Akedah: The Binding of Yitzhak – New Artist Book released
We are glad to announce the release of our next major Jewish artist book, Akedah: The Binding of Yitzhak.
An accordion book that one can view intimately or expand 50 feet for display, it tells the haunting Biblical story of Avraham who is commanded to sacrifice his son, Yitzhak.
With stark mountains drawn with sumi-inks, The Binding of Yitzhak aspires to capture the breakdown of language in the face of trauma. As The Binding of Yitzhak unfolds, the letters and words become more fragmented and disjointed. The book functions on multiple levels. The text itself runs across spare mountains interspersed with commentary from Jewish and non-Jewish sources. In addition, a silent text is created through multiple blind embossments made with a Vandercook press.
An edition of 8 copies is available to libraries, museums and collectors.
The Amichai Windows
An homage to one of the greatest Hebrew-language poets, The Amichai Windows is an exquisite bilingual artist book of Yehuda Amichai poems that opens a window on love, war, and being Jewish today. A limited edition of 12 copies are still available for libraries and collectors.
Amichai, nominated for the Nobel Prize in Literature, has been translated into more than 40 languages. He writes primarily about love and war — or, if you like, love amid war — and what it means to be a Jew in the 20th century. You can see a number of spreads from this artist book at the College Book Art Association.
In the works for 10 years, the book features 18 letterpressed Yehuda Amichai poems, an introduction by the eminent Hebrew literary translator and critic Professor Robert Alter of the University of California at Berkeley, more than 100 images from archives around the world, replicas of Amichai’s handwritten poems, a window simulacrum enclosure with lace curtains, original papercuts by Debra Band, handmade paper with deckled edges, gold leaf, a 28-page guide and a variety of tip-ons and botanicals.
Here is a two-minute video that will give you a sense of opening one of the poems. And below is an eight-minute video about the overall project:
Feature stories about this work have run in the Israeli daily Haaretz and on Israel radio’s Reshet Bet. The American Jewish Libraries News Review, called The Amichai Windows “a major contribution to American arts and letters.”
An article by Rick Black ran in Tikkun magazine, a journal of Jewish contemporary arts and culture, early in the process of making this book. You can read more about upcoming exhibitions and the creation of this artist book at our blog.
Talks and Workshops
TLP founder Rick Black gives occasional talks or workshops to various groups – you can check out his topics on our speakers page. Any questions, please call 908-227-7951.
