THE PHOTOBOOK ECOSYSTEM : REACHING FOR CRITICAL MASS
Thurs 18th April: 7pm CEST/ 6pm BST / 2pm BRT/ 1pm EDT (ONLINE)
A panel discussion with Tanya Busse, Mondo Books & Arctic Art Book Fair (Tromsø, Norway), Michelle Dunn Marsh, Minor Matters Books (Seattle, USA), João Pedro Lima & Alix Breda, Selo Turvo & Lovely House (São Paulo, Brazil), Emily Sheffer, Dust Collective (Boston, USA)
Moderated by Delphine Bedel, curator, keynote speaker and writer (Amsterdam, The Netherlands)
Why do we need critical mass towards sustainability in the photobook ecosystem? What does it mean as a bookmaker, designer, publisher, supplier or consumer? What could it look like on a local and global level? On Thursday, April 18, the Sustainable Photobook Publishing (SPP) network hosts its annual online forum to coincide with Earth Day—a chance to calibrate current thinking about sustainability and the photobook. An emerging theme since our first talk in 2022 is that working in tandem is vital. This year the panelists convene from different geographic regions to discuss our interconnected global issues from a local perspective, and how together we can reach for critical mass across the spectrum, from production to distribution.
Supported by Westminster University Sustainability Fund (London, UK)
Graphic identity by Dolly Meieran
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FREE - Donations Welcome
Tanya Busse, Mondo Books & Arctic Art Book Fair (Tromsø, Norway)
"I think photobooks are both cultural artifacts and vehicles for knowledge dissemination. Books in general hold a special place in human history as vessels of information, ideas, and stories. As a platform Mondo is committed to trying to create stronger and more sustainable distribution networks and community connections throughout the circumpolar north."
Tanya Busse is a visual artist and co-director of Mondo Books (Tromsø, Norway), an independent book platform that mediates artists’ publications through publishing, distribution, and thematic workshops. They pursue research-based projects around topics of printed matter and its relationship to social movements, particularly in the arctic region of Northern Scandinavia. In 2020 Mondo helped establish the Arctic Art Book Fair, a multi-day celebration of artists and independent presses, featuring more than 75 local, national and international publishers, as well as a diverse line-up of presentations, readings and artists’ projects. AABF is the first art book fair (to their knowledge) that brings together producers from across the circumpolar north: Alaska, Northern Canada, Greenland, Northern Scandinavia and Russia.
Michelle Dunn Marsh, Minor Matters Books (Seattle, USA)
"To me, sustainability means considering materials and production that are earth-aware, and that will result in a book that can physically withstand the test of time"
Michelle Dunn Marsh is the co-founder and publisher of Minor Matters. She oversees editorial acquisition, design and production of their titles, skills honed over the last three decades through staff positions with Aperture Foundation and Chronicle Books, and on a project basis with University of Washington Press, Museum of Glass, Abbeville Press, Rizzoli, and others. She holds a BA from Bard College, and an MS in Publishing from Pace University. A committed educator, she lectures and teaches internationally, and is the author of Seeing Being Seen: A Personal History of Photography. Dunn Marsh is currently developing an exhibition of the recent Minor Matters publication Charles Peterson’s Nirvana, which will open at the Tacoma Art Museum fall 2024 and travel thereafter.
Image: Elisa Huerta-Enochian
João Pedro Lima & Alix Breda, Selo Turvo & Lovely House (São Paulo, Brazil)
"Sustainability comes from the necessity to open routes to collectively find creative ecosystems in the way we think, discuss and distribute photobooks in a time that calls for action."
Alix Breda and João Pedro Lima are the founders of the independent publisher Selo Turvo, based in the forests of Serra da Cantareira, Brazil. Agroecologist and visual artist, Alix works as an editor and researches different ways of interacting with the environment through photobooks. João Pedro is a graphic designer and visual artist, and is associated with Lovely House photobook store. He is author of the photobook “Contranatura” which was featured as a case study by The Sustainable Photobook Publishing (SPP) network. Selo Turvo seeks original projects that experiment with the object itself and with what goes beyond the printed image, thinking about ways to cultivate and fictionalize with land.
Emily Sheffer, Dust Collective (Boston, USA)
"For me, sustainability means constantly finding a balance between being someone who makes things and being someone who is concerned with climate issues. These two seemingly opposed points of view drive the decisions I make as a publisher."
Emily Sheffer is a photographic artist, educator, and book designer. She is the founder of Dust Collective, a handmade photography book publisher. Emily earned her MFA in photography from The University of Hartford, where she is currently a Visiting Assistant Professor of Photography.
Delphine Bedel, curator, keynote speaker and writer (Amsterdam, The Netherlands)
"Is your book worth cutting trees?"
Delphine BEDEL (She/Her/They) is a feminist curator, writer, speaker and art consultant based in Amsterdam. She works with leading art and design institutions, photography festivals and museums. Her focus is photography, visual culture, biohacking and gender equity. A longtime advocate of a more inclusive art sector, she is cofounder and chair of the non-for profit ENGAGEMENT ARTS NL. She writes for books and magazines.