Kit Martin, The Church Hymnary: Revised Edition, Dundee, Scotland, 2022

I'd never seen a cyanotype accordion until my friend John Shimon sent me one the other month (see on this blog). His piece sent me looking to see what else was happening in the world of the cyanotype - and the answer is lots and lots of cool stuff! 

The relatively simple cyanotype process was created by Sir John Herschel in 1842 and produces a wonderfully rich dark cyan-blue color, as seen below. Martin's web site (Kit Martin Photography) displays cyanotypes with all sorts of usually natural subject matter, like this floral-like work. 

The plus to this particular accordion is that its bound in a re-purposed Church Hymnary: Revised Edition which provides an interesting ecclesiastical context to the work!

6 one-sided page, each page 3.75" x 5.75", and when fully open 1ft 10.5".

back cover

Jonathan Monk, Meeting #13, Book Works & Yvon Lambert, UK & France, 2000, ed., 10,000

the envelope the work came in

A smart accordion by this Brit neo-conceptualist artist based in Berlin. The publishers blurb for this work states: "Meeting #13 is one in a series of text works by Jonathan Monk. In this series, the artist attempts to organise meetings somewhere in the world. We are given the details of a meeting - the place, date and time, nothing more. This basic principle and structure always remains the same throughout the series. The invitation to meet is potentially open to an audience of 10,000 (the edition), more like a rally or demo than a brief encounter. What will happen? Who will be there?."

I love the humor in this work, check out his other work on this blog People Looking at Art (2021): accordion publications: Jonathan Monk, People Looking at Art, Fifth Syllable, UK, 2021, ed. 50

8 double-sided pages, individual pages 4" x 5", and when opened up 3" 4".

back page

Goshuin-cho, pilgrimage stamp book, Japan, nd

         

Here's a type of accordion book that I'd never come across before. These Japanese accordion books are specifically for collecting the stamps/seals that you can get for a small fee when you visit Japanese shrines and temples. According to Lisa Wallin this has become a trend over the last couple of years, and apparently is particularly popular among women. This example has a cover made from traditional Japanese yuzen washi paper. Here's a link to Wallin's article explaining this very interesting tradition: A Beginner's Guide to Goshuincho: How To Get One and How to Use It | Guides & Insights

 

This book has 24 double-sided pages, individual pages 4.25" x 6.25, and when fully opened 8ft 6".

Goshuin-cho with temple/shrine stamps

[image source: A Guide to Goshuin: Japanese Shrine and Temple Stamps - Savvy Tokyo]

Goshuin-cho with front and back covers

Mirel Fraga, Bosque Tropical (Tropical Forest), Polvoh Press, Oaxaca, Mexico, 2022, 2nd edition

This is a beautiful and wonderfully vibrant screenprinted accordion from this artist based in Oaxaca, Mexico. Fraga has worked as a designer and illustrator, coupled with textile, editorial and graphic design projects, as well as having worked at a number of important cultural institutions in Oaxaca City and the surrounding area. She's also been influenced by her time working in an artisan workshop in the village of San Martin Tilcajete, famous for its multicolored and carved wooden alebrijes. Fraga says she was influenced by these artisans' use of color, saying "you can see it in my work: in the shapes, the colors, and in certain psychedelic elements, because I think they (the alebrijes artists) have a psychedelic side." Fraga is also the co-founder of Polvoh Press based in Oaxaca City. [Powder Press]

Here's a link to an interesting article about Fraga that gives an excellent account of her background, artistic interests, as well as her thoughts about color and its importance for her and her art: The Many Colors of Mirel Fraga | Hecho a Mano

6 double-sided pages, individually 6" x 8.25", and when fully opened 39" (including title fold)

reverse side

back cover

Alfred Mason Amadon, M.D., The Fold-Out Atlas of the Human Body, Bonanza Books, New York, reprint 1984/1906.

In my recent researches into all things accordion and folded, I stumbled across the genre of anatomical flap books, also known as fold-out books. Variously described as virtual autopsies or knife-less dissections, books using flaps make their first appearance in the late 16th century with a flap book of Euclid's Elements of Geometry (1570), and in the medical field in 1583 with a flap book on the eye. In the latter part of the 1800s medical flap books became especially popular and by 1900 all sorts of flap-books were being published in Europe and North America. 

This particular book is a reproduction of its original 1906 edition. As you can see they're really quite extraordinary publications with fascinating layers of flaps revealing the deeper recesses of the human body. They would also appear to be quite labor intensive publications and I'm sure the $3 I paid for this one on Amazon is not truly reflective of all the delicate work needed in its construction!

For a particularly interesting text about the history, development and uses of flap books and fold-outs see Simone Schlepers' 2014, article "Knife-less Dissection: Functions of fold-outs in 19th century anatomical culture," at: ‘Knife-less’ Dissection: Functions of fold-outs in 19th century anatomical culture – Shells and Pebbles

The Getty has just posted a cool video about flap books, here's the link: Video: Flesh and Bones Flap Book | Getty News

Lillian Sizemore, Driving to My Boyfriend's House, Madison, 2022

On February 14th, Lillian, my girlfriend surprised me with this really sweet accordion that she had made in celebration of our 5th year anniversary — what more can I say!

8 double-sided pages, individually 4.75" x 6.75" and when fully open 4ft 6".

we're having some repairs to the street at the moment, 

so of course the final part of the route is blocked!

reverse side

back cover

Chet Phillips, Kaiju Sushi, Dancing Cat Bindery, 2018, ed. 30

foil stamped slip cover by Julie Sullivan

A really beautifully crafted accordion that tells the tale of how the giant-sized monsters known as Kaiju, were pacified after the world's alchemists found a solution by creating massive mutant sushi, and these delicious treats changed "...their dispositions from ferocious to peaceful and gratified."  Three stickers of Kaiju's come with the publication.

8 single-sided pages, individually 4.75" x 4.5", and when fully opened 3ft

cover

3 stickers of Kaiju are included with the accordion

Dogan Surek, Real Time, lino-cut, 1998

Always nice to find a Surek accordion, check out the others in this blog. This is a rather intriguing one, however, I'm finding it hard to decipher. The red band from California to Thailand on pages 3 & 4 covers a total of 18 times zones, with 9 hours on either side of the Greenwich Mean Time line. And then there's the book's title printed across another four pages, with another four pages in the latter part of the book filled with images that would seem to take the viewer into the larger galaxy beyond our world. The backwards title introduces another indecipherable clue as to the book's theme. If any readers can help me with this please respond at the end of this post!

12 single sided pages, individually 5.75" x 4", and when fully open 4ft.

John Shimon, Untitled, cyanotype, 2021

Front cover

The first cyanotype accordion for this blog! This work was sent to me by my friend John Shimon, an offbeat and well established Wisconsin photographer based in Appleton. Accompanying the accordion was a postcard with a note stating, "An experiment with the accordion form!" This monochromatic work is a delight with a gestural subtext that imbues the work with both depth and movement. Don't stop there John, I want to see more!!

8 pages, individually 7" x 5", and when fully opened 3ft 4".

Reverse side of accordion

Back cover

An example of a cyanotype end of the year card (2021) 

from John and his partner Lauren Semivan