Uncommon Journeys of al-Mutanabbi Street Books
Nina Ardery, USA
| Uncommon Journeys of
al-Mutanabbi Street Books; Nina Ardery,
Indianapolis, USA, 2013 Uncommon Journeys of al-Mutanabbi Street Books imagines a bookstore, run by the Bookseller, who traded in used books. Quite a few of the books were in English. Some had been there for years, and some were very recent arrivals. What they all had in common was that none of them survived the bombing of al-Mutanabbi Street on March 5, 2007. Like the 130 people who were killed or injured on the street that day, each of the books had a distinct history, took a different route, and had a different reason for being in that place at that time. The random collection of books was thrown together by circumstance, but their fates were forever linked. Uncommon Journeys of al-Mutanabbi Street Books presents the stories of nine of these books. My first inclination was to actually blow up the books, and then photograph them, but I just couldn't do it. The images in Uncommon Journeys are of the books as they might have been in the Bookseller's shop. So, ironically, no books were destroyed in the making of this work. Edition of 7, 6¾”x6?”, softback book with fold-out map Nina Ardery is a letterpress printer and book artist working in Indianapolis, Indiana, USA. She is the co-proprietor of Carillon Press, a small studio dedicated to the production of posters, illustrated books, and wood engravings. nardery@erols.com |