We were welcomed back after a well-deserved break to such an enjoyable project. The aim of this task was to produce a series of images within a small book, inspired by one of Ed Ruscha's publications. Not necessarily related to my research project but must be in response to one, or possibly all of Ed Ruscha's books.
Ruscha's work is so simple. What I love when I look through his work is that nothing is big, small books with images that hold the attention of the viewer. He clearly had a personal interest and fascination with his chosen subjects.
I have spent many hours walking through cemeteries if not visiting my late mother or grandparents, it could be just to clear my head. I find the atmosphere so tranquil and after such a crazy few months I decided to take a walk through The Holy Souls Roman Catholic Cemetery in Bristol. It's a beautiful walk and one which I have done on many occasions as a part of my work in progress portfolio.
I decided on this project I would take inspiration from Ruscha's book "real estate opportunities."Several reasons made me choose this as my inspiration. Firstly let's talk about the book. The first edition, first printing had a softcover. White matte wrappers with the title printed on both the cover and the spine with a glassine dust jacket. It contained 25 black-and-white images accompanied by the address of the property. Measuring just 7 x 5-1/2 inches it immediately caught my attention. The size really speaks to me as does the simplicity of the books by Ruscha.
I decided I would title my tiny book "Liminal space. Real estate for the afterlife." I immediately thought of the graves being a home for these resting souls. Real estate for the deceased. What exactly is real estate? Real estate is property consisting of land and the buildings on it, along with its natural resources such as crops, minerals, or water. An item of real property, (more generaly_ buildings or housing in general. I decided in the title "Liminal Space" as it is to me exactly that. Liminal spaces are transitional or transformative spaces. They are waiting areas between one point in time and space and the next. Often, when we are in liminal spaces, we have the feeling of just being on the verge of something. Liminal space is, of course, a literal space.
I have attached a link to my digital version which will go for print once I'm 100% happy with the finished article.
In the meantime, I need to find a company to print my tiny book using the papers of my choice.