Artists' Books, ZinesGracia Louiseartists' books, Gracia Haby, Louise Jennison, nature, animals, online store, zines, inspiration, instagram, ecosystem, interconnectedness, walking, daily walk, home, Grey-headed flying fox, Birrarung, Yarra Bend Park, Yarra River, Sticky Institute, Melbourne Art Book Fair, NGVABF, NGV, microbat, Bracketed by light, rockpool, rakali, Remy, Bat Rescue Bayside, Bower, bowerbirds, Genevieve Lacey

Fair bound

Artists' Books, ZinesGracia Louiseartists' books, Gracia Haby, Louise Jennison, nature, animals, online store, zines, inspiration, instagram, ecosystem, interconnectedness, walking, daily walk, home, Grey-headed flying fox, Birrarung, Yarra Bend Park, Yarra River, Sticky Institute, Melbourne Art Book Fair, NGVABF, NGV, microbat, Bracketed by light, rockpool, rakali, Remy, Bat Rescue Bayside, Bower, bowerbirds, Genevieve Lacey
Fair bound

An artists’ book and three new zines

Gracia Haby & Louise Jennison
Bracketed by light
2022
26 page, perfect bound artists’ book, with 24 Indigo Digital White leaves on 310gsm Earl Black and two hand cut leaves on 110gsm PopTicks Black, bound in Indigo Digital White on 310gsm Earl Black, 160mm x 345mm
Printed by Bambra
Bound by Louise Jennison
Edition of 100

Rakali Grotto
2022
Digital print zine
Edition of 40

Roosting on a concealed tree branch
2022
Digital print zine
Edition of 40

Tiny but huge
2022
Digital print zine
Edition of 40

Opening this Friday, in a handful of hours, the 2022 NGV Melbourne Art Book Fair.

In person, in the Great Hall once more, the prospect naturally feels quite surreal. Principally, though, we are so looking forward to sharing our new artists' book, Bracketed by light, with you, and introducing you to its crepuscular and nocturnal inhabitants.

In the lead up to its imminent release into the wild, Louise has been working meticulously on the hand-binding, ensuring every book block is perfectly square, and every printed snout joins without seam to every printed rump. With the books now numbered and signed, and stacked neatly in readiness, they have moved into the realm of things I am almost too cautious to touch. A stage that does not last long, but one that indicates, to me, that something is complete. We’re ready! It’s done.

It seems only fitting that a book about bats and friends should have come together in the company of Rosetta and co. We even acquired a small humidifier along the way as we worked on Bracketed by light, to help the moisture leave the book pages. And now, it is ready. We’re done.

NGV Melbourne Art Book Fair
Great Hall, NGV International
180 St Kilda Road, Melbourne

Friday 18th of March
10am–5pm
6–10pm (booking required)

Saturday 19th of March
10am–5pm

Sunday 20th of March
8.30–10am (booking required)
10am–5pm

If you cannot make it to the fair in person, you can order a copy of Bracketed by light through our online store.

 
 

In the vein of our first zine for 2022, Went out for a walk, two new folded tales, Roosting on a concealed tree branch and Rakali Grotto, are also now boxed and ready for the fair.

With their outlines smoothed, and their bodies banded with a paper label, a Tawny frogmouth (Podargus strigoides) and friends, another joy to ‘sculpt’. So, too, the Rakali’s grotto of irregularity, which does not follow a set formation. Within the grotto, if you are familiar with your rockpool life, you will find a Mermaid’s necklace, a Small green seastar, an Elephant snail, and a Notched shore crab, all cut from the satin and details from dress making illustrations and paper dolls.

 
 

Scoring and folding editions of Roosting on a concealed tree branch, with a flash of Lenni.

Scoring and folding editions of Rakali Grotto, with a fleetness of ringtails.

This behind the scenes, sped up footage of the process is already starting to feel something of a whirl ago. Equally so, seeing the pups, and adults previously in care, ‘graduate’ with the opening of the hatch of the Soft Release Enclosure on Wednesday last. Such a heartwarming moment to witness them (from the dusky sidelines) as they slowly left the enclosure to take their place in the surrounding canopy. Such tentative movements, in those we saw before our eyes failed to see like theirs do.

Best of all, for us, dear Remy and Pip are now fully wild, though, of course, they’re no longer Remy and Pip, but perhaps traveling by some other ‘name’ we’ll never know. An important part of the squealing, shrieking and cackling chorus, restored. And in doing melding further our working process to our caring for wildlife journey.

 
 

Our third new zine, created especially for the fair, is Tiny but huge, though before it can roost in your pocket, it still needs to be cut.

If you can’t make it to the fair, we’ll also be at the Castlemaine Art Museum Book Fair the following weekend.

Castlemaine Art Museum
14 Lyttleton Street, Castlemaine

Sunday 27th March
Noon to 4pm

And sometime after that, if copies remain, our new zine titles will also be listed through our online store.

 
 

Finally, Genevieve Lacey has a beautiful new website, designed by Ashley Simonetto, and featuring a flutter of our Bower collages we so enjoyed creating especially for her.

 

Image credit: Gracia Haby & Louise Jennison, Rakali Grotto (detail), 2022, digital print zine