtful."Nineteen, NineteenAIGA &amp; Design Observer: 50 Books | 50 Covers Winner (2019)Communication Arts (CA) Design Annual: Books (2020)Association of College &amp; Research Libraries (ACRL): RBMS Katharine Kyes Leab and Daniel J. Leab Exhibition Catalogue Awards (2020)Phillip K. Smith III: Ten ColumnsAIGA &amp; Design Observer: 50 Books Winner (2019) Identity Development <img width="3125" height="2083" width_o="3125" height_o="2083" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/c89dd9c8549dff82a6ce366ede322964e64d346e6ad53358df2f8b0e083d3a34/csudh-website-2.jpg" data-mid="166830027" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/c89dd9c8549dff82a6ce366ede322964e64d346e6ad53358df2f8b0e083d3a34/csudh-website-2.jpg" /> <img width="6250" height="4167" width_o="6250" height_o="4167" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/b7a7f9a4e1bc9bc37c28f3109d284dd1efc7ffd46637941ef3d9650032bc6dbd/lead.png" data-mid="166830022" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/b7a7f9a4e1bc9bc37c28f3109d284dd1efc7ffd46637941ef3d9650032bc6dbd/lead.png" /> Since the beginning of 2020 C/O has spearheaded not one, but two&nbsp;identity projects about to go&nbsp;live this fall. We are&nbsp;privileged to devise identity branding for the University Art Gallery at Cal State University, Dominguez Hills, and&nbsp;the new&nbsp;Benton Museum of Art at Pomona College (formerly the Pomona College Museum of Art). New PublicationsDespite the current pandemic and political climate, 2020 has been an unusually productive year. <img width="2500" height="1667" width_o="2500" height_o="1667" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/1fad76ee282aa830aace9264a512b870550caba48efae605a12126c7804a94f2/IBG_2406.jpg" data-mid="166830104" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/1fad76ee282aa830aace9264a512b870550caba48efae605a12126c7804a94f2/IBG_2406.jpg" /> Life Magazine and the Power of PhotographyPrinceton University Art MuseumThe first comprehensive consideration of Life magazine’s groundbreaking and influential contribution to the history of photography.&nbsp; <img width="2500" height="1667" width_o="2500" height_o="1667" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/76013b06c89f0875c13b8e809b4e0ac493a0be968ea4e426787249253e8929ea/IBG_0804.jpg" data-mid="166830123" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/76013b06c89f0875c13b8e809b4e0ac493a0be968ea4e426787249253e8929ea/IBG_0804.jpg" /> Alison Saar: Of Aether and EartheBenton Museum of Art at Pomona CollegeAlison Saar’s work explores and complicates the binaries of body and spirit, earth and air, personal and universal. This survey of her work is published in conjunction with a joint exhibition at the Benton Museum of Art and the Armory Center for the Arts this fall. <img width="2500" height="1667" width_o="2500" height_o="1667" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/f944f8e7ac76cdb85aef742044f56eab790e9010d3c915a91473cb1aff99dcb0/IBG_9709.jpg" data-mid="166830248" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/f944f8e7ac76cdb85aef742044f56eab790e9010d3c915a91473cb1aff99dcb0/IBG_9709.jpg" /> <img width="2500" height="1667" width_o="2500" height_o="1667" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/fba8b45f1ed9eac9d28a86410a642416d451e72b39bb91046dfac1fb527e6e10/IBG_9707.jpg" data-mid="166830148" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/fba8b45f1ed9eac9d28a86410a642416d451e72b39bb91046dfac1fb527e6e10/IBG_9707.jpg" /> A Composite Leviathan and To Bough and To Bend Bridge ProjectsThese two titles complete the first series of exhibition catalogues for Bridge Projects. Forthcoming Titles for Fall 2020 Alia Ali: Project Series 53Benton Museum of ArtGerald Clarke: Falling RockPalm Springs Art MuseumRoy Lichtenstein: History in the Making, 1948–1960Colby Museum of ArtSara Kathryn Arledge: Serene for the Moment Armory Center for the Arts Book photography: Ian Byers-Gamber https://content-object.com/Year-End-2019-A-Sea-Change Wed, 14 Jun 2023 00:19:19 +0000 Content Object Design Studio https://content-object.com/Year-End-2019-A-Sea-Change <img width="2500" height="1667" width_o="2500" height_o="1667" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/932f74df40c1325867caff618eda80658a70b42c2387c1f87da510e7f2751f57/IBG_9715.jpg" data-mid="181994619" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/932f74df40c1325867caff618eda80658a70b42c2387c1f87da510e7f2751f57/IBG_9715.jpg" /> C/O—Year End—2019 A Sea Change 2019 is drawing to close at lightning speed. Before the curtain goes all the way down, let me share some news.When you're in the book business you understand how many players it takes to publish a new volume. In my studio, the people that I work with side by side on an almost daily basis are crucial to the success of this practice. So, I would like to begin with an exciting announcement that my good friend and colleague David Evans Frantz is joining the team here at Content Object starting in January. If you already know David, then you understand him as the deft curator that he is. What you might not know, is that he is also highly skilled in all things publishing. He will be C/O's studio manager and I look forward to what he has to bring to the mix—as you should, too.That said, Lisa Doran will be leaving Content Object at the end of this year, due to personal reasons. Lisa has been an invaluable co-conspirator here and has truly been the glue that has held the seams of C/O intact. Below are a list of books that she helped to shepherd through from beginning to end. She will be sorely missed.Now, I would like to also introduce C/O's new design assistant extraordinaire, Sam Wagner. Sam has moored his ship here in LA by way of Minnesota. He holds a degree from USC in 3D design and Italian (which has already come in handy). These are the formal stats. I would also describe Sam as a lifelong learner, hungry for knowledge with an especially keen eye for type. Happy holidays to all and let's hope for good 20/20 vision in the new year.All the best,Kimberly Varella Phillip K. Smith III: Ten Columns&nbsp; Bridge Projects <img width="2500" height="1786" width_o="2500" height_o="1786" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/6813cde3e2db93643fa0e6f0c7f7fb040ce03691a8a5f90ffbbdd8856cf0441a/IBG_9702.jpg" data-mid="181994625" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/6813cde3e2db93643fa0e6f0c7f7fb040ce03691a8a5f90ffbbdd8856cf0441a/IBG_9702.jpg" /> Cauleen Smith: Take it Or Leave itThe ICA at the University of Pennsylvania &nbsp; <img width="2500" height="1667" width_o="2500" height_o="1667" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/57cae658a8799f08bc7d6ddeeeb6b1adafdbb6c4da6f7c7024832dba15c8c2da/IBG_2046.jpg" data-mid="181994633" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/57cae658a8799f08bc7d6ddeeeb6b1adafdbb6c4da6f7c7024832dba15c8c2da/IBG_2046.jpg" /> Todd Gray: Euclidean Gris GrisPomona College Museum of Art <img width="2500" height="1667" width_o="2500" height_o="1667" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/ea7bd181a09581abe01e3203710af14f95bf0b6c3b0f17058255dc7442810190/IBG_2445.jpg" data-mid="181994630" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/ea7bd181a09581abe01e3203710af14f95bf0b6c3b0f17058255dc7442810190/IBG_2445.jpg" /> Eddo Stern: Games After LifeBeall Center for Art + Technology, UC Irvine <img width="2500" height="1667" width_o="2500" height_o="1667" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/5b440c843a18c4928eaa9d70babe92915f980d0a366c336fcfa04029494b5ebb/IBG_5499.jpg" data-mid="181994635" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/5b440c843a18c4928eaa9d70babe92915f980d0a366c336fcfa04029494b5ebb/IBG_5499.jpg" /> Forthcoming Titles for 2020 Life and the Power of PhotographyPrinceton University Museum of ArtRoy Lichtenstein: History in the Making, 1948–1960Colby Museum of ArtTala MadaniMuseum of Contemporary Art (MOCA)Yesterday we said tomorrowProsepct.5 New OrleansAlison Saar: Of Aether and EarthePomona College Museum of Art and the ArmoryNayland Blake: No Wrong HolesICA LAGerald Clarke: Falling RockPalm Springs Museum of Art (frontispiece) Nineteen NineteenThe Huntington Library, Art Collections, and Botanical Gardens https://content-object.com/Fall-2019-Centennial-Fever Wed, 14 Jun 2023 00:28:26 +0000 Content Object Design Studio https://content-object.com/Fall-2019-Centennial-Fever C/O—Fall—2019 Centennial Fever A few decades back, I read a book called Archive Fever by Jacques Derrida. Since then, I've been haunted by the archive that presents as a public entity (the library), even though it is truly a place for deeply subjective frameworks where history coalesces. As a designer, this conundrum weighs heavily on my conscience as I navigate through the concept and design development of new projects. It's in this tenor (and temper) that I'm excited to share our newest book hot-off-the-cargo-ship, Nineteen Nineteen, from The Huntington Library, Art Museum, and Botanical Gardens. This book is so adeptly written, striking a perfect balance between public record and personal his- and her-stories, that it was just a total pleasure to design. <img width="2500" height="1667" width_o="2500" height_o="1667" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/455fb3371f1ad64b3e2507b60884a09376a2ab66427b9208bcba1df504522a5c/IBG_9715-02.jpg" data-mid="181995242" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/455fb3371f1ad64b3e2507b60884a09376a2ab66427b9208bcba1df504522a5c/IBG_9715-02.jpg" /> Nineteen NineteenCo-curated and -edited by Jennifer A. Watts (Curator of Photography and Visual Culture) and James Glisson (Interim Chief Curator of American Art) If you receive this newsletter in any regularity, then you know this is not the first centennial publication to come out of this studio in the past few years. Recently, Content Object completed the very ambitious project, Past/Forward: The LA Phil at 100 which accompanied a yearlong rollout of programming at The Phil and throughout Los Angeles. Past/Forward has also been recognized by four national awards (see below).Our new centennial for The Huntington follows with equal bravado, texture, and, most of all, curatorial oomph. The Huntington’s exhibition, and publication, Nineteen Nineteen takes a deep plunge into 1919, the year their deed was signed and the library went public. Using founder Henry Huntington’s carefully archived receipts, daily journals, and other clues, the curators examine the Huntington's acquisitions that year. Revealing a better understanding of the decisions behind these purchases, a second story is woven through to shape the book. That story asks what was happening locally and globally at the time.&nbsp;Nationally, Suffragettes were demanding their right to vote and Red Summer unleashed months of horrific violence. And as Henry Huntington was developing the railway tracks that would draw out the Los Angeles region as we know it, labor unrest and unionism were rocking the southland.This allegory is framed by five sections: Fight, Return, Map, Move, and Build. Keywords introduce each section and its context, accompanied by reproductions of the nearly 275 objects in the exhibition. Additionally, each section includes an insert that looks into the personal lives of Henry and Arabella. They lived and worked side by side, albeit non-traditional life paths, until the end of their lives. Now they rest in peace together on the grounds of the Huntington Gardens. Nineteen Nineteen, the exhibition, opens September 21st at The Huntington Library, Art Museum,&nbsp;and Botanical Gardens in San Marion, California. Below are some images from the book, some good news, and forthcoming titles. Best wishes,Kimberly Varella <img width="2500" height="1667" width_o="2500" height_o="1667" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/0e282059b791924f3a868ecc4d83868c41e20cd4ad4d4ec5bbde78d2af0fa0bb/IBG_9791.jpg" data-mid="181995216" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/0e282059b791924f3a868ecc4d83868c41e20cd4ad4d4ec5bbde78d2af0fa0bb/IBG_9791.jpg" /> <img width="2500" height="1667" width_o="2500" height_o="1667" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/b434f9ae278f64a3f42f0f904c04e33692b6fcf86bd7648c7e0ab30bcdb745ea/IBG_9720.jpg" data-mid="181994773" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/b434f9ae278f64a3f42f0f904c04e33692b6fcf86bd7648c7e0ab30bcdb745ea/IBG_9720.jpg" /> <img width="2500" height="1667" width_o="2500" height_o="1667" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/6a0943bf7bf9db33d43228c2d461aa2241ff71e30c81f562bdac15105e391cfa/IBG_9723.jpg" data-mid="181994774" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/6a0943bf7bf9db33d43228c2d461aa2241ff71e30c81f562bdac15105e391cfa/IBG_9723.jpg" /><img width="2500" height="1667" width_o="2500" height_o="1667" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/58d19361ffeeb0b5d278774319ee12e6c864e085eb91995ba6a89748432aa77e/IBG_9748.jpg" data-mid="181994776" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/58d19361ffeeb0b5d278774319ee12e6c864e085eb91995ba6a89748432aa77e/IBG_9748.jpg" /><img width="2500" height="1667" width_o="2500" height_o="1667" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/a53843df62ab1fd369324a5d5773dc102c2f5a2e698e205d930687bb8090e917/IBG_9749.jpg" data-mid="181994783" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/a53843df62ab1fd369324a5d5773dc102c2f5a2e698e205d930687bb8090e917/IBG_9749.jpg" /><img width="2500" height="1667" width_o="2500" height_o="1667" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/8446f048428ba5ce663d8c79927c1f27cd5c1dd47d5e26591766d9714c95279b/IBG_9750.jpg" data-mid="181994791" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/8446f048428ba5ce663d8c79927c1f27cd5c1dd47d5e26591766d9714c95279b/IBG_9750.jpg" /> Art direction and design by Kimberly Varella, Content Object; edited and written by James Glisson and Jennifer A. Watts; project management and copyediting by Jean Patterson; editorial and photo assistance by Lindsey Hansen; proofreading by Ann Lucke; principal photography by John Sullivan and Manuel Flores, Imaging Services; photo essay and select photography by Ian Byers-Gamber;&nbsp;color management by Echelon Color; and printing and binding management by Permanent Printing Limited, Hong Kong. Publisher: The Huntington Library, Art Collections, and Botanical GardensDistribution: Angel City PressISBN: 978-0-87328-268-0Dimensions: 7.325 x 10 inches Recognition Past/Forward: LA Phil at 100 <img width="2500" height="1667" width_o="2500" height_o="1667" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/1642ea6a8c2d327fc27ab769d9e3edc3a4d02c14fab70898a1c324f42555f66c/LA-Phil-001-cover-2161.jpg" data-mid="181994839" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/1642ea6a8c2d327fc27ab769d9e3edc3a4d02c14fab70898a1c324f42555f66c/LA-Phil-001-cover-2161.jpg" /> We are so insanely honored to be recognized by the following organizations: ADC: Merit in Publication Design; AIGA &amp; Design Observer: 50 Books Winner; Communication Arts (CA) Design Annual: Books; and Independent Publishers Book Awards (IPPY): Gold, Category “West-Pacific – Best Regional Non-Fiction”Past/Forward: The LA Phil at 100 was designed with Jessica Fleischmann of stillroom. Recently Released Cauleen Smith: Take it Or Leave itCurated and edited by Anthony Elms, The ICA at the University of Pennsylvania <img width="2500" height="1667" width_o="2500" height_o="1667" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/57cae658a8799f08bc7d6ddeeeb6b1adafdbb6c4da6f7c7024832dba15c8c2da/IBG_2046.jpg" data-mid="181994911" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/57cae658a8799f08bc7d6ddeeeb6b1adafdbb6c4da6f7c7024832dba15c8c2da/IBG_2046.jpg" />Through films, objects, and installation, Give It or Leave It offers an emotional axis by which to navigate four distinct universes: Alice Coltrane and her&nbsp;ashram, a 1966 photoshoot by Bill Ray at Simon Rodia’s Watts Towers, Noah&nbsp;Purifoy and his desert assemblages, and black spiritualist Rebecca Cox Jackson&nbsp;and her Shaker community. These locations, while not technically utopian&nbsp;societies, embody sites of historical speculation and radical generosity&nbsp;between artist and community. In reimagining a future through this mix, Smith&nbsp;casts a world that is black, feminist, spiritual, and unabashedly alive. (from ICA Philly) Designed by Content Object, Kimberly Varella Edited by Anthony Elms and publication management by Meg OnliTexts by Anthony Elms, Rhea Anastas, Rodney McMillian, and Cauleen SmithCase Bound Hardcover, 160 pages Publisher: Institute of Contemporary Art, University of Pennsylvania ISBN: 978-0-88454-146-2Dimensions: 6.5 x 9 inchesSeparations: Echelon ColorPrinting: Verona Libri, Italy Eddo Stern: Games After LifeBeall Center for Art + Technology, UC Irvine<img width="2500" height="1667" width_o="2500" height_o="1667" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/18da6bdccea9c56eb0d3cbcabc172e8d50bb365fc7dfe4e45b75826f8d693a22/IBG_5500.jpg" data-mid="181994939" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/18da6bdccea9c56eb0d3cbcabc172e8d50bb365fc7dfe4e45b75826f8d693a22/IBG_5500.jpg" /> Tel Aviv born artist and developer (friend and colleague) Eddo Stern is known for creating experimental video games, game art, and machinima-based works. Games After Life features over ten years of individual projects and collaborations, or games. Though they exist in the digital realm, they explore socio-political realities in a language unique to Stern—perfectly primed for these now analog paper leafs. Designed by Content Object, Kimberly Varella with Becca LofchieSoftcover with French folds: 72 pages Publisher: Beall Center for Art + Technology, University of California, Irvine&nbsp; ISBN: 978-0-578-47998-9Dimensions: 8.25 x 11 inchesPrinting: Verona Libri, ItalyUpcoming Titles Philip K. Smith III: 10 Columns, 2019Bridge ProjectsLife and the Power of Photography, 2020Princeton University Museum of ArtTodd Gray: Euclidean Gris Gris, 2020Pomona College Museum of ArtAlison Saar, 2020Pomona College Museum of ArtNayland Blake: No Wrong Holes, 2020ICA LAGerald Clarke: Falling Rock, 2020Palm Springs Museum of Art https://content-object.com/Fall-2018-Fall-Forward Wed, 14 Jun 2023 00:50:26 +0000 Content Object Design Studio https://content-object.com/Fall-2018-Fall-Forward C/O—Fall—2018 Fall Foward The last letter I sent out was over a year and a half ago with Machine Project's outrageous Platinum Collection release at the historic Vista Theater here in Los Angeles. The day after that I went back into the studio and haven't come out until now. First there was PST (Getty's Pacific Standard Time), and then some PTSD, and now the centennials. The Phil's Past/Forward: LA Phil at 100 is releasing at the end of this month. And the Huntington's Nineteen Nineteen is coming next year. In the background a bunch of awards were announced for two books I worked on for PST: Axis Mundo (the ONE Archives at USC Libraries) and Prometheus 2017 (Pomona Museum). Please celebrate with me these great books: have a little living room dance party with someone you love.All best,Kimberly Varella and Content Object Announcing awards for&nbsp;Axis Mundo: Queer Networks in Chicano L.A. <img width="1320" height="880" width_o="1320" height_o="880" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/e32ffb0f11b1a6cab8c533a06bb36f94ba425ba79859a18d1970adb4d6ccb35c/IBG_1838Front_Back_Cover-MED.jpg" data-mid="181995455" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/e32ffb0f11b1a6cab8c533a06bb36f94ba425ba79859a18d1970adb4d6ccb35c/IBG_1838Front_Back_Cover-MED.jpg" /> <img width="2500" height="1667" width_o="2500" height_o="1667" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/8196c5695aba3117e93b5eaf852a2ba30fbc300f1bb682f62185c70b4e750f65/IBG_8632.jpg" data-mid="181995458" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/8196c5695aba3117e93b5eaf852a2ba30fbc300f1bb682f62185c70b4e750f65/IBG_8632.jpg" /> <img width="2500" height="1667" width_o="2500" height_o="1667" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/768e9257c5510abc101963e58b852bd41653195377a4ffed2d5ebcb6e4252b44/IBG_1860.jpg" data-mid="181995459" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/768e9257c5510abc101963e58b852bd41653195377a4ffed2d5ebcb6e4252b44/IBG_1860.jpg" /> Perhaps you remember last fall there was an exhibition called Axis Mundo: Queer Networks in Chicano L.A. as a part of Getty's Pacific Standard Time Initiative? Then maybe you remember a brightly kissed catalogue of yellows and oranges that flanked the gallery's reception tables? Well not only does Axis Mundo live on exhibition-wise—New York, Denver, and Las Vegas via Independent Curators International exhibitions—but it's companion catalogue has caught the eye of some very discerning folks. We are so proud to announce the the following awards:First Place for The Frances Smyth-Ravenel Prize for Excellence in Publication Design American Alliance of Museums (AAM)"50 Books | 50 Covers" Competition AIGA + Design Observer for the Book category2018 Award for Excellence C. Ondine Chavoya and David Evans Frantz for the Axis Mundo Catalogue Association of Art Museum Curators (AAMC) First Place for the category of "Best LGBTQ Themed Book"International Latino Book AwardsSecond Place for the category of "Best Art Book"International Latino Book AwardsOf course the "we" is truly all the people that contributed to this book and it's success. The editors and writers C. Ondine Chavoya and David Evans Frantz with Macarena Gómez-Barris, line editor and project manager, Audrey Walen, as well as writers Leticia Alvarado, Julia Bryan-Wilson, Simon Doonan, Colin Gunckel,&nbsp;Joshua Javier Gúzman, Iván A. Ramos, Richard T. Rodríguez and the&nbsp;60+ amazing artists who without their brilliant work this book would never be. And for Prometheus 2017:Four Artists from Mexico Revisit Orozco <img width="2500" height="1667" width_o="2500" height_o="1667" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/e0d0eac668d17adb70c3bfea0a31ef40c015941bf7f373fb376b50da6bbc137c/PO-Prometheus-03_8.jpg" data-mid="182075400" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/e0d0eac668d17adb70c3bfea0a31ef40c015941bf7f373fb376b50da6bbc137c/PO-Prometheus-03_8.jpg" /> <img width="2500" height="1667" width_o="2500" height_o="1667" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/903523892eec9febdbef5356e88ca189b66c8a40fc52abf14594b4099f64e2fc/IBG_8663.jpg" data-mid="182075408" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/903523892eec9febdbef5356e88ca189b66c8a40fc52abf14594b4099f64e2fc/IBG_8663.jpg" /> <img width="2500" height="1667" width_o="2500" height_o="1667" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/4e11739d924994e43a1c499a5a8e06fe3b36beaa0aa6c900e50c148748dce716/IBG_8657_1.jpg" data-mid="182075409" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/4e11739d924994e43a1c499a5a8e06fe3b36beaa0aa6c900e50c148748dce716/IBG_8657_1.jpg" /> "50 Books | 50 Covers" Competition AIGA + Design Observer for the Book category Prometheus 2017: Four Artists from Mexico Revisit Orozco is&nbsp;edited by Rebecca McGrew and Terri Geis, with texts by Rebecca McGrew, Terri Geis, Mary K. Coffey, Daniel Garza Usabiaga and Benjamin Kersten.Additional Press and Recognition:LA WeeklyPyrotechnics Performance with Artist Adela Goldbard More Recently Released Titles <img width="2500" height="1667" width_o="2500" height_o="1667" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/7d24069bad7ea3383753ad3d5c8163c74226e65ab06a71a3d32b17b989b22ca3/IBG_6393.jpg" data-mid="182075546" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/7d24069bad7ea3383753ad3d5c8163c74226e65ab06a71a3d32b17b989b22ca3/IBG_6393.jpg" /> Marcia Hafif: A Place Apart Pomona College Museum of Art <img width="2500" height="1667" width_o="2500" height_o="1667" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/a894561c37b037f09a2cd1ffa748a81db22be1cdb548d4663aa21f5f0c51f3b8/IBG_6347.jpg" data-mid="182075717" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/a894561c37b037f09a2cd1ffa748a81db22be1cdb548d4663aa21f5f0c51f3b8/IBG_6347.jpg" /> Hayv Kahraman: Project Series 52 Pomona College Museum of Art Upcoming Releases September 27, 2018Past/Forward: The LA Phil at 100Los Angeles Philharmonichttp://campaign.laphil.com/Spring 2019Cauleen Smith: Give It or Leave ItThe Institute of Contemporary Art at the University of PennsylvaniaExhibition on view now through December 23, 2018 https://icaphila.org/exhibitions/cauleen-smith-give-it-or-leave-it/Fall 2019Nineteen NineteenThe Huntington Library, Art Collections and Botanical Gardens Sara Kathryn ArledgeArmory Center for the Arts and X Artist's BooksAnd many more surprises! https://content-object.com/Spring-2017-The-Eye Wed, 14 Jun 2023 18:50:33 +0000 Content Object Design Studio https://content-object.com/Spring-2017-The-Eye C/O—Spring—2017 The Eye (noun) a globular organ in the head through which people and vertebrate animals see.1. Eye on Design I am thrilled to share Madeleine Morley's meditation on Content Object for AIGA's Eye On Design: "L.A. Studio Content Object Explores “That Grey Area” Between Art and Design"2. Keep Your Eyes PeeledSome of the really exciting books that we've been working on for the last year (and then some) are slowly making their way to the public. Four of which are highlighted here and may have also been spotted at&nbsp;L.A. Art Book Fair last weekend.—Kimberly Varella and Content Object Rodney McMillian—Studio Museum in Harlem and ICA Philadelphia <img width="671" height="795" width_o="671" height_o="795" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/9e3c0fa39212cacac68ebb880e472ffb84c53ab70b4bc0c9343cde468aeca0cd/-McMillian-composite.jpg" data-mid="182076479" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/671/i/9e3c0fa39212cacac68ebb880e472ffb84c53ab70b4bc0c9343cde468aeca0cd/-McMillian-composite.jpg" /> Two years in the making, Rodney McMillian is both an exhibition catalogue and an object in its own right.&nbsp;The cover is a detail from McMillians artwork, a kemmering (2013), which is a painting/object that can be seen as an inversion or an eversion—depending on how you look at it. This piece is profoundly aligned with how I think about publication design and the objectness of the book—the recto/verso of the page, the front and back covers, and the sequencing&nbsp;and subsequent combinations of allegory.This book weaves together McMillian’s practice—the radical use of postconsumer objects, video, and painting—with new essays by Charles Gaines, Rita Gonzalez, Anthony Elms, Dave McKenzie, and Steven Nelson, as well as a conversation between Naima J. Keith and Rodney McMillian. There are also two uncannily relevant reprints: an excerpt of&nbsp; "When Affirmative Action Was White," by Ira Katznelson (2005), and a mesmerizing conversation between John Sinclair and Sun Ra (1966). Rodney McMillian was published on the occasion of two exhibitions: Rodney McMillian: The Black Show (Institute of Contemporary Art at the University of Pennsylvania,&nbsp;2016); and Rodney McMillian: Views of Main Street (The Studio Museum in Harlem, 2016). Curated by Anthony Elms and Naima J. Keith, respectively.The book is 8.25 x 11.25 inches and 168 pages. Color separations&nbsp;by Echelon Color. Printed in China by&nbsp;Permanent Printing&nbsp;Limited Printed. Experience: Culture, Cognition, and the Common Sense—MIT Press<img width="2501" height="1667" width_o="2501" height_o="1667" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/4803a95a9943229537567953dbd35b1d5e76dbfed8e0e2c4b21aeee48f9898b4/MIT-Experience-13_indexadjusted.jpg" data-mid="182076495" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/4803a95a9943229537567953dbd35b1d5e76dbfed8e0e2c4b21aeee48f9898b4/MIT-Experience-13_indexadjusted.jpg" /><img width="2500" height="2000" width_o="2500" height_o="2000" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/87cc850081fb2d9b4a2bc200e99d0a346d159b8584855c41b53a2124a356381c/MIT-Experience-26.jpg" data-mid="182076533" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/87cc850081fb2d9b4a2bc200e99d0a346d159b8584855c41b53a2124a356381c/MIT-Experience-26.jpg" /> With a hefty list of contributors this book is truly MIT: bringing together art, theory, science, technology, and design. Things you'll experience while reading this book include a heat-sensitive cover designed in collaboration with&nbsp;Olafur Eliasson, endpapers printed with human pheromone infused&nbsp;ink&nbsp;(Carsten Höller), dynamically shifting foredges (Tauba Auerbach), web-like bookmarks emerging from the center&nbsp;(Tomás Saraceno), and a series of radical posters combining the vernacular of color and the politically identified self (Renée Green).Alvin Lucier was commissioned to write a score for the book which he called Closed Book (2015). In the early phases of design we sent Lucier a paper dummy so that he could feel the weight of the book, touch the texture of the paper, and hear the thump of the cover. He begins the score with: "Place this book on a desk, table, or other surface. Throughout the course of the performance tap the body of the book in ways that reveal the resonant characteristics of the book coupled with the surface upon which it rests." Other contributors include Bevil Conway, John Dewey, Michel Foucault, Adam Frank, Vittorio Gallese, Stefan Helmreich, Edmund Husserl, William James, Caroline A. Jones, Douglas Kahn, Brian Kane, Leah Kelly, Bruno Latour, David Mather, Mara Mills, Alva Noë, Jacques Rancière, Michael Rossi, Natasha Schüll, Joan W.Scott, Tino Sehgal, Alma Steingart, Josh Tenenbaum, and Rebecca Uchill.Experience: Culture, Cognition, and the Common Sense is edited by Caroline A. Jones, David Mather, and Rebecca Uchill, and designed with Becca Lofchie.&nbsp;It is 7.125 x 9.875 inches and 352 pages. Printed in China. Cock, Paper, Scissors—ONE Archives at the USC Libraries <img width="2500" height="1667" width_o="2500" height_o="1667" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/a338b0a36fe22e1b9bd658522979fec0f6dc0fc96dcd11e34290347a2b716173/ONE-CockPaperScissors-13.jpg" data-mid="182076606" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/a338b0a36fe22e1b9bd658522979fec0f6dc0fc96dcd11e34290347a2b716173/ONE-CockPaperScissors-13.jpg" /> <img width="2500" height="1667" width_o="2500" height_o="1667" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/a62af801b986ad87f67f50dde0228b9c0cf4cde40a75a3ee93c9e48126f5b63e/ONE-CockPaperScissors-12.jpg" data-mid="182076652" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/a62af801b986ad87f67f50dde0228b9c0cf4cde40a75a3ee93c9e48126f5b63e/ONE-CockPaperScissors-12.jpg" /> <img width="2500" height="1666" width_o="2500" height_o="1666" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/28f08e4b4fb51400137527d3140c03d8120b733736ca3f8b2960d295a1d6b67c/ONE-CockPaperScissors-05.jpg" data-mid="182076672" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/28f08e4b4fb51400137527d3140c03d8120b733736ca3f8b2960d295a1d6b67c/ONE-CockPaperScissors-05.jpg" /> In the words of editor and curator David Evans Frantz: "Cock, Paper, Scissors brings together works by an intergenerational group of fifteen queer artists who explore the collaged page or the scrapbook with diverse, erotically inclined tactics. The exhibition and catalogue draws from both archival collections and contemporary practices, focusing on how these artists reuse the pieces of print culture for worldmaking projects ranging from the era of gay liberation to the present."One of my favorite inclusions is a series by Anita Steckel where she takes the pages of Taschen's Tom of Finland and draws in her own figures—most often women gracefully yet assertively entering the original scenes. Colored pencils fill the negative spaces with a rosy palette, transforming Tom of Finland's rigorous, monochromatic drawings into disorienting, visual spells.The book's intimate size invites you to read it surreptitiously (perhaps concealed within a large Taschen book), and enjoy the&nbsp;scintillating pages in private. Cock, Paper, Scissors is edited by David Evans Frantz, Lucas Hilderbrand, and Kayleigh Perkov.&nbsp;It is 6.5 x 8.5 inches and 152 pages. Printed in China. Incendiary Traces: Hillary Mushkin—Pomona College Museum of Art <img width="2500" height="1667" width_o="2500" height_o="1667" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/deb4ecb7af59c1a41c7f4a26cabf75ab3b6ed20f413615618be3e878259b4ed7/PO-HillaryMushkin_15.jpg" data-mid="182076823" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/deb4ecb7af59c1a41c7f4a26cabf75ab3b6ed20f413615618be3e878259b4ed7/PO-HillaryMushkin_15.jpg" /><img width="2500" height="1667" width_o="2500" height_o="1667" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/c1dc1c78fc7c4c848364725deb0d14a558b0ccf4f019aeb058c4b458d23bf831/PO-HillaryMushkin_02.jpg" data-mid="182076865" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/c1dc1c78fc7c4c848364725deb0d14a558b0ccf4f019aeb058c4b458d23bf831/PO-HillaryMushkin_02.jpg" />Incendiary Traces is a project by Hillary Mushkin that gathers groups of&nbsp;artists, scholars, and students to to meet at active, militarized sites to draw. This publication contains six such sites, including the 29&nbsp;Palms Marine Corps Base, the US/Mexico border, and San Clemente Island Naval Weapons Testing Range. The exhibition at Pomona College Museum of Art, on view until May 14th,&nbsp;shares the roster with&nbsp;Goya's War:&nbsp;Los Desastres de la Guerra, a set of 80 etchings published 1863. As a friend recently put it:&nbsp;"the older it is, the more relevant it now seems."The cover of the book highlights traces of obscure acronyms, "in-house" references to the sites highlighted in the volume. The size of the book references an on-the-fly sketchbook or field manual, and the stories are told through the drawings accompanied by detailed didactics by Mushkin. Includes essays by&nbsp;Susanna Newbury and Sarah Seekatz. Incendiary Traces: Hillary Mushkin is edited by Rebecca McGrew, and designed with Becca Lofchie.&nbsp;It is 9.5&nbsp;x 6 inches and 136 pages. Printed by the Avery Group at Shapco Printing. Upcoming—Machine Project: The Platinum Collection (Live by Special Request)Tang Museum Teaching Museum at Skidmore CollegePrometheus 2017: Four Artists from Mexico Revisit OrozcoPomona College Museum of Artsupported by the Getty PST LA/LA InitiativeAxis Mundo: Queer Networks in Chicano L.A.ONE National Gay &amp; Lesbian Archivessupported by the Getty PST LA/LA Initiative https://content-object.com/Beginning-of-the-Year-2017-New-Books Wed, 14 Jun 2023 19:03:19 +0000 Content Object Design Studio https://content-object.com/Beginning-of-the-Year-2017-New-Books C/O—Beginning of the Year—2017 New Books Making a book is a herculean task. Countless hours are devoted to a single book—by designers, writers, curators, editors, artists, typographers, production artists, color separators, photographers, printers, paper makers, ink mixers—hours that often outnumber those spent relishing in the final product. How often do we finish a project, hit the send button, push our chairs away from our desks, and then roll right back in for the next thing—all in the same day?Today I’m going to practice reflection. It’s been such an intense year of exciting, and frankly, life-changing projects. I hope you will enjoy some of these photos and anecdotes, and celebrate these four awesome new publications with me.—Kimberly Varella and Content Object Beauty—Cooper Hewitt Design Triennial <img width="2500" height="1667" width_o="2500" height_o="1667" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/d9c6e819191ab26a8f5c784d8a236f2424cccf08bf59beb0a9dfd7884d644589/CH-Beauty-01-edit_15.jpg" data-mid="182078418" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/d9c6e819191ab26a8f5c784d8a236f2424cccf08bf59beb0a9dfd7884d644589/CH-Beauty-01-edit_15.jpg" /><img width="2500" height="1666" width_o="2500" height_o="1666" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/a023fd545b2157de5e74a2cefcb0c8461383f1dde23a86bef363557cac9bb1f2/CH-Beauty-15.jpg" data-mid="182078410" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/a023fd545b2157de5e74a2cefcb0c8461383f1dde23a86bef363557cac9bb1f2/CH-Beauty-15.jpg" /> The Challenge: Designing for designers (an intimidating honor)The resultant book is filled with unexpected details: the front- and back-matter are replaced by a ‘heart section’ at the center of the book, fluorescent and metallic inks creep out of the spine in each section, a foiled duplex cover with matching foil stamp warp and reflect, and pink thread holds it all together. Awards and Recognition:Print Magazine Regional Design Annual50 Books | 50 CoversCooper Hewitt Design QuarterlyThe New York TimesArchitectural DigestBeauty—Cooper Hewitt Design Triennial is a survery of 63 international designers. Edited with introduction by Andrea Lipps and Ellen Lupton. Foreword by Caroline Baumann. Interviews by Andrea Lipps, Ellen Lupton, Suvi Saloniemi and more. Organized by Pamela Horn, head of Cross-Platform Publishing at the Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum. R.S.V.P. Los Angeles—A Project Series invitational<img width="1000" height="666" width_o="1000" height_o="666" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/e8efec9bd79edd949202fbd30397e5251778452b95f04bbc79ecaee99f948555/PO-RSVP-01_1000.jpg" data-mid="182078456" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/e8efec9bd79edd949202fbd30397e5251778452b95f04bbc79ecaee99f948555/PO-RSVP-01_1000.jpg" /> <img width="2500" height="1667" width_o="2500" height_o="1667" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/5bf8d6373f0d62e28388b1fb2553d9896d91029f3c0bb0b13c19b973b7b6d127/PO-RSVP-22.jpg" data-mid="182078459" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/5bf8d6373f0d62e28388b1fb2553d9896d91029f3c0bb0b13c19b973b7b6d127/PO-RSVP-22.jpg" /> <img width="2500" height="1667" width_o="2500" height_o="1667" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/4d251e22534cf92b7d2ff0df6d1189ee572a04f0aea93123213e83bff216b5ce/PO-RSVP-24.jpg" data-mid="182078460" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/4d251e22534cf92b7d2ff0df6d1189ee572a04f0aea93123213e83bff216b5ce/PO-RSVP-24.jpg" /> The Challenge: Create a book that 1) Commemorates the fifty Project Series that Rebecca McGrew has curated since 1999, and 2) Serves as the catalogue for “R.S.V.P.,” the invitational exhibition that celebrated this milestone.The goal of the Project Series at Pomona is to support and cultivate experimental art, a philosophy that carries over into its publications, and one of the many reasons why Rebecca McGrew and I have had such a fruitful collaboration over the years. This is the 11th book we’ve made together.Notches on the top and bottom of each page serve as a running artist index. When the book is closed, these notches align with the cover, such that the title “R.S.V.P.” appears to wrap continuously around the book. R.S.V.P. Los Angeles: The Project Series At Pomona is edited by Rebecca McGrew and Terri Geis. Texts by Lisa Anne Auerbach, Terri Geis, Doug Harvey, Kathleen Howe, Rebecca McGrew, Glenn Phillips, Valorie Thomas, Nicolás Orozco-Valdivica, and Sarah Wang. Chronology compiled by Ian Byers-Gamber and Rebecca McGrew. Ha Chonghyun <img width="2500" height="1667" width_o="2500" height_o="1667" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/0f1d6607f69fd3f317267ea95468baf23e38c4819af4c994be6ecad403ff0586/BP-Chonghyun-01.jpg" data-mid="182078561" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/0f1d6607f69fd3f317267ea95468baf23e38c4819af4c994be6ecad403ff0586/BP-Chonghyun-01.jpg" /> <img width="2500" height="1667" width_o="2500" height_o="1667" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/691cc4548361fd68e7da8e29c8f3f092761e186b9561db605650d5debb4e9763/BP-Chonghyun-05.jpg" data-mid="182078565" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/691cc4548361fd68e7da8e29c8f3f092761e186b9561db605650d5debb4e9763/BP-Chonghyun-05.jpg" /> <img width="2500" height="1666" width_o="2500" height_o="1666" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/6fe56d230967c16a556ab66bfbf9da4554fc3b6e75a622fb9a4acda80e1492b7/BP-Chonghyun-10.jpg" data-mid="182078569" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/6fe56d230967c16a556ab66bfbf9da4554fc3b6e75a622fb9a4acda80e1492b7/BP-Chonghyun-10.jpg" /> The Challenge: How to deal with reproduction in books? How to accurately represent the work and the feeling of seeing it in person?To make his paintings, Ha pushes the paint through the back of the canvas, creating surfaces bordering on the sculptural. It proved especially important to feature detail shots, as they better captured the painting’s rich textures. The plates alternate between pulled back shots and extreme close ups, mimicking the experience of moving through the works in a gallery. Ha Chonghyun is edited by Karen Jacobson with an essay by Joan Kee. Organized by Lynda Bunting, Emeritus Director of Publications and Communications. Designed with Becca Lofchie. A Strange and Fearful Interest:Death, Mourning, and Memory in theAmerican Civil War <img width="2500" height="1667" width_o="2500" height_o="1667" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/14a246fcea657b9b2b112bb44e8f2bcc159cd7c5a4ed7bda02d58dec8af8b67f/HTG-Civil-War-01.jpg" data-mid="182078573" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/14a246fcea657b9b2b112bb44e8f2bcc159cd7c5a4ed7bda02d58dec8af8b67f/HTG-Civil-War-01.jpg" /> <img width="2500" height="1667" width_o="2500" height_o="1667" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/659b0d3d065a25d62a2473878801c5f9bed7f358434e007edeaf6126d45ae843/HTG-Civil-War-13.jpg" data-mid="182078580" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/659b0d3d065a25d62a2473878801c5f9bed7f358434e007edeaf6126d45ae843/HTG-Civil-War-13.jpg" /> <img width="2500" height="1667" width_o="2500" height_o="1667" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/4cdce269feb3954654512464596758ac6aa15ea0fd49e2ddb173f4f9d493fca3/HTG-Civil-War-15.jpg" data-mid="182078576" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/4cdce269feb3954654512464596758ac6aa15ea0fd49e2ddb173f4f9d493fca3/HTG-Civil-War-15.jpg" /> The Challenge: Capture the somber and unique materiality of 150+ year old photographs from the American Civil War and its relationship to media technology.At the project’s outset, curator Jenny Watts took me into the Huntington Library’s vaults to view some of the photographs from the exhibition. This initial interaction carried directly into the book’s design. The final size, 6.5 x 8.5 inches, is small and intimate, yet big enough to show most of the work at actual size. The book is printed as a semi-process (CMYK) with the standard black ink (K) substituted for PMS Black 6—which contains a small amount of silver. The result is true to the photographs themselves: dark, murky yet crisp, ghostly and rich.Incidentally, the book featured the typeface “Domaine” by Kris Sowersby (Klim Type Foundry, add link) who was one of the featured designer’s in the Beauty: Cooper Hewitt’s Design Triennial. Links:50 Books | 50 CoversA Strange and Fearful Interest is written and edited by Jennifer A. Watts with contributions by Barret Oliver and Steve Roden. Upcoming and Recently Released 2016 / 2017Cock Paper ScissorsONE National Gay &amp; Lesbian ArchivesExperienceMIT Center for Art, Science &amp; TechnologyRodney McMillianStudio Museum in Harlem and ICA PhiladelphiaMachine Project: The Platinum Collection (Live by Special Request)Tang Museum Teaching Museum at Skidmore CollegePrometheus 2017: Four Artists from Mexico Revisit OrozcoPomona College Museum of Artsupported by the Getty PST LA/LA InitiativeAxis Mundo: Queer Networks in Chicano L.A.ONE National Gay &amp; Lesbian Archivessupported by the Getty PST LA/LA Initiative